Q: car will not shift tried doing it manually but would not work either is there on 2003 Ford Escape

I just bought a 2002 New Beetle TDI. So new to me that its still on its way to my house via my boyfriend driving it. He is really good at fixing car problems once we know what the exact problem is. What I know is that according to the dealer that we bought the car from he had the transmission replaced but was still getting the code P0740. From what I have been able to find out this sounds like it is the ASV Stolenoid. Does this sound right. At lower speeds it shifts ok, not the greatest, but once it hits 4th it really has a hard time shifting. Is it ok to drive for another 430 miles until he gets it home to work on it or should we hire someone on the way to try and fix the problem. Also could it be related to relay 109 which I know can cause several errors and may be triggering this one. Any advice and help would be great in this matter. Thanks to all who are able to answer my question.