My wife bought a 2001 TT roadster, six speed w/ the 225 engine in early June. The car only has 43,000 miles on it and looked to be in excellent condition.

Before we bought the car from a Land Rover dealership, we took the car to Schaumburg Audi to have it under go the 300 point certified inspection. It came back as requiring the ball joints needing to be replaced which was no big deal. Last Friday when leaving her office the transmission failed. Evidently a component came loose and went through the case, we are now on the hook for a trasmission replacement.

I called Audi USA yesterday to explain the situation and see if there were any opportunities for relief. If I hadn't taken the car to an Audi dealership to be inspected, I would fully understand that I have no recourse. I was told that the transmission is a sealed unit and they are not able to inspect the internal mechanisms. I responded that because it's a sealed unit and not exposed to the elements, that would point to a manufacturing issue. After some back and forth on the issue, I was basically told I could take the car to Schaumburg Audi and see what they could determine if it's a design/manufacturing problem. Oh, but I'm on the hook for the transport of the vehicle and any charges related to the inspection. In other words, I'm SOL as far as Audi USA is concerned. I have decided to go ahead and have the transmission replaced by an independent mechanic, but I will have him take photos and save the transmission.

I understand this is a used vehicle and that there is inherent risk, so please no lectures on "buyer beware". What I'd like to know if others have had success with different approaches ie-what works. I know many of my Acura brethren have experienced the heartbreak of a transmission gone bad, but a manual?!

I'm disappointed with the response from Audi USA, after all the quality issues they had in the 80's-90's I would have thought they would at least like to inspect the transmission for free to see what caused the problem. BTW-This is the fourth Audi we have owned in the last seven years, guess customer loyalty doesn't count for much. That's why I drive an Acura.

 

welcome to German engineering and customer service.

 

But if it's a certified car, doesn't that carry a warranty? I bought my TSX CPO and it came with an extended CPO warranty. I'd think that warranty would cover the drivetrain/tranny.

Sucks, but I've never heard of Audi/VW being known for their great customer service.

 

Wow, sorry to hear about this. Have AAA tow it to the Audi dealership that did the inspection and check to see if it's still under any type of warranty. The transmission should definitely have lasted longer than 43k miles.

 

Audi Reliability ftmfL