Reconditioned Audi A4 Gearbox

Which gearbox for your Audi A4: same engine, different references depending on the engine code?

On the Audi A4 produced from 1997 to 2015, the engine capacity alone is not enough to identify the correct part. The most striking example: the 2.0 TDI alone covers more than a dozen distinct engine codes — including BLB, BRE, CAGA, CAHB, CJCA and CVNA — and each one may correspond to a different gearbox reference. Mixing up a CAGA with a CAHA, for instance, is enough to order an incompatible part despite an identical engine capacity. The engine code stamped on the block, also visible in the vehicle's documents, is the only reliable starting point.

Seven engine variants, two gearbox families

The range covers seven engine variants: on the diesel side, the 1.9 TDI (codes AFN, AVG, AVB, AVF, AWX, BKE…), the 2.0 TDI, the 2.5 TDI (AFB, AKN), the 2.7 TDI and the 3.0 TDI; on the petrol side, the 1.4 TFSI and the 3.2 (AUK, BKH). All are fitted with manual gearboxes: 5-speed manual for the 1.9 TDI only, 6-speed manual for all other engine variants. There are no automatic or dual-clutch gearboxes here: the range is exclusively manual.

Identification pitfalls to be aware of before ordering

The 2.5 TDI from the B5 and B6 generations (codes AFB and AKN) shares a 6-speed architecture with the 3.0 TDI, but the internal references — visible in examples such as GVB, EEP, KMU, MVT, LLN and PNE — are not shared between the two engine variants. Likewise, on the 3.2, the codes CALA and BKH correspond to blocks of different outputs that do not accept the same gearbox. Checking the engine code, production year and body style (saloon, Avant, Allroad) simultaneously remains essential, as certain Quattro four-wheel-drive variants require a specific gearbox compared with the front-wheel-drive version.