I'll be picking-up my new car on Friday (A4 97 C5). However, there's one thing that I just wanna clear-up before I hand-over any money. The seller said that the tranny won't stay in kickdown until the engine oil / tranny oil is at a certain temperature. Can anyone confirm whether or not that's true???
He said if I try to kickdown while the car is still in its warm-up phase, it'll change back up as soon as it kicks down.
Thanks.

 

I don't know the answer to this question....BUT ...I know someone who will :yesnod: I would e-mail our resident C5 Transmission expert Steve Atkins...You can reach him at 954-772-3000 or check out his website at www.eastcoasttransmissions.com Tell him your a CF member and I referred you...He can help!

 

Not a good idea to ever high rev/load an engine until oil/trans temp is up to 150 plus....but I don't beleive the PCM prevents you from doing it....I've never tried it (for the obvious reasons) so this is a good question..... Vince, almost back on the road???

 

Thanks for the info... are there any other A4 owners out there that can confirm whether or not the tranny will stay down-shifted under hard acceleration when cold / not fully warmed-up??

I'm supposed to be completing the deal on the car on Saturday, so really would appreciate any advice anyone can give me.

 

My early '98 has never done any such unexpected behavior, with shifting when cold. I agree with the others that this should not be done but over the 5 yrs with the car i'm sure it was necessary a few times. I agree with lots of posts that the stock shift behavior sucks, but it can now be changed. :rolleyes:

 

Well, thanks for the info folks. I decided to take Vstella's advice and give East Coast Transmissions a call. Didn't speak to Steve, but to one of his co-workers. The guys there confirmed what everyone else (including specialists here in the UK) had said in that there is no 'feature' on the C5 A4 that prevents kickdown when cold. The guy at East Coast Transmissions was very friendly and helpful and said, by my description, it was probably due to a faulty TPS (Throttle Position Sensor). But, worst case could be an internal failure in the tranny (strip-down time). He also said it was bad news that the car has only covered 15k miles in nearly 6-years. Apparently, all sorts of problems can be caused by seals drying-out and even tranny bands de-laminating. After listening to what the experts had to say and based on the responses I've been getting from you guys, I've decided to listen to my head and not allow myself to be ruled by my heart and pass-up this C5 :nopity: Instead, I've just this minute sealed the deal on a 99 Sebring Silver C5 A4 with G92 (3.15 axle) that I saw last week that's done 25k miles, which equates to a more reasonable 6,250 miles per year. I've already looked over the car in the showroom and the condition is as new, except for a small graze on the offside front bumper. Just need to take it for a test drive on Friday afternoon to be sure everything's ok. If it checks-out, I'll have my first Corvette! Wish me luck! :auto:


[Modified by i_york, 9:23 PM 4/2/2003]

 

Is the kickdown controlled entirely from the PCM? If so, is it possible that the PCM inhibits kickdown until a certain temperature has been reached?? I know it's not advisable to put the hammer down when the car is cold, but if there's a problem with the car, this may be the first signs of trouble. Basically, if it's not supposed to do it, then there must be something wrong!

 

The '99 sounds great :thumbs:
Congrats and good luck :cheers: