RE: Quattro question from 5kcst owner

[Aleksander Mierzwa <alex@matrix.com.pl>]

Building a transmission for the AWD car based on FWD family sedan is not a
trivial task. Audi modified their FWD manual gearbox to incorporate a
rear-facing output shaft driving the center diff. Modifying an automatic
transmission would be much more complicated and not feasible, because the
3-speed hydraulically controlled slushboxes seemed to be an outdated design
already in mid eighties. First automatic quattro was the V8, introduced in
Europe in 1988. It uses an automatic transmission made by well known German
manufacturer ZF. It is the same tranny that is used in some 7-series BMWs.
Audi took this transmission (designed for an RWD car) and incorporated the
center diff and a front facing shaft driving the front diff. Newer 100 and
A6 quattros use new generation of VW/Audi transmissions.

Aleksander Mierzwa
Warsaw, Poland
mailto:alex@matrix.com.pl
87 Audi 5000CS turbo (mine)
88 Renault Medallion wagon (mom's)
91 mountain bike (just in case both cars broke at the same time :-)

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	Max [SMTP:mpalmars@axxsys.com]
> Sent:	Thursday, February 19, 1998 7:47 PM
> To:	audi
> Subject:	Quattro question from 5kcst owner
> 
> This may sound like a novice question, but I have never owned a quattro
> (I do have 2 5kcst's), are all quattros stick shift.  I have never seen
> one that is automatic.  If this is the case, does anyone know why?  I
> have driven quattros and I didn't realy like the stick in them that
> much.
> 
> MAX
> 5kcst