'02 1.8T Jetta not shifting gears from 1st, when cold

[crawl]

thanks. I'm going to local mechanic on Tuesday, will you keep you all posted.

[2002 jetta]

Thank you all! Everyone described the exact same problems I am having with my 2002 v6 Jetta, right down to the fluid change and the uncooperative dealership. My car is at Aamco and they had it narrowed down to the shift solenoid also but did not know which one. I just called and told them to replace the N92. Clearly jetta owners need to stick together! Thanks again, I'll be back

[crawl]

Mechanic called me today and obviously there was no codes in TCM. His working on other stuff.

In mean time I need second opinion.
My car not only does not up shift from 1st, it also has harsh downshifts. Could two solenoids go bad at the same time? Or may by faulty N92 causes rough downshifts?

[crawl]

Well, I was looking for part numbers and here what I got so far.

For 2002 VW made in Mexico with 5 speed auto transmissions EYP, EEF, ELD,
GPC, EYN, and GNZ:

09A 325 039 H - Valve Body applies to EYP, GNZ, EEF
09A 325 039 J - Valve Body applies to GPC, ELD, EYN

Valves fit both bodies:
09A 927 331 - Solenoid valve N89 (brawn)
09A 927 331 A - Solenoid valve N92 (green)
09A 927 331 B - Solenoid valve N88 (brawn)
09A 927 331 C - Solenoid valve N90 (black )
09A 927 331 D - Solenoid valve N282 (black )
09A 927 331 E - Solenoid valve N91 (black )
09A 927 331 F - Solenoid valve N283 (white)
09A 927 331 G - Solenoid valve N281 (white)
09A 927 331 H - Solenoid valve N93 (green )

hope helps somebody

[96sc3]

N92 solenoid seems like its the culprit. I hope it is, looking to change that as well. I have the same locked in 1st gear until 1/2 hour of driving problem.

[JoshRambo]

Did anyone ever get theirs fixxed? I have been having the same problem. I have to go start my car in the morning and let it run for about 15 minutes so it shifts fine. To me it seems like it is just goign for 2nd to 3rd and sometimes 1st to 2nd. I just got my tax return and was going to take my car in to get looked at.

[crawl]

I'm waiting for solenoid to come. I'll take it to the shop as soon as I get it. Will keep you posted.

Btw, mine just gets stack in first and even warm up does not always help.

[audi10021075]

Quote, originally posted by JoshRambo »

Did anyone ever get theirs fixxed? I have been having the same problem. I have to go start my car in the morning and let it run for about 15 minutes so it shifts fine. To me it seems like it is just goign for 2nd to 3rd and sometimes 1st to 2nd. I just got my tax return and was going to take my car in to get looked at.

I fixed mine with N92 replacement and so did jackieheath.
I place my money on N92 that it is the problem.


Modified by audi10021075 at 5:20 PM 3-2-2009

[Onearmedmidget]

From the looks of this thread, I guess change the N92 for this problem. Anyone with more success stories?

[jackieheath]

N92 did the job for me.

[Mikey18T]

Howmuch does something like this go for? Anyone have a contact in NYC, preferably Queens, that can do this? Thanks

[crawl]

Transmission shop just backed out on me , now they want a lot more money and it does not make any sense for me. I'm not going to fix my car

Best of luck to everyone on here.

P.S.
I have N92 valve, filter and fluid for sale (PM me for details).
I also have 1.8T 02 Jetta with 84K and broken tranny if anybody needs project car ($3000 OBO) - SOLD localy


Modified by crawl at 12:49 PM 3-10-2009

[rdm128]

After a couple months of frustration searching for a solution to this shifting problem I happened on this thread. I have an '02 Jetta 1.8t w/ 130K miles. I simply love the car and still get better than 30 MPG.

Similar to everyone else, it started one average morning with a difficult time getting it to shift out of first. After a few minutes of messing with it, things were fine again. A week later it happened again, then more frequently until the car was incapable of 20 MPH.

I was able to 'force' a shift by increasing the RPM's to 6400, but I don't like to do that without a good reason (or at least one that makes me smile instead of grimace). I read other folks who described a problem of very hard shifting 1st to 2nd and was curious if they were shifting at high RPM's.

I continued searching and found many posts of folks having similar issues which resulted in changing their transmission for a mere $3,000 - $5,000. Very disheartening. I still owe the bank $4,000 on my car and I couldn’t afford a repair bill like this or to dump the vehicle. ROCK <- me -> Broken CAR

I next followed some advice from other posts I had found and took the car to my local dealer to 're-flash' the TCM. This sounded like a waste to me, as I had no codes and the way the problem evolved did not seem like a computer failure (gradual instead of sudden). $90 later I confirmed it was a waste.

