[s-cars] 2001.5 S4 avant shifting issues. Ideas?

[tom at tomwintermedia.com]

Hi guys, as some of you know from a post earlier this year (or maybe right
at the end of Dec) I'm looking at moving on from my 95 S6 Avant to a 2.7 S4
Avant or maybe even a 2.0 A4 Avant.

I found a local to me 2001.5 S4 Avant, which drove nicely but I had a hell
of a time getting it into reverse. The car has a 6 speed manual transmission
with an aftermarket short shifter, not sure what brand. I like the car and
it's in good shape, with a price that's right, allowing me to immediately
put some more cash into it to sort out any details that might rear their
ugly head.

I read some posts on the other Audi forums and it sounds like this may be a
shifter adjustment issue. From some of the comments, the short shift kits in
particular seem prone to being installed incorrectly or not working well,
but I thought I'd pose the question to any listers who have experience with
this platform.

I mean, you're not going to blow up the reverse syncho unless do you
something really stupid right? All other gears were smooth and easy and the
car felt very tight. Car owner is selling because he wants a 4x4 truck, and
has plenty of records, showing a decent maintenance history on the vehicle
(although maybe not as fanatical as I would be), including a recent timing
belt service. He has the "touch" and had no problems getting it into
reverse. But it's like nothing else I've experienced, even my '75 911 which
needed a complete shifter bushing replacement when I bought it wasn't this
hard to find the gears in, and those cars have notoriously funky
transmissions.

Thoughts?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Tom '95 S6 Avant