2.0 8v Gurus, please help with Auto Trans issue

[DanA4]

I've only ever messed with 1.8Ts. I have been building and tuning them for a few years now. I like how simple 8Vs are, and I always wanted one to daily.

I decided to pick up a 95 MkIII Jetta for a daily, because it was pretty cheap and I've always wanted a 8v lol. It also only has 73k original miles, and is in pretty nice shape for a MkIII lol actually doesn't have any rust on it, almost no wind noise, and rides nice.

Now, for the bad. The car is a 2.0 8v automatic. The trans is a 4spd, and has a dipstick, which from what I understand is kinda rare, because most VW/Audi's have a sealed autotrans. Now, the car does not like to down shift. You have to do it manually. Also, when you go WOT, I can feel the "kick down" or whatever it's called click in the pedal, but the car won't down shift.

I've replaced the ECU/TCU to no avail. This week I'm going to change the trans fluid and filter and see if that helps anything.

I also think the ICM in the distributor is going bad, because randomly the car will go to die, and then will run perfectly fine. I have replaced the distributor cap and rotor, spark plugs and wires. Also installed a new Throttle Position Sensor, still no change.

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[bjohns86]

DanA4,

This problem should be a relatively straight forward fix, especially since you threw a bunch of "maybe" parts at it. Not the best approach, but will make it easier to diagnose now. Do you have a VCDS where you can monitor what the TCM is commanding the trans to do? Knowing whether it is commanding a forced downshift will save us a lot of diagnosing time. There are some rough and tumble ways in determining this with the ignition on, engine off, but the VCDS would be preferred.

Brad

[CoolAirVw]

scan the tcm for trouble codes with vag-com