# Audi TTS S Tronic problems?



## jamal (Nov 16, 2007)

Hi all

My little brother recently bought a 08 TTS Stronic with only 30k miles, I have noticed the gearbox is very jerky and bouncy when taking off and reversing. I am told that he needs a new mechatronic unit but i am also told that a gearbox oil change will solve this? Anybody know of the cost of the mechatronic unit fitted from main dealer or specialist? Also, has anybody dealt with www.mectronic.fi? 
Please let me know as soon as possible please guys

Thanks


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## igotone (Mar 10, 2010)

A new mechatronic unit from a dealer will cost in the region £2 to £2.5K fitted. I'd certainly change the gearbox oil and make sure it's fully topped up before you do anything hasty. Just be aware that it may not be the DSG box causing the issues - problems with ABS sensors or the dual mass flywheel can cause similar symptoms.

There are 3rd parties who repair mechatronic units or supply refurbished units. I've not dealt with any but here's one such supplier who is no doubt a lot cheaper than a dealer. A google search should throw up plenty of others.

http://www.bestscrapcarpricesmanchester ... onics.html


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## jamal (Nov 16, 2007)

igotone said:


> A new mechatronic unit from a dealer will cost in the region £2 to £2.5K fitted. I'd certainly change the gearbox oil and make sure it's fully topped up before you do anything hasty. Just be aware that it may not be the DSG box causing the issues - problems with ABS sensors or the dual mass flywheel can cause similar symptoms.
> 
> There are 3rd parties who repair mechatronic units or supply refurbished units. I've not dealt with any but here's one such supplier who is no doubt a lot cheaper than a dealer. A google search should throw up plenty of others.
> 
> http://www.bestscrapcarpricesmanchester ... onics.html


Thank you for the info, I will book it in for a gearbox oil service next week and see how it goes from there.


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## bomasspot (Mar 13, 2011)

I'd reset the gearbox via VCDS first and see if it makes any difference http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.ph ... x_(DSG/02E)


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## brittan (May 18, 2007)

It's also worth checking the brake light switch which is a sensor fixed to the master cylinder.


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## planman (Sep 15, 2002)

Hi Jamal

I have exactly the same problem. I have had the gearbox oil changed, the gearbox ECU reset and the the gearbox vagcom checked which showed no faults with the mechatronic unit.
I enquired if the gearbox remap would help, but was told by APR who did my engine stage 1 remap, that it would not. I have now been told that it could be the clutch pack. Don't know the price but sounds expensive.

APR recommended a company to look at it for me despite the TT shop in Bedfordshire doing all my servicing, but it was not at all impressed after talking to them. They tried to insinuate that the TT shop had not even reset the gearbox despite it being done in front of me and a full diagnostics carried out at the same time.

You should have a warning light come up if it is the mechatronics unit. Simple answer is that I am still none the wiser but still looking for an answer. Mine is a 2008 TTS S Tronic with full service history and 50,000 on the clock.

I will keep you in the loop but don't rush into anything. It's annoying but not dangerous.


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## spaceplace (Mar 10, 2013)

What oil are you using? I read up on it a while ago (I have a mk1 dsg) apparently the synthetic stuff contains sulphur which can cause shorts in the mech unit when it gets hot, in hot climates Audi have switched to a mineral oil which is meant to solve this problem, Google Audi/Vw dsg mineral oil and there's some info on it, I think it only affects some boxes and I won't pretend to know much about it but if nothing else it's quite interesting


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## 35mphspeedlimit (Sep 25, 2010)

S-tronic problems on my Mark 1 TT were not solved by gear box oil change and ended up with a mechatronic unit replacement (requiring a further oil change) setting me back over £2,500 in total. No warning lights apparent but under VAGCOM fault code G182 appeared (faulty speed sensor) hence problems with jerky changes in low gears as car did not know whether it was accelerating or decelerating and by the time it did it forced the change! Of course there are other sensor faults that could cause the problem but I have no personal experience of these.


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## powerplay (Feb 8, 2008)

When my TTS (2008, 4k miles) developed these symptoms (low speed revs fluctuating, jerky motion in 1st/2nd/reverse) there were no warning lights, never had the "death flash" etc but ended up having a new mech unit under warranty, that was the only thing that resolved it in my case.


