Discussion
How good are DSG boxes these days? I'm considering a new Octavia vRS and not entirely convinced I can bring my self to inflict my wife on a new car's clutch, so an auto might be the sensible way forward. I've never owned an Auto though no idea what cars they suit and which manufactures autos are any good.
Pretty good, I have a mk7.5 1.5tsi dsg golf.
I’ve driven most types of gearboxes from many of the manufacturers, the vag dsg is better than a Mercedes B class I had as a hire car.
Quiet and most changes you can’t feel.
There are a few little quirks to get used to, such as shuffling around parking and the delay when downshifting several gears at once but you quickly learn to drive around those.
If you also have an electric handbrake it’s easy.
I’ve driven most types of gearboxes from many of the manufacturers, the vag dsg is better than a Mercedes B class I had as a hire car.
Quiet and most changes you can’t feel.
There are a few little quirks to get used to, such as shuffling around parking and the delay when downshifting several gears at once but you quickly learn to drive around those.
If you also have an electric handbrake it’s easy.
I hadn't but all news articles I can find on it seem to be related to their EV's, is it also an issue with older designs?
I'm always a little wary of this kind of thing though as most companies probably have thier own issues that just haven't come to light yet. My current 2009 diesel vRS has such good software it even knows when it's being emissions tested so it can be extra clean.
I'm always a little wary of this kind of thing though as most companies probably have thier own issues that just haven't come to light yet. My current 2009 diesel vRS has such good software it even knows when it's being emissions tested so it can be extra clean.
There were common issues with some of the earlier models, though these seem to have largely been addressed since the early 2010s.
The 6/7-speed wet clutch variants fitted to 2.0+ litre cars feel a lot more sophisticated and less jerky than the 7-speed dry clutch fitted to the 1.0-1.6s, though even this humbler DQ200 variant is pleasant once you get used to some quirks.
The 6/7-speed wet clutch variants fitted to 2.0+ litre cars feel a lot more sophisticated and less jerky than the 7-speed dry clutch fitted to the 1.0-1.6s, though even this humbler DQ200 variant is pleasant once you get used to some quirks.
RizzoTheRat said:
I hadn't but all news articles I can find on it seem to be related to their EV's, is it also an issue with older designs?
I'm always a little wary of this kind of thing though as most companies probably have thier own issues that just haven't come to light yet. My current 2009 diesel vRS has such good software it even knows when it's being emissions tested so it can be extra clean.
Yes, have a look on Whatcar, the current gen Octavias reliability ratings are poor because of electronic issues.I'm always a little wary of this kind of thing though as most companies probably have thier own issues that just haven't come to light yet. My current 2009 diesel vRS has such good software it even knows when it's being emissions tested so it can be extra clean.
I think cars like the Polo / Tiago on older less integrated electrical architectures are fine, but the Octavia, Leon, Golf Mk8 etc with the latest integrated systems are really unreliable.
There was a thread on here, someone rejected their current gen Touareg because it kept dying for no reason, a current gen Octavia owner started talking about his gremlins too.
Edited by wyson on Thursday 3rd August 09:30
I have a 2017 Golf GTi DSG, which I've had for 2.5 years, it's brilliant. Most of the time it's just left to flick between gears without you knowing, but has paddles to take control should you find an empty B road. My wife occasionally uses the car as well, she's never driven an auto before, she has no complaints either. There are slight annoyances I find, low speed it can be jerky and even in manual mode, if you floor it it will still change down occasionally when I just want to use the torque.
Overall, great combination in a VRS.
Overall, great combination in a VRS.
The Cardinal said:
....though even this humbler DQ200 variant is pleasant once you get used to some quirks.
What are the quirks in DQ200?Wife is just changing her Tiguan diesel 4Motion which had the wet DQ500 and I find it absolutely fine to drive - just as good as the old, well regarded Mercedes 5 speed auto.
Never had issues with hesitation etc - although we don't use any of the autohold / auto-handbrake stuff. They seem pointless in an auto and I think they make for clunky starts as the brakes release as you apply gas.
Sheepshanks said:
The Cardinal said:
....though even this humbler DQ200 variant is pleasant once you get used to some quirks.
What are the quirks in DQ200?Wife is just changing her Tiguan diesel 4Motion which had the wet DQ500 and I find it absolutely fine to drive - just as good as the old, well regarded Mercedes 5 speed auto.
Never had issues with hesitation etc - although we don't use any of the autohold / auto-handbrake stuff. They seem pointless in an auto and I think they make for clunky starts as the brakes release as you apply gas.
The wet clutch DSGs just feel much nicer to use. Living on a hill in a city, I absolutely love the autohold / auto handbrake stuff!
If it's just reliability from a "who will pay if it goes wrong" POV, then obviously it's under warranty from new and after 3yrs old all the VW Group brands do a package called "All In" which covers basic servicing, top level roadside, MOT and warranty for £35/mth.
Max age you can take that is 6yrs, and it runs for 2yrs so you'd get a couple of goes at it.,
Max age you can take that is 6yrs, and it runs for 2yrs so you'd get a couple of goes at it.,
Edited by Sheepshanks on Thursday 3rd August 11:12
I will be picking up my 3rd Skoda with DSG tomorrow (all 7 speed I think). Have done 100,000 miles with a DSG in last 7 years. No problems at all.
If you want to pull quickly out of a junction put it in sport mode and disable the stop start though.
If this changes with my 1.5tsi Scala I will report back
If you want to pull quickly out of a junction put it in sport mode and disable the stop start though.
If this changes with my 1.5tsi Scala I will report back
RizzoTheRat said:
How good are DSG boxes these days? I'm considering a new Octavia vRS and not entirely convinced I can bring my self to inflict my wife on a new car's clutch, so an auto might be the sensible way forward. I've never owned an Auto though no idea what cars they suit and which manufactures autos are any good.
Very good, I've got the DQ250 (wet clutch, 6 sp) in my 18 plate petrol .I posted a thread a while back moaning about my irritations with it. Basically what I think it is, on the VRS you have plenty of torque so it's quite content ticking along at 1200RPM everywhere. When you want to accelerate quickly it has to drop 2 or 3 gears to get going and sometimes it is reluctant to do so. I presume this is a CO2 thing (so it wont go on boost in the emissions test)
You quite quickly learn how to drive around it though. Trying to be mechanically sympathetic just confuses it, so basically instead press the accelerator directly to say 50%, rather than smoothly rolling into 10%-20%-30%-40%-50%. It's a non issue for me now.
I also have no problems with pulling away quickly from junctions, I know there used to be some lag issues there but that seems to be sorted in newer ones.
Edited by budgie smuggler on Thursday 3rd August 11:12
budgie smuggler said:
When you want to accelerate quickly it has to drop 2 or 3 gears to get going and sometimes it is reluctant to do so. I presume this is a CO2 thing (so it wont go on boost in the emissions test)
That might be just because you're asking it for a gear that isn't the one it already had loaded and waiting in the other part of the box - it can take a whole second to sort itself out, which feels like an age if you're trying to do something like merge into a fast flowing roundabout.Sheepshanks said:
That might be just because you're asking it for a gear that isn't the one it already had loaded and waiting in the other part of the box - it can take a whole second to sort itself out, which feels like an age if you're trying to do something like merge into a fast flowing roundabout.
Yes I know what you mean, but when I said "reluctant" in that sentence, i don't mean it is slow, i mean it will hold 6th rather than change to 4th or 3rd. I've only experienced what you're saying there when it's in D mode, and pulling to get a downshift when its not expecting it. e.g. when going into a NSL , it was getting ready to go 4->5 and I've asked it to drop to 3rd
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