PaulW

That didn't take long.....got the TCU today, and squirt mode is now enabled!! A pictorial post:

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU13.JPG">

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU14.JPG">

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU15.JPG">

This is what happens when you put the shifter in "2".....in "3" it does not do this....I checked the codes and I got an implausible F125 switch signal.....wrote the code down, but it's in the garage. Put the shifter back in park, reset the ignition and it goes away. Did not try to drive it like this.


<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU16.JPG">

Drove it around town.....OMG!!!!! The thing is definitely on Viagra when it's in "S"!!! It's totally a different car, even as compared to being in tiptronic, much, much more responsive (and gas consuming).

If I was a betting man, I would guess that any TCU from an 02 or 03 would work on the 00's or 01's. Mine was coding to 01102 when I received it (it was out of a 2002 S8) but you can recode it to A8 or S8 settings.

EDIT: ONLY S8 TCU's work in S8's. DO NOT BUY ONE FROM AN A8. USE THE PART NUMBERS BELOW ONLY.

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU12.JPG">

It appears the 01's have a Dx suffix, and the 02 and 03's have a Ex suffix. I bet the Ex suffix units are the ones with sport.

I coded it back to 00102, thinking the dash would go back to PRND432, but it stayed in PRNDS.....it's still like that, will drive it around later and see if it stays like that.....

And this mod wasn't much more than PK's wheel spacers and lug nuts!!!


And for reference, here is TwinCities' 02 TCU and my 01 TCU that I removed.....and one more from markbrandford's 03 S8 that I looked at last weekend.....

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU10.JPG">

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU11.JPG">

<img src="http://www.audipages.com/upgrades/TCU17.JPG">

mpollan

You sir are a nutter!! And yet again boggle this Polock's feeble mind.

bach

I like to know where you get it from.. I want it..

dimitristx

E.g.,

<a href="http://www.transmissioncontrolunits.com/finditfast/default.asp?showrnrattop=0"> TCU Direct Catalog </a>

grncobra

Hello Paul,

Throughly enjoyed all the info that you have over @ Audipages.com
I am very very close to picking up my 01 S8 and would love to find a 02-03 TCU. Now you said you can re-code a TCU? do you need the ross-tech software? Thanks again, beautiful car by the way.
Simon

ttuling

And a couple things you might try for determining if there really are dual-use A8/S8 TCMs: see if yours accepts A8 coding, and if it does, see if it upshifts at A8 redline.

Tom

skiracer

Glad it has worked out for you. Do you think you will need to rewire your shifter so you can get to "S" mode without having to pass through the 3rd gear implausible F125 switch signal? I would think that a rather trivial rewire of the shifter would do the trick. Better yet, find a used shifter from an '02 or '03 S8 and retrofit it just like your '97 tip retrofit.

PaulW

As I mentioned, there is an 02 A8L TCU for $250 plus $10 shipping, it should work, but don't know for sure.

It's at:

Nationwide Auto Recycling
1410 Lunenburg Road
Lancaster,MA 01523
978-534-0477

Call Steve.

I got mine from a junk yard in WI from an 02 S8, it was $300 shipped. I figured for $40 extra I'll try one from a S8.

PaulW

But if you don't have the "E" revision, recoding the "D" TCU has no effect. You need the E revision TCU to get the "S"quirt mode.

And I've only tested one, so I can't know for sure on other revision suffix's.

PaulW

I will try the recode to A8.....and post results.

After learning about the RNS-E and the dash and the display, all commands on the dash are sent to it by various control modules, it jsut displays what things are telling it too, so that's one reason why I thought it would work.