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## Sophus (Apr 26, 2013)

brittan said:


> It's also worth checking the brake light switch which is a sensor fixed to the master cylinder.


I second that from personal experience. If you experience a delay and/or a jerk/jump, typically when going from standstill or driving in real slow traffic, change the brake light sensor. This fault may occur intermittent and with variable delay and jerkiness. The part is cheap and can be replaced in 2 minutes by anyone.

I also second a DSG reset and a throttle body realignment while you are at it, and oil change, before you start replacing expensive parts. Of course, while you have VCDS hooked up, do diagnosis first.


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## jamal (Nov 16, 2007)

Thanks for the info and help guys. Will update on Monday


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## planman (Sep 15, 2002)

Any updates Jamal?


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## thejudge (Nov 20, 2013)

my tts stronic has some similar symptoms but it doesnt bother me enough to spend 2k fixing it


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## jamal (Nov 16, 2007)

Hi guys

Booked the car in with audi on the 12th of august for the major service but have also added a gearbox oil change from them, will see how it goes after the gearbox oil change, did drive it today and it's not too annoying but have noticed a clicking noise when it goes from second gear to third.. Will get them to check it out


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## Paullaith (Sep 1, 2016)

Sorry to dig up an old thread. Did you manage to resolve the clicking noise going into 3rd as mine does this also?


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## jasonblake7 (Apr 11, 2013)

Hi... Does anyone know from Sophus's response to a post below why changing the brake light sensor may fix the possible symptoms that are typically a dodgy mechatronic unit ?



Sophus said:


> brittan said:
> 
> 
> > It's also worth checking the brake light switch which is a sensor fixed to the master cylinder.
> ...


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## 83kY (Apr 5, 2017)

jasonblake7 said:


> Hi... Does anyone know from Sophus's response to a post below why changing the brake light sensor may fix the possible symptoms that are typically a dodgy mechatronic unit ?


My best guess as a mechanic would be that the sensor is giving the gearbox ecu wrong information or is slow with giving out that information. You try to accelerate and the engine revs up but the gearbox doesn't know what is happening. It thinks that the brake pedal is still being pressed though it's not, then it gets that information from the sensor that the pedal is free, accelerator is already being pressed and the car jumps/bumps when it starts moving.


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

Unfortunately it is not such an easy job on RHD cars


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

I've had a similar issue TTS 08 60k. I get a decent jolt from taking off from a standstill (Worse when its up to temp). Also get a similar issue when in reverse but this does multiple judders rather than stopping after the one. I guess seeing that its effected by the temperature the brake light sensor is out the picture? Can anyone shed any light on this ? :?


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## brittan (May 18, 2007)

BradRD said:


> I've had a similar issue TTS 08 60k. I get a decent jolt from taking off from a standstill (Worse when its up to temp). Also get a similar issue when in reverse but this does multiple judders rather than stopping after the one. I guess seeing that its effected by the temperature the brake light sensor is out the picture? Can anyone shed any light on this ? :?


That's indicative of a problem in the Mechatronic unit which is on the front of the gearbox and contains all the hydraulic valves and electronics that operate the gearbox. Repair by Audi would be by replacing the whole unit.
Alternatively there are companies that will test and (if possible) repair the unit. You would need to find an independent garage to remove and replace the unit for you, unless you can DIY that work.

A scan for fault codes is step 1 as that may show up a temperature sensor fault.

Some info here: https://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtop ... nic+repair

A search for "Mechatronic Repair" will find you more information.

Also: https://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtop ... e#p7210450


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

brittan said:


> That's indicative of a problem in the Mechatronic unit which is on the front of the gearbox and contains all the hydraulic valves and electronics that operate the gearbox. Repair by Audi would be by replacing the whole unit.
> Alternatively there are companies that will test and (if possible) repair the unit. You would need to find an independent garage to remove and replace the unit for you, unless you can DIY that work.


Had a feeling :? ... If I let the car start moving after taking the brake off then very gently accelerate its barely noticeable. I suppose the problem will get worse over time ? I also do not get any movement or pulsing on the rev gauge as many others seem to have. Any recommendations for someone who could check this out ?


