A8 died
10-30-2014, 06:18 PM
#1
Pro
Thread Starter
A8 died
I mentioned issues I was having with my A8 in my Z51 coupe vin 6623 in another thread where I was announcing that I had picked the car up and was loving it except for a little weirdness in the transmission. Figured it was time to start a dedicated thread for the rest of the story.
With 79 miles on the car as I was coming to a stop on a busy freeway off ramp yesterday the car felt like it downshifted really hard and refused to move another inch. Tried all the driving modes, manual shift and paddles with no help. I was in the left lane of a 4 lane off ramp and cars were going around me on both sides. My left side was just large gravel. I was waiting for some to hit the car but luckily none did. The highway patrol finally showed up and hand pushed me in neutral off to the side of the road. Rollback picked up the car about 30 minutes later. All of this coordinated through OnStar.
Of course this was in 90+ degree weather as well. Fortunately the engine was still running so we had AC.
Got the call today that GM is shipping a new transmission from the vendor in Ohio. Service guy says he thinks the Engineers know what is wrong but they wouldn't say. There were no codes but they couldn't get any of the shift solenoids to work. He did say they could get it to go into reverse in any shift position including drive. That's more than it would do for me yesterday. Guess it could have actually gone into reverse when I stopped and that was the violent shift I felt.
I'm really disappointed and at this point my sense of confidence in the car is shattered.
Oh, the weirdness that I reported in the other thread before this happened was like the transmission was coming out of gear while driving about 45 mph in ECO mode. The engine would rev up then come back down without any difference in feel to the car. It did this a few times then I switched to Touring and it stopped. About 5 miles before getting to the off ramp I noticed the same thing again.
I'll try to get autopsy results but I have a feeling those will be privileged information.
With 79 miles on the car as I was coming to a stop on a busy freeway off ramp yesterday the car felt like it downshifted really hard and refused to move another inch. Tried all the driving modes, manual shift and paddles with no help. I was in the left lane of a 4 lane off ramp and cars were going around me on both sides. My left side was just large gravel. I was waiting for some to hit the car but luckily none did. The highway patrol finally showed up and hand pushed me in neutral off to the side of the road. Rollback picked up the car about 30 minutes later. All of this coordinated through OnStar.
Of course this was in 90+ degree weather as well. Fortunately the engine was still running so we had AC.
Got the call today that GM is shipping a new transmission from the vendor in Ohio. Service guy says he thinks the Engineers know what is wrong but they wouldn't say. There were no codes but they couldn't get any of the shift solenoids to work. He did say they could get it to go into reverse in any shift position including drive. That's more than it would do for me yesterday. Guess it could have actually gone into reverse when I stopped and that was the violent shift I felt.
I'm really disappointed and at this point my sense of confidence in the car is shattered.
Oh, the weirdness that I reported in the other thread before this happened was like the transmission was coming out of gear while driving about 45 mph in ECO mode. The engine would rev up then come back down without any difference in feel to the car. It did this a few times then I switched to Touring and it stopped. About 5 miles before getting to the off ramp I noticed the same thing again.
I'll try to get autopsy results but I have a feeling those will be privileged information.
Last edited by rramjet; 10-30-2014 at 06:24 PM.
10-30-2014, 06:30 PM
#4
Le Mans Master
For someone getting a Z06 with the A8, I am not happy to hear about this!
Is this an isolated incident so far or have there been many others with issues?
I normally spend time on the Z06 forum, but haven't seen any reports here except this one.
Good luck with the new A8.
Is this an isolated incident so far or have there been many others with issues?
I normally spend time on the Z06 forum, but haven't seen any reports here except this one.
Good luck with the new A8.
10-30-2014, 07:17 PM
#9
Pro
Thread Starter
For someone getting a Z06 with the A8, I am not happy to hear about this!
Is this an isolated incident so far or have there been many others with issues?
I normally spend time on the Z06 forum, but haven't seen any reports here except this one.
Good luck with the new A8.
Is this an isolated incident so far or have there been many others with issues?
I normally spend time on the Z06 forum, but haven't seen any reports here except this one.
Good luck with the new A8.
10-30-2014, 07:33 PM
#11
This is exactly why i got a 2014 A6 and did not wait for the A8. Everybody was talking about waiting for the second year to avoid issues, but in reality, the A8 is really the first year of something new. The A6 has been proven for years. I would have waited for a 2016 if i had to wait. This sucks, but hopefully it gets figured out.
10-30-2014, 08:03 PM
#13
Melting Slicks
Lots of fun ahead.
10-30-2014, 08:17 PM
#14
Le Mans Master
Member Since: Oct 2004
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This is exactly why i got a 2014 A6 and did not wait for the A8. Everybody was talking about waiting for the second year to avoid issues, but in reality, the A8 is really the first year of something new. The A6 has been proven for years. I would have waited for a 2016 if i had to wait. This sucks, but hopefully it gets figured out.
