Dismantling and assembling planetary gearbox — AUDI

🧭 Before you start

Drain fluids, remove covers, transfer box, intermediate flange and final drive cover carefully, marking the pinions. Withdraw flange shafts, remove oil pan, strainer, valve body and ATF supply unit, then the planetary assemblies and bodies. Reassemble with renewed seals and O-rings, measure input shaft axial play and select the shim. Tighten the valve body to 8 Nm and the covers to 23 Nm in sequence, add 200 ml of gear oil to the Torsen differential, then fill ATF and gear oils.

Fits: Audi A4 Cabriolet B6/B7 (8H), Audi A4 B5 (8D), Audi A4 B6/B7 (8E), Audi A6 C5 (4B), Audi A8 D2 (4D)

• Special tools named: puller, dial gauge
• Renewed: two rectangular section seals, atf strainer, gasket, oil seal in input pinion

Don't miss

• Spur gears or a differential dropped on the floor must not be reused.
• Mark and refit the intermediate pinion and pinion gear in their original positions.
• Lubricate rectangular section seals and O-rings with vaseline only.
• Do not swap the 5 mm and 2.5 mm flange washers; zero axial play suggests they are interchanged.
• Keep the final drive shim and bearing race in their original positions.

Written for this job from the workshop steps below · TorqFix editorial.

🔩 Torque settings

Values can differ between engine variants — check the code stamped on your block.

ℹ️ Always cross-check the exact figure against your vehicle's factory manual before final tightening — a wrong torque can damage the engine. These values are extracted from workshop data and may not cover every variant or revision.

📋 Procedure

1. Remove torque converter.
2. Place used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782 below gearbox.
3. ⚠ Wear safety goggles. — Remove ATF drain plug (1) and allow ATF to drain off. [Note: Observe relevant disposal regulations.Some ATF always remains in the oil pan.]
4. Place used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782 below gearbox.
5. Slacken bolts on housing cover for front axle drive in the sequence (14 ... 1) and remove bolts.

