Board logo

Gearbox help
Myke 2463 - 31/12/15 at 09:29 AM

Whats the reliability like of the VW DSG boxes and would you have one yourself ?

sprintB+ - 31/12/15 at 09:56 AM

my company one is touching 180 thou, gearbox is fine. Car is regularly serviced by main agent though, so it could be a bit of a triggers broom.

ian locostzx9rc2 - 31/12/15 at 09:57 AM

Better now than the were when they first came out but with most auto boxes very expensive to repair when they go wrong. Lovely smooth gear change though .

Slimy38 - 31/12/15 at 10:12 AM

quote:
Originally posted by ian locostzx9rc2
Better now than the were when they first came out but with most auto boxes very expensive to repair when they go wrong. Lovely smooth gear change though .


Yep, they got a horrendous reputation from day one with all sorts of failures. Nowadays they're pretty decent, although I probably still wouldn't want to try and maintain one at home!

Unfortunately I don't like the current 'fashion' of small capacity engines and auto boxes, it just seems to be a bad combination in my eyes. Either have small engine with a manual box, or a bigger lazy engine that can work with an auto. That's not a criticism of DSG's though, that's all auto's.

Shooter63 - 31/12/15 at 10:33 AM

I drive a golf 1.6 td with dsg as a daily drive ( company car) the gearboxes are well known for failing at around 100k mine made it to 110k . Just to let you know the cost of replacment is around 8k!!!!!!!!!yup 8 thousand quid. My company phoned around loads of so called specialist gearbox places, not one could do it cheaper ( I expect they were just getting the replacment box from vw and sticking an uplift on it)
On the other side, it's a brilliant bit of kit when it works, almost seamless shifting and is no doubt the future.

Shooter

britishtrident - 31/12/15 at 04:37 PM

60+ years ago autoboxes were unbreakable these days every type on the market has a bad reputation.

Paul Turner - 31/12/15 at 05:07 PM

We had a 6 speed wet clutch version on a pool car and it did 150,000 miles with various careless drivers and was never an issue.

The 7 speed dry clutch ones are the troublesome ones. They are only good for 184 lbs/ft of torque for starters and guess what, the cars VAG fit them too eg 1.4 TSI, 1.8 TSi, 1.6 TDI all have 184 lbs of torque (in some cases limited to prolong the life of the box). Then stupid owners then have their cars chipped and thrash them to death. Visit any of the VAG forums and you will find loads of YouTube videos of owners trying to get the lowest 0-60 time. When asked about DSG reliability they simply say "not my problem, will sell it before warranty expires, then its the next owners problem".

Sensibly driven and properly maintained they should last the life of the car. Would buy one, never, not even a new one.

Shooter63 - 31/12/15 at 06:00 PM

quote:
Originally posted by Paul Turner
We had a 6 speed wet clutch version on a pool car and it did 150,000 miles with various careless drivers and was never an issue.

The 7 speed dry clutch ones are the troublesome ones. They are only good for 184 lbs/ft of torque for starters and guess what, the cars VAG fit them too eg 1.4 TSI, 1.8 TSi, 1.6 TDI all have 184 lbs of torque (in some cases limited to prolong the life of the box). Then stupid owners then have their cars chipped and thrash them to death. Visit any of the VAG forums and you will find loads of YouTube videos of owners trying to get the lowest 0-60 time. When asked about DSG reliability they simply say "not my problem, will sell it before warranty expires, then its the next owners problem".

Sensibly driven and properly maintained they should last the life of the car. Would buy one, never, not even a new one.




I can't agree with hardly any of that, my company ran all VAG cars at one point
3 passats out of 4 gutted there gearboxes ( 6 speed jobs) the 4th one got burnt out in the Tottenham riots
As already said my golf (7 speed) went at 110k , when in at the dealers to pick it up they had 4 in with exactly the same problem. Mine had been main dealer serviced since new at the correct mileage, non of the above had been chipped, most of the time we are in London so speeds are low.
I've checked the hand book and not once does it say drive like a grandad and don't press the r/h peddle too much.
These cars are great , well built, handle well, but like everything made today, only have a certain lifespan ( deliberate I expect )
Mine is now up to 130k, the EGR went, the lifters are going soft, and the lower tensioner bleeds down ( rattles on start up)
Would I buy a new one yes
Would I buy a s/h one no

Shooter

mark chandler - 31/12/15 at 06:17 PM

Is it not mostly down to preventive maintenance?

Jaguar used to use (as did many other high end manufacturers including Porsche) Mercedes auto boxes, in the merc they came with scheduled fluid changes, dip sticks and all that old rubbish so worked faultlessly for 200-300,000 miles or the life of the car

Sealed for life rubbish and they go pop at 100,000 miles.

My old Volvo has a Asian 6 speed geartronic box, I replaced the fluid when I purchased it a couple of years ago and the fluid was black by pumping through until only clean fresh fluid came out and had the box put into learn mode, it drives completely differently now, smooth & quiet.

Myke 2463 - 1/1/16 at 09:13 AM

Thanks for your replies and experiences. I was thinking of the Octarvia VRS @170bhp. most seem to have the DSG but think i will look for one with stick between the seats.

HAPPY NEW YEAR,