High mileage auto trannies -

CoolAirVw

Vendor
Joined
Nov 9, 2005
Location
Kansas City Missouri
TDI
Jetta
another thread gone bad...

topic was... any high mileage 01m's....

one of my tdi's with 01m lasted till 260,ooo then broke forward piston, requiring major work (rebuild). The other lasted till 210,000 triggered a TCC code and with some quick VB work it is still going strong at 250,000.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
...so, in other words, best case scenario half as long as the manuals. :p

The thread "title" in context of the specific forum covers TDIs with 01Ms, 09As, and some 02Es.
 

turbovan+tdi

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Mar 23, 2014
Location
Abbotsford, BC.
TDI
2003 TDI 2.0L ALH, auto, silver wagon, lowered, Colt stage 2 cam, ported head,205 injectors, 1756 turbo, Malone 2.0, 3" exhaust, 18" BBS RC GLI rims. 2004 blue GSW TDI, 5 speed, lowered, GLI BBS wheels painted black, Malone stage 2, Aerotur
another thread gone bad...

topic was... any high mileage 01m's....

.
Seems to be a common theme around these parts. :rolleyes:

Haven't done anything to mine yet, have a valve body coming, then I'll service it.
 

CoolAirVw

Vendor
Joined
Nov 9, 2005
Location
Kansas City Missouri
TDI
Jetta
...so, in other words, best case scenario half as long as the manuals. :p

The thread "title" in context of the specific forum covers TDIs with 01Ms, 09As, and some 02Es.
Brian... Certainly you have had manuals fail. I rebuilt one 02J last week, rebuilding one this week. Got a major problem with one in a 06. All of these are around 200,000. I'm adding a section to my website soon on the many common problems of the manual 5 speed! Honestly I've probably done 10 major repairs INSIDE 02J's in the last 2 years.
 

oilhammer

Certified Volkswagen Nut & Vendor
Joined
Dec 11, 2001
Location
outside St Louis, MO
TDI
There are just too many to list....
I've replaced a handful, but given just how many of these there are on the road, and how few issues I've seen, and how inexpensive they are to replace, and the fact that more and more people who have 2-pedal cars are converting them to 3-pedal versions (almost always using USED gearboxes) I'd place my bet on a good ol' manual in any car any day of the week.

The only manual gearbox I have ever personally had "break" was my 1987 B2000 that lost fifth gear at 346k miles. Drove the rest of the way home in 4th, then to the shop the next day in 4th, where I stuck a used transmission sourced for a whopping $150 in it (of unknown mileage) and motored on. This was a truck that had been used for towing and hauling much of its life, too. I very much doubt the lightweight Jatco slushbox that truck would have had as an option could have lasted as long.

Honda and Subie have had a few weak spots in some of theirs, and the Volkswagen Fox' manuals (there were no automatics) were often short-lived, both the 4 and 5 speeds. None of my Foxes ever had any issues, however.
 

vitosays

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2007
Location
Pasadena, MD
TDI
02' Jetta TDI
My car was originally an automatic and I've had the car for a total of about 8 years now. The car was at 257k before we switched the transmission out.

Early on the transmission was having issues slipping if you hit the gas to hard. Especially, from a dead stop it would take awhile to engage in gear and lurch forward. I grew pretty accustom to driving this car delicately. I needed the transmission to last until I graduated and found a job where I could afford the swap.

By the end of it's life the car would randomly shift down on the highway resulting in running high RPM's thus low MPG. Car went from ~37mpg to ~48mpg with the same driving style.

One thing to note was this transmission was never really put through maintenance. When I received the car it had over 100k and the previous owner who was a relative of mine said they had never switched the fluid. From what I have learned, if it goes too long without being maintained just leave it as is due to possible metal flakes moving around during a flush could make it even worse.

TL;DR- An automatic lasted me awhile with some issues, but I adjusted driving habits accordingly.
 

pkhoury

That guy with the goats
Joined
Nov 30, 2010
Location
Medina, TX
TDI
2013 JSW, 2003 Jetta Ute, 2 x 2002 Golf, 2000 Golf
I guess I get to revive this thread a third time. Just removed another 01M tonight. @alphaseinor helped me out, as he did on the other one here at the ranch, so I now have two 01Ms I get to stick on ebay as working transmissions. The first one liked to hunt around for gears; the second worked beautifully, but I plan on doing a lot of towing with this car (both of them are 2003 ALHs), so it had to go. And I don't think a 01M would work too well with a tuned ALH putting out about 55HP over stock...
 

Geordi

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2002
Location
Somewhere between Heaven and Hell. But it is reall
TDI
14 JSW DSG, 03 Wagon 01M, 400k and IPT performance auto!
You should talk to John at Import Performance Transmission... He built mine, and while I don't have exact HP numbers, I have a Malone tune and DLC injectors and have used my 03 to tow a Jeep Liberty on a tow dolly (so about 5k lbs) and the transmission temperature (non-computer gauge) never rose above 200 degrees.
 
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