sounds like transfer case?

[colinmartin]

2003 tt

WP1ZZZ9PZ4LA82953

hi guys I finally bit the bullet and replaced my valve body because of the 5th to 4th hard downshift but I was also experiencing problems when slowing from 3rd to 2nd .now the valve body has been correted its easy to see the transfer case is on its way out it sounds like the clutch is grabbing and releasing at very slow speeds ,pulling away etc its sounds like straight gears .my question is what are my options for buying ,I would prefer a recon unit because of the expense ,is it compatible with any other model touareg etc?

[mudman2]

I would say front Diff, they get noisy

[colinmartin]

I hope im not breaking any rules here but I found this on another site and it explains my symptoms much better than I ever could...http://forum.roadfly.com/threads/9600293-Clunk-from-Transmission

[colinmartin]

does anyone else have any insight?

[hahnmgh63]

The servo motors are known to fail but that is usually associated with the vehicle being stuck in only high or low range.

[wvicary]

Does the unit have the correct fluid in it? If you're unsure, why not change it out and see if that solves the clutch binding issue if that is indeed what the problem is.

[colinmartin]

Just a quick update and warning to others ,I changed the front tires to match the rears and the clunking has completely gone ,which has saved me some serious money, in future I will always change all 4 at once, it seems the difference in tire pattern was causing all the problems...

[mwiadro]

+ 1 - had similar issue when I purchased my 04' CS in 2010. Same brand of tire were mounted, but different treads patterns (!) front to rear. Changed all four tires to same brand/tread pattern and the clunk disappeared. Porsche PSM/traction control is very sensitive, apparently.

[deilenberger]

Any full-time 4WD system is sensitive to tires, both pattern and wear. If the pattern causes a difference in rolling diameter, that means some wheels will be turning faster/slower than others, ditto on wear. That results in the limited slip differentials fighting against the difference in rotational speed.

A good friend with an Escalade had a problem burning out center differentials. He mentioned it to me - after going through three of them (under warranty Thank Dog..) I asked if he had replaced any tires on the truck. Turns out he'd had a damaged tire that required replacement.. The dealer was smart enough to replace both tires on that axle, but not smart enough to replace all four, and there was a considerable difference in wear between the front and rear tires.

Dealer listened - and replaced the other two tires. Hasn't had a problem since then.

Just a FWIW - one of the "hidden" expenses of owning a truck made to be capable in bad traction conditions. And a good reason to do front/rear tire rotations every 6,000 miles or so (I do it when I swap winter/summer rims/tires.)

[mwiadro]

Good information. Thanks for the recommendation. Curious how many miles owners get out of set of tires, on average? I rotated annually (10K miles), and got about 30K miles out of recent set. I will reduce the rotation interval on the new set!