A5 3.0 TDI S-Tronic & Remap

[Djwoody]

Hi.
I currently own an A4 B8 3.0 TDI (2008 Manual) and now have the opportunity to buy my mate's A5 3.0 TDI S-Tronic (2009 plate).
They are essentially the same engine I believe - 240bhp.

Do any of you own this model in the S-Tronic? If so, are you happy with it or have you had any problems?

Also, if any of you have had a Remap for the S-Tronic, would like to hear your experiences.

Thanks
Chris

 

[Gazwould]

I wouldn't touch any S tronic or form of DSG with a barge pole .

 

[Swanny356]

I own a 3.0 TDI STronic.

I must say that before this car I always said that I would not own a diesel or an Auto, I was so wrong on both accounts!

The engine pulls like a train and the S Tronic is perfect for either lazy motorway miles or paddle shifting through sweeping B roads.

Not had the gearbox mapped but the engine is pulling around 300bhp and I love it!

Not sure what Gazwould's issue with the S Tronic is but from 3 years experience, the car still puts a smile on my face whenever I climb in.

 

[Djwoody]

I own a 3.0 TDI STronic.

I must say that before this car I always said that I would not own a diesel or an Auto, I was so wrong on both accounts!

The engine pulls like a train and the S Tronic is perfect for either lazy motorway miles or paddle shifting through sweeping B roads.

Not had the gearbox mapped but the engine is pulling around 300bhp and I love it!

Not sure what Gazwould's issue with the S Tronic is but from 3 years experience, the car still puts a smile on my face whenever I climb in.

Thanks Swanny.
Did you keep your DPF or not?
What sort of MPG are you getting?

 

[Swanny356]

You're welcome,

Yeah DPF is still there at the moment, I do enough motorway miles to keep it clear, I hope!

I'm getting about 37 mpg at the moment from a 50/50 mixture of motorway and country roads.

Of course I always drive to maximise the fuel economy and not the pleasure .

 

[JohnboyC]

Hi
I have a 2011 A5 3,0TDi S-Line BE Coupe with S-Tronic (7 speed) box and its without doubt best engine /gearbox combo i have ever had. Mines just turned 40K miles, so no idea how reliable the S-tronic is on high mileage cars....

My sentiments about the car are the same as Swanny356, getting on average 36 to 38 mpg on mixed A & B roads with a bit of motorway and its a real pleasure to drive compared to my old 2010 2.0TDi Quattro Avant.

Not sure what Gazwould's issue with the S Tronic is

Top tip though, make sure the S-Tronic gearbox oil has been changed at 40K mile intervals. (costs £175 at Audi Dealer). Its one of those service interval things that the owners manual tells you to do, but the car doesn't tell you the box oil needs changing - why Audi cannot work that out via the Service Interval display like engine oil servicing beats me !!!

If the S-Tronic box oil has been done, it shows that the owner cares about the car. If it hasn't, well not sure I would buy the car (heard that a new S-tronic box is in the order of £5K to replace btw )

 

[Gazwould]

My issue is its future reliability , like everthing , great when it's working , pants when it's not , VAG is not in an era of reliability any more .

Complexity is fragility in my book and I predict alot of hair tearing and raped wallets .

Regarding a full replacement 5k is more like for the box itself and with cheap labour expect the bill to be 10k .

 

[Djwoody]

Hi
I have a 2011 A5 3,0TDi S-Line BE Coupe with S-Tronic (7 speed) box and its without doubt best engine /gearbox combo i have ever had. Mines just turned 40K miles, so no idea how reliable the S-tronic is on high mileage cars....

My sentiments about the car are the same as Swanny356, getting on average 36 to 38 mpg on mixed A & B roads with a bit of motorway and its a real pleasure to drive compared to my old 2010 2.0TDi Quattro Avant.

Not sure what Gazwould's issue with the S Tronic is

Top tip though, make sure the S-Tronic gearbox oil has been changed at 40K mile intervals. (costs £175 at Audi Dealer). Its one of those service interval things that the owners manual tells you to do, but the car doesn't tell you the box oil needs changing - why Audi cannot work that out via the Service Interval display like engine oil servicing beats me !!!

If the S-Tronic box oil has been done, it shows that the owner cares about the car. If it hasn't, well not sure I would buy the car (heard that a new S-tronic box is in the order of £5K to replace btw )

Thanks for that info, helped me a lot. As its a friends car I know he takes good care of them. I'll still check the gearbox oil has been done though. At the moment it has done 42k.
I may even be able to swap cars for a few days to see what it's like on a daily basis.
I love my A4 3.0 TDI so I'm sure I'll feel the same in the A5.

Can I ask, when you have the S-tronic in D, can you just tap the paddles and it will switch it over to manual mode?

 

[JohnboyC]

Yes, you can leave it in "D" and use steering wheel paddles and it automatically switches to M mode, or you can use the gear selector in centre console........if car senses that you are slowing down without dropping manually it will automatically revert to D mode eventually

Me being a complete lazy ar$e I leave mine in D all the time....but apparently car can be more economical if driven manually....not that I can be bothered !

I have had manual cars (as my daily drivers) my whole life and swore I would never go to an Automatic (I do have a 1999 328i BMW Convertible as a hobby car which is automatic (aka slushmatic) ...but the smoothness of the S-Tronic on the 3.0TDi Audi diesels is amazing - you cannot feel the gear changes going on at all.....

By the way my A5 is not chipped or messed about with. If you want to put 300hp thru an S-Tronic box designed to take 240hp then all bets are off with the S-Tronics box reliability....

 

[JohnboyC]

My issue is its future reliability , like everthing , great when it's working , pants when it's not , VAG is not in an era of reliability any more .

Complexity is fragility in my book and I predict alot of hair tearing and raped wallets .

Regarding a full replacement 5k is more like for the box itself and with cheap labour expect the bill to be 10k .

Very true.....but I only hang onto cars usually for 2 to 2.5 years and then trade up to another 3 year old car ......

 

[Djwoody]

Yes, you can leave it in "D" and use steering wheel paddles and it automatically switches to M mode, or you can use the gear selector in centre console........if car senses that you are slowing down without dropping manually it will automatically revert to D mode eventually

Me being a complete lazy ar$e I leave mine in D all the time....but apparently car can be more economical if driven manually....not that I can be bothered !

I have had manual cars (as my daily drivers) my whole life and swore I would never go to an Automatic (I do have a 1999 328i BMW Convertible as a hobby car which is automatic (aka slushmatic) ...but the smoothness of the S-Tronic on the 3.0TDi Audi diesels is amazing - you cannot feel the gear changes going on at all.....

By the way my A5 is not chipped or messed about with. If you want to put 300hp thru an S-Tronic box designed to take 240hp then all bets are off with the S-Tronics box reliability....

Yes I had a BMW 330ci Convertible, 2002 model with was automatic. The gearbox was awful, felt like an eternity to change gear (probably around a second!).
Can't wait to give it a try now and see if it changes my vision on autos.