Ok, so my next swing was going to be changing the fluid as a last ditch effort before having to ‘force shift’ it everywhere I go. I came across this thread and the N92 valve stood out like a beaconing red light. So, I ordered the parts (shout out to Auburn VW – nice folks) and cleared my weekend expecting this to be as big a pain as it sounded.

I ordered the N92 valve (part number posted above), 4 liters of the proper tranny fluid (part number posted in DIY/FAQ), and a tube of VW silicon to seal it back up.

I followed coolvdub’s walkthrough posted in the DIY/FAQ (thank you tremendously for the time and effort of creating it) and replaced the N92 valve. The entire project took about 4 hours for two guys both fairly handy under the hood with a couple of distractions (fixing a headlight bucket and changing the oil).

One note on changing the fluid. Since the pictures are gone on the how-to for changing the tiptronic fluid, I just read between the lines and followed this procedure.
1. Drained fluid into pan
2. Poured into jug with measuring marks (in liters)
3. After putting everything back together I filled it through the filler with the red ring on front
4. Added exactly the same amount as was measured as being removed (3.5 Liters)
5. Started car, let it warm up for a few minutes, ran it through the gears pausing 5 seconds in each one.
6. Test drove the car
The reason I mention this is that I did not go back and verify the fluid level. There were no apparent leaks before I started, and from everything I’ve read people seem to have very random results when they check anyway. I figured putting in exactly what I took out was going to be close enough.

Please chalk my car up in the success column for resolving the ‘won’t shift from first gear’ problem. I have since put about 500 miles on my car with absolutely no troubles. I would like to say it’s running even better, but it’s always ran so well that couldn’t be true.

THANK YOU COOLVDUB! You just saved me several months of embarrassment from driving my car at 5,000 RPM through school zones with my head ducked down while saving my pennies for a new tranny!

Thank you everyone at VWVortex for all your great communications!

-Very Happy Camper

[dphoenix]

I'm curious...

I'm not having these exact problems, but I do have the same transmission and I am having problems with it shifting (documented in a few other threads). I had the resistances of each solenoid checked, and all were within spec, so the impression I was left with was that, whatever the problem was, it had to be internal.

But is this actually the case? Can a solenoid still be malfunctioning, even if it's resistance is measuring within spec?

If this were the case, and I could fix this issue with a stupid solenoid, I would be absolutely ecstatic... pretty much everything in the car aside from the tranny is tip top, but it's hard to justify sinking ~$4k in a 7 year old car with 118,000 miles on the clock.

[LaZyFLiP]

Quote, originally posted by dphoenix »

I'm curious... I'm not having these exact problems, but I do have the same transmission and I am having problems with it shifting (documented in a few other threads). I had the resistances of each solenoid checked, and all were within spec, so the impression I was left with was that, whatever the problem was, it had to be internal. But is this actually the case? Can a solenoid still be malfunctioning, even if it's resistance is measuring within spec? If this were the case, and I could fix this issue with a stupid solenoid, I would be absolutely ecstatic... pretty much everything in the car aside from the tranny is tip top, but it's hard to justify sinking ~$4k in a 7 year old car with 118,000 miles on the clock.

All my solenoids were within spec also but after replacing my N92 solenoid, I finally resolved the issue of not being able to shift past 2nd gear. So I guess even though they check out resistance wise they were still mechanically failing? Not sure? But all I know is this finally fixed my problem.

[zhensr]

Hi, all,

I have the exact the same problem. I bought the 2003 1.8T Jetta from a person and I did not have the car checked. The car has the transmission problem on the 4th day. I brought to dealer. They asked for $6500 for a new transmission.

Could anyone tell me where I can get the N92 solenoid? I asked the dealer and they do not know about it.

[LaZyFLiP]

I got mine from http://1stvwparts.com. The N92 solenoid is part#: 09A927331A and the ATF fluid is part#: G052990A2.

[mxrider101]

is this the same on a 98 jetta?? i have the same issue and think i can solve it with the N92 solenoid if it is the same as these newer cars. thanks

[AustinGT]

I am at a shop right now with a similar problem. The car ahs been notcibly shiftin from 1-2 and 2-3 and I got in the car this morning and it would not shift out of first for a few minutes. I am goign to let them see if they can figure it out and if not then I guess I will be trying the N92 solenoid.

Since I will be in there already changing that solenoid is it worth it to change out any others with the noticible shifts from 2-3 as well?

