DSG 'box - opinions?

[cheadle hulme]

Looking for a family car as we have a baby on the way in May.

Wanted a 330i estate, but they seem to be very rare.

Skoda VRS petrol are looking good instead and very decent ones can be had on low mileage.

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2011...

What are peoples views on the VAG DSG in general, and mated to the 2.0TFSI in particular? The missus is hopeless at changing gear, thinking this will improve economy, as well as be smoother for keeping the baby asleep

[Dave Hedgehog]

i love them, superb for real world driving and the newer 7 speeds are a big improvement on the older 6 speed boxes

unintentionally we both ended up with DSG

[morgrp]

Glad you asked that because Mrs Morgrp is swaying towards a Fabia VRS (DSG only in the run up to her getting her new wheels and I'm keen to know what they are like (esp the 7spd) - she's coming from a manual V70 T5 which absolutely adores but would quite like an auto

[TonyTony]

You can't fault it one bit. Seamless gear changes in auto mode and put it in manual mode when you fancy giving it a bit of stick!

[kambites]

They seem to be very good, if you like that sort of thing.

[morgrp]

kambites said:

They seem to be very good, if you like that sort of thing.

Ha! thats the problem, I don't know if I do - guess a test drive is on the cards!

[kambites]

morgrp said:

kambites said:

They seem to be very good, if you like that sort of thing.

Ha! thats the problem, I don't know if I do - guess a test drive is on the cards!

Have you driven any automatic? It's just an automatic with a manual mode.

[Defcon5]

kambites said:

Have you driven any automatic? It's just an automatic with a manual mode.

Its not - Its a manual with an automatic mode.

[anonymous-user]

kambites said:

morgrp said:

kambites said:

They seem to be very good, if you like that sort of thing.

Ha! thats the problem, I don't know if I do - guess a test drive is on the cards!

Have you driven any automatic? It's just an automatic with a manual mode.

It's a different driving experience to a traditional auto box with a torque converter.

[kambites]

St John Smythe said:

It's a different driving experience to a traditional auto box with a torque converter.

Seemed pretty much the same to me - slightly crisper changes but fundamentally exactly the same control mechanism.

[morgrp]

St John Smythe said:

It's a different driving experience to a traditional auto box with a torque converter.

Yeah driven tons of your common or garden autos but not a twin clutch DSG - driven a few early incarnations of manuals with to quote Clarkson "flappy paddles" and always thought they were compromised in many ways but I've not driven a DSG -

Sorry OP I appear to have highjacked your thread - I'll shut up now!

[Dave Hedgehog]

kambites said:

Seemed pretty much the same to me - slightly crisper changes but fundamentally exactly the same control mechanism.

think of it as a manual that you dont have to lift as you change gear, even on flat out corners

[anonymous-user]

kambites said:

St John Smythe said:

It's a different driving experience to a traditional auto box with a torque converter.

Seemed pretty much the same to me - slightly crisper changes but fundamentally exactly the same control mechanism.

I own a Golf GTI with a DSG box and a B3 Alpina with a Switchtronic one, they have noticeably different gearboxes imo.

[kambites]

Dave Hedgehog said:

kambites said:

Seemed pretty much the same to me - slightly crisper changes but fundamentally exactly the same control mechanism.

think of it as a manual that you dont have to lift as you change gear, even on flat out corners

Why? The control mechanism is completely different to a manual, and exactly the same as a conventional automatic with a manual mode.

[kambites]

St John Smythe said:

I own a Golf GTI with a DSG box and a B3 Alpina with a Switchtronic one, they have noticeably different gearboxes imo.

Well of course they're noticeably different. But if you can drive one, you can drive the other - the controls look the same; two pedals, an "automatic" mode and a "manual" mode with which you tell the box when to change gear.

[U T]

Driven a new Skoda superb with a 7 speed DSG...absolutely fantastic. Like a CVT box, or the old Daf Variomatics. The only way oyu know the gear has changed is the indicator on the dashboard.
My wife has a 2010 Tiguan with the 6 speed non DSG box and it's primitve by comparison.

[Dave Hedgehog]

kambites said:

Dave Hedgehog said:

kambites said:

Seemed pretty much the same to me - slightly crisper changes but fundamentally exactly the same control mechanism.

think of it as a manual that you dont have to lift as you change gear, even on flat out corners

Why? The control mechanism is completely different to a manual, and exactly the same as a conventional automatic with a manual mode.

its clear you dont get it

[kambites]

Dave Hedgehog said:

its clear you dont get it

Educate me then? I've driven several cars with single or twin clutch automatic boxes (including the DSG) and loads of torque converter automatics, plus at least one with a clutch and a torque converter. To me, they are ultimately the same thing - automated gearboxes with a manual mode where you use a micro-switch connected to either a lever or a paddle to tell a computer to tell the gearbox to change gear.

Yes they feel a little different - a clutch is always going to be faster to take up than a torque converter, especially with a box that pre-loads the next gear on a different selector shaft, but it's still an automatic gearbox.

[anonymous-user]

kambites said:

St John Smythe said:

I own a Golf GTI with a DSG box and a B3 Alpina with a Switchtronic one, they have noticeably different gearboxes imo.

Well of course they're noticeably different. But if you can drive one, you can drive the other - the controls look the same; two pedals, an "automatic" mode and a "manual" mode with which you tell the box when to change gear.

Glad you agree now that they are different

My advice to the OP is go and try one. They do take a bit of getting used to though. Plus points are they are much quicker at changing gear then you could ever be with an ordinary manual plus they make driving in traffic easy when in auto mode. Negative is that you do lose a bit of driver involvement that you get with a traditional manual.

[kambites]

St John Smythe said:

Glad you agree now that they are different

Yes, but no more different in operation than my Elise's gearbox is from the OH's Octavia one.