10-30-2014, 08:40 PM
#15
This is exactly why i got a 2014 A6 and did not wait for the A8. Everybody was talking about waiting for the second year to avoid issues, but in reality, the A8 is really the first year of something new. The A6 has been proven for years. I would have waited for a 2016 if i had to wait. This sucks, but hopefully it gets figured out.
10-30-2014, 08:52 PM
#16
10-30-2014, 09:21 PM
#17
Le Mans Master
Sorry for your troubles. A new Tranny in a Car w/ 79 miles? Some scary stories coming from this new generation. 
Good Luck w/ the fix.
Good Luck w/ the fix.
10-30-2014, 09:24 PM
#18
Race Director
That's what warranties are for.its normal to have something like this happen and consider this perspective...
It's cool gm stepped right up and is replacing the entire transmission.
If your really concerned.....about the future of the vehicle. I always felt the GMEPPwarranty purchased off a forum vendor....
They are so inexpensive when shopped on this forum...it's chump change for peace of mind.
Sorry to hear of your getting stuck on the side of the road.
Had a similar occurence with my manual transmission z06 on a four lane highway and it was a drag until I had it towed to a dealership and had it fixed.
You re car will be as good as new.
It's cool gm stepped right up and is replacing the entire transmission.
If your really concerned.....about the future of the vehicle. I always felt the GMEPPwarranty purchased off a forum vendor....
They are so inexpensive when shopped on this forum...it's chump change for peace of mind.
Sorry to hear of your getting stuck on the side of the road.
Had a similar occurence with my manual transmission z06 on a four lane highway and it was a drag until I had it towed to a dealership and had it fixed.
You re car will be as good as new.
10-30-2014, 09:24 PM
#19
10-30-2014, 09:24 PM
#20
I mentioned issues I was having with my A8 in my Z51 coupe vin 6623 in another thread where I was announcing that I had picked the car up and was loving it except for a little weirdness in the transmission. Figured it was time to start a dedicated thread for the rest of the story.
With 79 miles on the car as I was coming to a stop on a busy freeway off ramp yesterday the car felt like it downshifted really hard and refused to move another inch. Tried all the driving modes, manual shift and paddles with no help. I was in the left lane of a 4 lane off ramp and cars were going around me on both sides. My left side was just large gravel. I was waiting for some to hit the car but luckily none did. The highway patrol finally showed up and hand pushed me in neutral off to the side of the road. Rollback picked up the car about 30 minutes later. All of this coordinated through OnStar.
Of course this was in 90+ degree weather as well. Fortunately the engine was still running so we had AC.
Got the call today that GM is shipping a new transmission from the vendor in Ohio. Service guy says he thinks the Engineers know what is wrong but they wouldn't say. There were no codes but they couldn't get any of the shift solenoids to work. He did say they could get it to go into reverse in any shift position including drive. That's more than it would do for me yesterday. Guess it could have actually gone into reverse when I stopped and that was the violent shift I felt.
I'm really disappointed and at this point my sense of confidence in the car is shattered.
Oh, the weirdness that I reported in the other thread before this happened was like the transmission was coming out of gear while driving about 45 mph in ECO mode. The engine would rev up then come back down without any difference in feel to the car. It did this a few times then I switched to Touring and it stopped. About 5 miles before getting to the off ramp I noticed the same thing again.
I'll try to get autopsy results but I have a feeling those will be privileged information.
With 79 miles on the car as I was coming to a stop on a busy freeway off ramp yesterday the car felt like it downshifted really hard and refused to move another inch. Tried all the driving modes, manual shift and paddles with no help. I was in the left lane of a 4 lane off ramp and cars were going around me on both sides. My left side was just large gravel. I was waiting for some to hit the car but luckily none did. The highway patrol finally showed up and hand pushed me in neutral off to the side of the road. Rollback picked up the car about 30 minutes later. All of this coordinated through OnStar.
Of course this was in 90+ degree weather as well. Fortunately the engine was still running so we had AC.
Got the call today that GM is shipping a new transmission from the vendor in Ohio. Service guy says he thinks the Engineers know what is wrong but they wouldn't say. There were no codes but they couldn't get any of the shift solenoids to work. He did say they could get it to go into reverse in any shift position including drive. That's more than it would do for me yesterday. Guess it could have actually gone into reverse when I stopped and that was the violent shift I felt.
I'm really disappointed and at this point my sense of confidence in the car is shattered.
Oh, the weirdness that I reported in the other thread before this happened was like the transmission was coming out of gear while driving about 45 mph in ECO mode. The engine would rev up then come back down without any difference in feel to the car. It did this a few times then I switched to Touring and it stopped. About 5 miles before getting to the off ramp I noticed the same thing again.
I'll try to get autopsy results but I have a feeling those will be privileged information.
The problem you describe above is what happens if the engine decides to get into deceleration fuel cutoff while the torque converter on the transmission is UNLOCKED, engine speed will drop really quick and then shoot back up. This is assuming this was happening while coasting down.