DSG or manual

Kemik · 31 Oct 2014 at 13:00

Hi guys,

I've got a choice, either DSG or manual, on a Golf GTD. The DSG costs an extra £1,000 or approximately £25 per month.

I've used a DSG before and loved it on the Polo GTI. There were incidents were it would be in the wrong gear (e.g. at round abouts) and I'm not sure how well it will work with the torque banding of the diesel Golf. The DSG will be more expensive (£10 a year) for car tax and a bit less MPG but will be more effective for the adaptive cruise control.

When I test drove both the manual seemed to have more go but that might just be my poor gear changes ha.

What do you reckon?

andy_mk3 · 31 Oct 2014 at 13:04

Personally, in something like a diesel Golf, I would prefer the DSG. As a manual lover I'd normally say manual, but I do like the DSG box, and in a Golf, it should be perfectly fine.

Spleen Sauce · 31 Oct 2014 at 13:08

DSG suits the GTD perfectly, its smooth and rarely seeks the wrong gear.

rodenal · 31 Oct 2014 at 13:13

As the car is so new I'd go dsg, its a good box and the only reason not to have it is worries over repairs later in life imo

nas · 31 Oct 2014 at 13:17

DSG. Was initially after a manual (MK5 GTI) until being convinced otherwise, I can't see myself going back to a manual again. Warranty is available to purchase if need be.

matthab · 31 Oct 2014 at 15:00

DSG and purchase a warranty if your worried. Someone is going to have to drag me into a dealership to buy a manual again.

smokedog · 31 Oct 2014 at 15:15

DSG all day long. Has the control of a manual but the convenience of auto. DSG are normally quicker than manuals too.

Blackhawk47 · 31 Oct 2014 at 15:24

For sake of an extra £26 or so quid a month I would just get the DSG. Quite reliable these days from what I've been told/read. And even if something did go wrong, its not your problem, just get warranty to sort it.

As the mpg, I wouldn't be suprised if it was the same/more than the manual version for daily driving.

Hades · 31 Oct 2014 at 16:25

New and diesel... DSG.

Better economy. Slightly better acceleration. More relaxed driving. More likely to have better resale.

So... I bought a petrol manual.

daver · 31 Oct 2014 at 16:51

I got a non DSG GTD at the end of August but then mines a company car and the DSG has worse CO2 emissions so charge is 3% higher than non DSG. Worked out it would be about £700 a year more expensive to have the DSG

What other options are you going for?

I have Discover Nav pro, winter pack, keyless entry.

JKD · 31 Oct 2014 at 17:10

I have the DSG (Well S-Tronic) in my diesel VAG product. This is the first auto I've owned and driven. Think I made the right choice, yes there occasions where I'm flooring it to get it to go down a gear, but overall it's just so much more a relaxing drive in traffic. Suits a small(ish) car like this.

I've come from a manual Diesel Freelander, and I think I prefer the manual in Freelander though as there were occasions where I really had to rev the knackers off that! A sometimes lazy gearbox in the Freelander would really have wound me up.

Finglonga · 1 Nov 2014 at 10:05

Modern decent auto boxes on a good engine are exceptional now and My GTI PP DSG is one of the best I have driven and I will never go back to a manual now, they are simply too much work in traffic.

Minstadave · 1 Nov 2014 at 11:08

DSG every day of the week for me.

Yas786 · 2 Nov 2014 at 12:29

Spleen Sauce said:
DSG suits the GTD perfectly, its smooth and rarely seeks the wrong gear.

Yep this a million times, i have a 14 reg GTD myself and im glad i went with the DSG box even though i have a soft spot for manuals but having test driven both a manual and dsg on the GTD, i'd go with the DSG box...very smooth and as spleen sauce has said it rarely picks the wrong gear.

Usually i have my GTD in normal mode and the dsg works very well but sometimes i stick it into sport mode and it becomes a different beast altogether...brings a huge smile to my face when i floor it.

PMKeates · 2 Nov 2014 at 12:57

DSG is quite a boring transmission to drive, so it depends whether that's worth it for not having to change gear. I think in most circumstances it is.

ci_newman · 2 Nov 2014 at 21:35

Another DSG convert here. I wouldnt have guessed 10 years ago that I'd recommend an automatic, but there you are!

swinnie · 3 Nov 2014 at 08:36

I have a Skoda Octavia 1.6TDI DSG as a courtesy car as my car (Skoda Rapid 1.2TSI Manual) is in the garage having its radiator replaced due to a stone going through it.

I have been very impressed with the DSG, it seems to be smooth throughout and works it's way up through the gears well, even under load to get yourself moving when joining NSL roads, for example. Can't say I'm totally converted to DSG, but when I change my car in a few years I think I will have to revisit them.

matthab · 3 Nov 2014 at 08:57

PMKeates said:
DSG is quite a boring transmission to drive, so it depends whether that's worth it for not having to change gear. I think in most circumstances it is.

Not boring at all if you have paddles

Firestar_3x · 3 Nov 2014 at 10:16

PMKeates said:
DSG is quite a boring transmission to drive, so it depends whether that's worth it for not having to change gear. I think in most circumstances it is.

Don't find that myself, my only criticism of DSG is it can jerk a gear change every now and again whilst crawling in traffic, and the 2nd gear at junctions issue can get annoying at times.

Dr Who · 3 Nov 2014 at 10:23

PMKeates said:
DSG is quite a boring transmission to drive, so it depends whether that's worth it for not having to change gear. I think in most circumstances it is.

DSG isn't half as boring as being stuck in traffic up and down on the clutch.

DSG is a no-brainer for the road really.