Tell me about VAG DSG/TFSI cars

MikeHiow

MikeHiow

MikeHiow

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In my search, I think I've found what seems like almost the perfect compromise.

Looking at £1-2k over my original budget, but this looks like absolutely fantastic value (although, I very much doubt things will move fast enough for this exact one to be a consideration): http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classif...postcode/so141ag/page/1/radius/1501?logcode=p

Obviously, the DSG system is quite a complicated system, what are the potential pitfalls/big issues?
 
Surely you are better off with a 3.2 V6 - these are cheap because nobody wants them whereas I'd imagine the far more desireable 2.0TFSI A3's at this end of the market are cheap because they are crappy nails.
 
Perhaps I have an irrational fear of these things, but an 8 year old DSG box that's done 125k miles screams "NO WAY" to me. If it does blow up, it costs in the order of £3k to have Audi rebuild it. Not sure what the failure rate on them is though... I've seen loads of threads along these lines though.

To agree with Fox above, I'd be much happier with this
 
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My first thought when I opened that ad was suspiciously cheap...

But then it is a leggy 5 door in a flat colour. Is it definitely still for sale?

At that mileage it'll be due a timing a belt anytime soon if it's not been done very recently.
 
andrewdodd13 said:
Perhaps I have an irrational fear of these things, but an 8 year old DSG box that's done 125k miles screams "NO WAY" to me. If it does blow up, it costs in the order of £3k to have Audi rebuild it. Not sure what the failure rate on them is though... I've seen loads of threads along these lines though.

To agree with Fox above, I'd be much happier with this
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Nasty interior is nasty.
 
Having witnessed first hand a vag cvt box destroy itself and reading the scaremongering about earlier dsg's I could t touch that box without warranty, up to 3k to fix as mentioned previously. My experience of the early dsg is that its terrible at pulling off from a standstill too, big old delay unlike the better slushboxes that are around.

That looks too cheap even though its an undesirable colour, if you really wanted the train with dsg I would have thought 8k+ is the region for a decent one.

That c6 interior probably looks ok in the flesh, though red leather on black tends to work better on smaller cars.....or alfas!
 
I don't see many dsg failures on the VAG forums I visit, and the older wet clutch boxes seem more reliable than the 7 speed dry clutch boxes. Just make sure you check they've been looked after with regular oil and filter changes.

They do have a strange lag when trying to accelerate hard away from a standstill which has tried to kill me once or twice!

The advert in the op looks suspiciously cheap for an s-line with Bose. Could just be the miles making it a bargain but I'm not sure.
 
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I had it in my old audi, and yes, it is a very good box, however, had i not had a warranty, i would have been always concerned about it breaking as the earlier ones do, and as stated, they are very expensive to repair, luckily, i had piece of mind of a warranty with mine for the time i owned it so it didn't bother me, it didn't break either.
 
When I was buying my MK5 Golf GTi back in 2005 all I ever read was the DSG's blowing up and how remapping my car would not be a good idea because they were not designed to handle the torque etc.

Well I have not heard of anyone I know having a DSG box cause any problems at all! They need the oil changing and looking after but I think they are as reliable as any other component fitted to a VAG car.

I really regret not having specced one on my car, especially as when mine was delivered in 2006 spec the paddles would have come with the steering wheel without forking out another £500 for a MF steering wheel.
 
Type_R said:
When I was buying my MK5 Golf GTi back in 2005 all I ever read was the DSG's blowing up and how remapping my car would not be a good idea because they were not designed to handle the torque etc.

Well I have not heard of anyone I know having a DSG box cause any problems at all! They need the oil changing and looking after but I think they are as reliable as any other component fitted to a VAG car.

I really regret not having specced one on my car, especially as when mine was delivered in 2006 spec the paddles would have come with the steering wheel without forking out another £500 for a MF steering wheel.
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Strange isn't it? Not seen a report of a DSG failing in ages, they're much cheaper to get fixed nowadays and take a remap much better than a manual.
 
Minstadave said:
the older wet clutch boxes seem more reliable than the 7 speed dry clutch boxes
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I'm inclined to agree with this. I did 30000 flawless miles in my GTi with DSG. However my Polo with DSG has eaten through a pair of clutches in 22 months.

And before you all shout "ZOMG you drive like a nutter", I treat the car better than my own mother, and it's only a 1.4.
 
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There are currently two DSG systems in use in most of VAGs - the 6 gear wet clutch and 7 gear dry clutch box. They all have different names across the system between Audi, VW, Skoda and Seat, but it's generally the same two gearboxes everywhere.

Let me start by saying - both are fantastic boxes. I'm on my second DSG and I will forever use dual clutch boxes from now on until the day I die, it's that good for daily driving. However, as with all things fantastic, they are not free of trouble. The older 6 gear wet clutch box would usually die from mechatronic failure somewhere in the first 100,000 miles, depending on where and how they were driven. It can be helped a little with oil changes every 40k miles and going easy on the box, but it's generally when rather than if scenario.

The 7 speed dry clutch system is much smoother and easier to live with in town than older box, and although it still can have mechatronic issues in some engine/box combinations, in general the biggest problem in those is clutches, the box develops judder/hard downshifting more noticeable on longer routes when gearbox is hot, usually in 2nd gear, most noticeable when starting very slowly with wheels in full lock. The fault usually develops within 50k miles from new. There is a VAG advisory and uprated clutches fitted under warranty where applies to most diagnosed cases.

In other words, I wouldn't live without one, but in all cases - make sure extended warranty covers gearbox.
 
I've got a 1.4 TFSI (180PS TwinCharged) mated to the 7 speed DSG Box.

I've only done about 11,000 miles on it, but I've been really happy with it. It's quick enough when in manual mode to still feel involved, and smooth enough in automatic that I can barely feel it change gear.

I think DSG is either something you will or won't like, you need to try driving one.

I also think Fox has yet again hit the nail on the head, get the best car you can for your money if you fancy an A3, the 3.2DSG will be a lovely car to drive.
 
If the wet clutch dsg boxes were all doomed in their first 100k I'm sure we'd be seeing loads of reports of dead boxes on a regular basis by now, but the only mention I've seen for months is clunky dry clutch boxes.
 
Minstadave said:
If the wet clutch dsg boxes were all doomed in their first 100k I'm sure we'd be seeing loads of reports of dead boxes on a regular basis by now, but the only mention I've seen for months is clunky dry clutch boxes.
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Type "mechatronics failure dsg" into google. You'll find anything from social media action groups to videos describing the fault going back for years.
 
Type "golf slipping clutch" or "golf gearbox failure" and you'll see lots of links to people moaning about their manual boxes. Loads of threads about S3s and slipping clutches with and without a remap on their manual boxes too.

The DSG took a lot of flack because it was new, and an expensive job to fix out of warranty. I'm not sure it's failure rate is as high as made out.
 
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