[05GLI]

Quote, originally posted by AustinGT »

I am at a shop right now with a similar problem. The car ahs been notcibly shiftin from 1-2 and 2-3 and I got in the car this morning and it would not shift out of first for a few minutes. I am goign to let them see if they can figure it out and if not then I guess I will be trying the N92 solenoid. Since I will be in there already changing that solenoid is it worth it to change out any others with the noticible shifts from 2-3 as well?

I would say no. The N92 should fix it.

[witecap4u]

FYI to everyone that comes across this...

If you get your car high enough in the revs, put it in tip mode and it will probably be reading 3rd gear, if you push the tip lever up to shift to 4th, it will shift. 4th gear does not use n92, so you just need to get the vehicle speed up high enough to allow the TCM to think its ready for 4th gear. I've done this on my wife's car a few time, the shift is pretty harsh going from the top of 4th to the bottom of 1th but it does work.
I'll soon be doing the N92 solenoid, just need to figure out the other 2 problems im having so i can take car of them all at once.

[JosBRATT]

just as ASPARAGII has I have an '02 jetta 1.8T with the exact same transmission problem, do you think that I'm gonna have to tear apart the transmission to replace the faulty solenoid? my car is still under warranty but I got a feeling that the joke of a warranty that I have they will tell me that the warranty doesn't cover it and I was just wanting to know if I am facing $2000+ to get a single solenoid replaced. I read on a previous posts that you were able to replace the solenoid yourself for around 350 dollars yourself, could you email me the procedure to headshot450@netzero.net? I would be willing to try it if it's not too difficult, I have a highly experienced mechanic in my family who's willing to help me with the repairs. I would appreciate any advice you have.

[mxrider101]

i believe the $350 in this post was including labor at a shop. the n92 solinoid is around $100 from what i have found. do a search on how to change a n92 solinoid and it comes up with tons of helpful and detailed info. good luck!

[ViWi]

Hello everybody. I'm new at this vwforum, and i hope i can find some wise advice about my loved car. It's a Golf GTi 2002, 1,8T with 5vel tiptronic 75000Km road, and in great shape. a month ago it started with the same troubel i read in many issues in this forum. At morning when the motor is cold, it don't change from 1st gear, until it becomes hot then the shifts occur fine and smooth. And this fact as i read, is not new with 09a gearshift . some facts that i find:
1. with cold motor and car, when i go downhill, the motor goes over 5000rpm, in 1st gear. If the car velocity passes 40 km/h it autom change to 4th gear. If i brake an slowdown under 40 km/h (School area) i have a rough gearchange to 1st gear with high speed rev of the motor.
2. Wilth cold motor , I can go downhill in neutral position until the car reach 40 Km/h and i fell a smouth pullback, then i pass to D pos and gear shift goes immediatly to 4º gear.
3. After 5-8min road the car became hot and the problem dissapear, the changes go right the whole day, unless the car rest stopped a couple of hours. The the problem happen again for few minutes on road.
I've read the gearshift self study manual and learn a lot about automatic gears ( i'm not on mechanics), and talk a lot with my VW mechanics. Here is where i need some help: We can't clarify if we have to change the road speed sensor (no part number allowed!!), the thermal sensor beside, or change the N92 solenoid, or the whole body valve .
As you all see, is hard to decide
I live in La Paz a city over 3600 m over sea level, it has something to do the Oxi sensor?
Any idea ??
Heeeeeelp, vw gods are going to be bless you

[05GLI]

I had the exact same problem with my last jetta. All I did was change solonoid N92 and change the fluid and it was fine. GL

[zhensr]

I have changed N92 solenoid and put everything together. But the car won't start. I think it is because the shifter position may be changed. When I took the shifter cable arm to the transmission gear selector (do not know the exact term here), I changed the gear selector position. I think likely it is the reason. Could anyone tell me when the shifter is in park position, where the gear position should be? It should be turned far right, right?
Appreciate your help.

[smiley321]

Hi all, I was just about to buy a used 2002 Jetta 1.8T with the Tiptronic when I found this thread.

Do you recommend staying clear??

Or is this N92 solenoid the solution to all our ills?

Like any of us, I can't afford the money or frustration of this problem. And I'm not a mechanic at all. Thanks in advance!

[zhensr]

Just want to report back that the 2003 Jetta 1.8 T tramsmission is fixed after changing the N92 solenoid.