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

Mine is similar to your description, even after the mechatronic was replaced

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


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## brittan (May 18, 2007)

There are two temperature sensors in the Mechatronic unit, G93 and G510. G93 is the main sensor and G510 is the back up or 'check' sensor. If one sensor fails, the signal from the other sensor is used. If both fail an emergency signal from engine temperature is used. Higher than normal temperature (even if it's a false signal) results in engine torque reduction in steps until the temperature starts to reduce. Ultimately that process will result in no drive if temperature does not reduce.

There's one temperature sensor in the gearbox itself. G509 reads the oil temperature from the clutch. If that temperature reading exceeds a limit, the clutch does a 'shudder effect' to make the driver abort driving away. The gear selector display on the dash will flash too. 
Temporary loss of signal can produce hard gear changes. If the signal is completely lost the signal fro G93/G510 is used.

In both cases there should be faults logged. 
Using VCDS measuring blocks is also useful to compare the actual temperature outputs from each of the sensors.


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

MT-V6 said:


> Mine is similar to your description, even after the mechatronic was replaced
> 
> Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


Has yours worsened over time ?


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

brittan said:


> There are two temperature sensors in the Mechatronic unit, G93 and G510. G93 is the main sensor and G510 is the back up or 'check' sensor. If one sensor fails, the signal from the other sensor is used. If both fail an emergency signal from engine temperature is used. Higher than normal temperature (even if it's a false signal) results in engine torque reduction in steps until the temperature starts to reduce. Ultimately that process will result in no drive if temperature does not reduce.
> 
> There's one temperature sensor in the gearbox itself. G509 reads the oil temperature from the clutch. If that temperature reading exceeds a limit, the clutch does a 'shudder effect' to make the driver abort driving away. The gear selector display on the dash will flash too.
> Temporary loss of signal can produce hard gear changes. If the signal is completely lost the signal fro G93/G510 is used.
> ...


So I need to get it plugged in to check for faults first? I have no warnings on the dash or anything like that. No horrible noises either.


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## brittan (May 18, 2007)

BradRD said:


> So I need to get it plugged in to check for faults first? I have no warnings on the dash or anything like that. No horrible noises either.


Yes. As per my first post, this is step 1 of most diagnosis.

Additionally, in this case, looking at the measuring blocks will show the temperature readout from each sensor and simple comparison may then identify if one of them is duff.

There's a list of people with VCDS or similar, who may be able to help with the faults scan here: https://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtop ... 9&t=240247


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## MT-V6 (Jan 11, 2015)

BradRD said:


> MT-V6 said:
> 
> 
> > Mine is similar to your description, even after the mechatronic was replaced
> ...


When I bought the car it had the telltale jerkiness at low speed. The mechatronic was replaced under warranty that resolved it, though it can still jerk from a standstill. This improves when warmed up. I've never looked into it but had read a lot of similar posts that conclude this specific problem is the nature of the gearbox

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

Mines the other way around. Its gets worse when its up to temperature.


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## BradRD (Dec 20, 2016)

brittan said:


> BradRD said:
> 
> 
> > So I need to get it plugged in to check for faults first? I have no warnings on the dash or anything like that. No horrible noises either.
> ...


Thanks for the advice. Got friend who is potentially borrowing a unit off someone next weekend. Would this be something I could do myself if I was following instructions? Also do you happen to have any on the off chance ?


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## jaybeeteetee (Aug 25, 2017)

MT-V6 said:


> Unfortunately it is not such an easy job on RHD cars


Any idea how much more difficult? I've just discovered first hand it's not the two minute job suggested!!

https://www.ttforum.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=1853201


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## 300stu (Nov 24, 2014)

hi had the switch replaced on my TT RS its under the brake servo .Totally inaccessible took my local indi 4 hours to replace it


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## jaybeeteetee (Aug 25, 2017)

300stu said:


> hi had the switch replaced on my TT RS its under the brake servo .Totally inaccessible took my local indi 4 hours to replace it


Thanks for the info... unfortunate as it is!!


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