spazbaboon

I need to change the oil in about 1k miles. I'm going to switch to royal purple.. or amsoil if I'm feeling like a baller

Blacknot

I'm on my 3rd tensioner in 30k miles. I have 92k on my Ap2 and each tensioner has lasted 10k miles. I'm getting ready to put the 4th tensioner in now and i'm getting rid of my Mobil1 oil and changing over to Redline

billiardboy904

Blacknot, Try changing your oil first before the TCT. Might save you some money.

I never changed my 2nd TCT. All i did was switch to a different oil and the tct stopped the ticking in about3-4 days (not sure on mileage. 100mi maybe)

mxt_77

So, I couldn't find anyone local to sandblast the worm gear in my TCT, so I just took some 180 grit sandpaper after it. I sanded both faces of the worm gear in a direction perpindicular to the edge (if that makes sense) and re-installed it. The sound was gone immediately upon the first startup.

I've only driven it ~20 miles so far, but this seems to have alleviated the problem. Now I just wish I understood why!!!

03 9g

how much should it cost for a shop to replace the tct ??

skeithr

hivolume,
i changed my tct out, ran it till i needed an oil change, switched to amsoil, been about 5k on new tct, no problems

mxt_77

^ I think this is already discussed (probably in this thread). The part is ~130+ from the dealer, plus ~1hr labor. So, prob about $200.

There's a DIY here... use it.
Plus, if you sand/sandblast the worm gear, you won't have to buy the part.

mxt_77

I sanded my TCT and re-installed it. Still using M1. The noise is gone, but I've only got ~50-100 miles on the car since the 'mod'. I'll probably stick w/ M1, just to see if it comes back.


I suspect that M1 is not necessarily inferior, but like you said there's a specific property of it that affects the TCT. It seems as though M1 may form a bond or a thin layer of oil over the face of the worm gear making it super-slick, and allowing the piston to be pushed back more easily. By roughing up the face of the worm gear, you prevent that layer of oil from creating a smooth, slick surface and preventing the gear from getting "traction".

So, maybe the problem is that M1 is too good at lubricating the gear.

2poor2mod

had the worm gear sandblasted and installed for 3 days now. Still running M1 but will most like switch at the next OCI. No noise anymore so i am quite happy with the results of the updated TCT.

J's_Suzuka

is there a picture of the worm gear somewhere in this thread? I have my ntn1 pulled out and would like to try this seeing all of the good results. My new ntn2 I put in made my sound get worse than before.