I could not figure out how to pull the transmission back to give more space. For N92 solenoid, you may not need to do that, but just work in a tighter space to remove the screws.
Here is where I got my N92 solenoid
Makco Distributing, Inc.
4255 Bryson Blvd.
Florence, AL 35630

Their part number is 98423A, the price is about $65 each. For other solenoid, you need to call them and may send them the picture so they can locate the correct parts for you.

transmission fluid $11 per liter
EuroPartsAmerica, LLC

Only thing you need to pay attention is that when you remove the N92 solenoid, make sure you do not let the stud retreat back to the hole. It is a pain to get it out. What I did is to go to autozone to buy the magnetic pickup tool, and get the magnet out and grind it to the size of the screw, use a flat side of a nail to pull the stud out. better watch out when you pull the N92 solenoid.

I want to thank everyone for your sharing here. and I hope this information help someone else.

Best,

[roger d]

I have a 2004 Jetta TDI with 5 Speed Tiptronic. 225K miles. Changed Tranny fluid every 50K. It started to do exactly was has beed discussed in the forum. Will not shift out of 1st gear until its warm. Then it works ok. Dealer says it needs a new transmission for 5K.
Well she it not worth 5K in value. Could it just be that same N92 Valve? Any feedback would be helpful.

[vwjag]

Well i'm a bit confused cause when i went to the dealer to ask about the n92 solenoind they told me it was actualy the valve body @ $1500????? parts only whats the deal with that am i just talking to a vw tech and parts guy that doesnt know what he's talking about. not to comforting to get it svsed there.

does anyone have a break down or picture so i can hopefully prove to these guys that they need to go back to school.

[sofocu2]

01M for $200??? Wut a deal LOL

[asparagii]

Wow a lot of people had good luck with N92 ey? Wonder why it doesn't show a code in the scan then?

Just to give everyone an update - I ended up converting my car to a manual! Pretty extreme, but I'd rather drive a manual anyway - better mileage, more reliable and the cost was the same as getting a rebuilt 09A installed.

Ended up costing me $2500 - as I said getting rebuilt 09A installed was the same price. Don't pay $6500 to a VW dealer - that's criminal.

Ended up going through VW dealer in Wheeling, VW for the job. A good bloke called Walt did a great job. Couple pointers - I got the 5speed tranny installed and this requires a new ECM (~$700), or living with the check engine light permanently on and no cruise control. Apparently the 4 speed manual conversion can use your existing auto ECM and be reprogrammed - I didn't find this out till too late. I can't buy a used ECM, as the immobilizer needs to be linked to it and VW don't release their immobilizer codes (they did up to 3 years ago, but don't now). I don't use cruise control much and can live with the check engine light on for a while. Some disgruntled Tech may write a program at some point allowing immobilizer code to be pulled - till then I'll wait.

Never checked the N92 solenoid - prolly would have been a good first step, but I'm happy with the manual anyway. This was beating me up for too long and now good to have increased control and reliability, of an otherwise very nice car!

Regards,
David

[CoolAirVw]

Quote, originally posted by asparagii »

Wow a lot of people had good luck with N92 ey? Wonder why it doesn't show a code in the scan then?

Because the solenoid sticks mechanically. Its not a electrical problem that the computer can "see". If its driven long enough and is sticking bad enough it might trigger codes.

Quote, originally posted by asparagii »

Couple pointers - I got the 5speed tranny installed and this requires a new ECM (~$700), or living with the check engine light permanently on and no cruise control.

I dont think this is true. The ecm can be recoded (this is not reprogramming) with vag-com to manual trans. The cruise can be made to work with some wiring after the ECM is coded to manual.

Quote, originally posted by asparagii »

Apparently the 4 speed manual conversion can use your existing auto ECM and be reprogrammed - I didn't find this out till too late. I can't buy a used ECM, as the immobilizer needs to be linked to it and VW don't release their immobilizer codes (they did up to 3 years ago, but don't now).

My understanding is you can use the ecm when you do a conversion on a tdi, it just needs to be recoded for manual trans. I know for a fact that 2 6 speed conversions have been done and they have been recoded. (one was DSG other was 09G)

[SoniCraze]

Add me to the "when cold not shifting out of 1st, replaced n92 now works great list"

Some notes:
I didnt remove the pan all the way so I didnt pull the engine/tranny back with a tie down. I unbolted it then just sat it back and down, there is enough room to get the n92 replaced without wiggling the pan all the way off. I cleaned off as much old sealant as I could being carefull not to let any fall back into the "guts" then reapplied some new sealant.

I have zero idea what the torque specs are on the 20 bolts that hold the transmition oil pan on but they snap easily.... ask me how i know

[Krisbg]

Quote, originally posted by SoniCraze »

Add me to the "when cold not shifting out of 1st, replaced n92 now works great list"

me too