6. Catch escaping gear oil using used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782.
7. ⚠ Detach cover for front axle drive from gearbox housing slowly and carefully. Otherwise spur gears could drop out of gearbox.Spur gears which have been dropped on the floor must not be used again. If this happens, the gearbox must be renewed. — Lift off cover for front axle drive.
8. Mark installation position of intermediate pinion (1) and pinion gear (3).
9. ⚠ The intermediate pinion (1) and pinion gear (3) must be re-fitted in the same position to make sure the direction of rotation is maintained.For this reason, the original installation positions of the intermediate pinion and pinion gear must be marked. — Take off pinion gear together with intermediate pinion; at the same time pull input pinion (2) slightly towards the rear.
10. Remove input pinion (2).
11. Remove shim (1) and axial needle bearing (2) from input shaft.
12. Remove coil spring (3) from pinion shaft.
13. Place used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782 below gearbox.
14. Remove drain plug (A) and allow gear oil to drain out of transfer box.
15. Loosen bolts (arrows) for transfer box housing in diagonal sequence and remove bolts.
16. ⚠ Detach transfer box housing slowly and carefully from rear of gearbox. The Torsen differential may otherwise fall out of the gearbox. — Pull Torsen differential (arrow) off input shaft.
17. Place used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782 below gearbox.
18. Remove bolts (arrows) on intermediate flange for front axle drive.
19. Catch escaping gear oil using used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782.
20. ⚠ Remove the intermediate flange for front axle drive from the gearbox housing slowly and carefully. Otherwise spur gears could drop out of gearbox.Spur gears which have been dropped on the floor must not be used again. If this happens, the gearbox must be renewed. — Lift off intermediate flange for front axle drive.
21. Cover splines (arrow) of input shaft with insulating tape to prevent damage to oil seal in intermediate flange for front axle drive when pulling off input pinion (2). Take care to cover the splines completely, without creasing or overlapping the tape.
22. ⚠ The intermediate pinion (1) and pinion gear (3) must be re-fitted in the same position to make sure the direction of rotation is maintained. — Mark installation position of intermediate pinion (1) and pinion gear (3).
23. Take off pinion gear together with intermediate pinion; at the same time pull input pinion (2) slightly towards the rear.
24. Remove input pinion (2).
25. Remove shim (1) and axial needle bearing (2) from input shaft.
26. Remove coil spring (3) from pinion shaft.
27. Remove bolt (arrow) securing flange shaft (right-side). To do so, screw two bolts into flange and counterhold flange shaft with suitable lever.
28. Place used oil collection and extraction unitV.A.G 1782 below gearbox.
29. Pull out flange shaft (right-side).
30. Slacken bolts on housing cover for final drive in the sequence (12 ... 1) and remove bolts.
31. ⚠ Detach cover for final drive from gearbox housing slowly and carefully. The differential may otherwise fall out of the gearbox.A differential which has fallen to the ground can no longer be installed. If this happens, the gearbox must be renewed. — Remove cover for final drive.
32. ⚠ Take care that the outer race for the tapered roller bearing or the shim for the differential does not fall out of the final drive cover.The outer race for the tapered roller bearing must be re-installed in the same position.Thickness of shim has been measured to fit; the shim must not be replaced with another shim of different thickness. — Carefully take out differential (arrow).
33. Remove bolts (arrows) and detach baffle plate.
34. Cover splines on flange shaft (left-side) (arrow) with insulating tape to prevent damage to twin-lip oil seal for final drive/gearbox housing when pulling out flange shaft. Take care to cover the splines completely, without creasing or overlapping the tape.
35. Unbolt bearing bracket for flange shaft (left-side) (arrows).
36. Pull out flange shaft (left-side). [Note: While pulling out the flange shaft (left-side), it must be guided carefully by hand to avoid damaging the twin-lip oil seal between the final drive and gearbox housing.]
37. Loosen bolts for ATF oil pan (arrow) in diagonal sequence and remove bolts.
38. Take off ATF oil pan. [Note: A fault in the torque converter lock-up clutch is indicated by a clouded coating of greenish colour in the ATF oil pan.]
39. Remove bolts (arrows) for ATF strainer.
40. Detach ATF strainer from valve body.
41. Remove retaining clip (arrow) for wiring harness connector.
42. Remove wiring harness connector by pressing inwards.
43. Unscrew bolt (arrow) and detach gearbox speed sender G38/gearbox output speed (sender)G195.
44. On gearboxes with hydraulic control type "“E18/2”", detach electrical connector for gearbox input speed sender G182 at valve body (arrow) and unplug connector.
45. Slacken bolts for valve body in the sequence (17 ... 1) and remove bolts.
46. ⚠ Only remove the bolts marked; bolt (6) is only fitted on gearboxes with hydraulic control type "“E17”".If other bolts are removed, this may affect the operation of the valve body or the valve body could come apart.Observe different bolt lengths. — Detach valve body carefully from gearbox.
47. ⚠ Only on gearboxes with hydraulic control type "“E17”": To prevent damage after removal, do not put down the valve body on the gearbox input speed sender G182 (located on reverse side of valve body (arrow)). — Using extractor tool T10271, pull out sealing sleeves (arrows) from feed bores to clutches "“C”", "“A”", "“B”" and "“E”" and to torque converter lock-up clutch.
48. Remove 3 circlips (1).
49. Detach coil springs (2).
50. Pull out sealing sleeves (3) using extractor tool T10271.
51. Turn gearbox on assembly stand.
52. Slacken bolts for ATF supply unit in the sequence (9 ... 1) and remove bolts.
53. Remove bolts with washers.
54. Attach puller for ATF supply unit T10286 to stator shaft and lift out ATF supply unit by pulling firmly.
55. Insert a screwdriver between sun gear "“I”" and flanged housing on underside of gearbox and lever components located above sun gear upwards (arrow).
56. Remove shim (1) and axial needle bearing (2).
57. Pull body "“II”"(item 1) out of gearbox housing.
58. Turn body "“II”"(item 1) upside down and place on support element T10283 together with input shaft.
59. Take out sun shaft (1) and intermediate shaft (2) with inner plate carrier.
60. Dismantle the following components:

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