[anandpadhye]

Voted Yes

DQ200 failures are surely not a good news but it's really a fast shifting GB and it's super fun in ths GTI. I also had the GT TSI for 4 years and 44000km and it was good fun too. The D1/D2 shuddering was more pronounced in GT TSI than it is in GTI (bigger engine helps?) Shifting to N during pauses (even if the pause if just a few seconds) helps and it's really not that difficult to inculcate in the driving habit.

ZF8 is one good TC but I see it's a bit slower than DQ200 at times though the good part about it is absolutely no D1/D2 shudder at low speeds. Still, I shift ZF8 also into N whenever coming to a halt, however short it may be.

BTW, 340i comes with TC whereas M2C has dual clutch. Even the Africa Twin comes with DCT.

[Reesnat]

Originally Posted by DDiSLover

Interesting. I have a very basic question - what happens with auto hold & start stop.

I'm reading conflicting stuff online about shifting to N vs leaving it in D vs allowing the auto hold/start stop to work.

I leave auto hold ON and start/stop ON, and do not keep the brake pressed while waiting at signals. I do keep my foot ready to press the brake if the need arises.

In Indian city traffic, engine start/stop will do more damage than good, so I never use it.

Auto hold from what I understand (don't have a car with it) is like an E-brake, so I would still say bring it to N if standing more than 10 secs and then use the Auto Hold.

[NevGin]

Originally Posted by 1.2TSI7DSG

2. Manual in creep traffic

Sorry I did not understand this. Can you throw some light on what it is that you do? Are you saying you slot it into manual mode in bumper to bumper traffic and return it to neutral if you need to halt? Would like to adopt whatever it is that you are doing.

[1.2TSI7DSG]

Originally Posted by NevGin

Sorry I did not understand this. Can you throw some light on what it is that you do? Are you saying you slot it into manual mode in bumper to bumper traffic and return it to neutral if you need to halt? Would like to adopt whatever it is that you are doing.

Yes!

Essentially the calibration is such that it shifts to an upper gear and then tries to slip the clutch to maintain the gear. So I slot it in manual whenever I think the car needs shift/hold lower gear.

[snappysam]

I voted NO!

It's not a mature technology. Issues, issues and more issues. Sure it is smooth and fast BUT at the cost of reliability.

Gearboxes ARE NOT consumables. Period.

[sramanat]

I voted NO.
I guess it depends on what one is looking for in an AT.
If it is price and minimal complexity over MT, then it has to be an iMT, followed by an AMT.
If it is convenience, torque convertor and CVTs are better pieces of engineering.
At this point, the DCT's use case is that it offers convenience while offering something close to the sportiness of a MT. Which is apparent from the makes/models on which it is offered. You either have cars that miss on one of the above promises or offer both at tremendous up-front cost and reliability issues.

[cloudno19]

Voted Yes, and I know I am in minority here.

I would be getting a T-Roc soon with the dreaded (as many call it) DQ200 gearbox. Anyways, the other cars that I was considering (Tiguan and Superb) were all DSGs, of course a different and possibly with better reliability and it did crossed my mind once when I finally settled for T-Roc.

But with 6 years of warranty, I believe I am covered for the most part of my ownership (I have changed my cars in 5 years duration). On the other hand, I have tried to search for recent reliability issues with DQ200 especially with T-Rocs but haven't come across anything that makes me worried (maybe I am looking at wrong places), and I believe when you are working with complex technologies and mechanics, you would come across couple of lemons irrespective of transmission and or engine, and you could only feel bad and unlucky but accept it.

On the other hand, I am sure, over the years VW would have worked hard on these transmission to improve it's reliability and engineering, given they still continue to trust it with so many mass market products across the group. I am sure, by now they would have considered abandoning it, and refrained from offering such warranties if they didn't trust the technology and engineering. From companies perspective, anything that needs their investment post sales doesn't make business sense and with such long warranties companies would not trust such transmission if they see large counts of failures, they would rather settle/offer something reliable.

I believe, internationally, there is a much larger trend to play around with the setup of the car, which results in more number of failures, and then of course it depends on how you drive, maintain and maybe some bit of the region you live (I am still unsure if and how much this impacts).

Hopefully, I am not going to bite my words during my ownership experience

[noufal.ps]

I'd buy a DSG any day over torque converter box. The quick shifts and the kick downs in micro seconds are so addictive, that it goes well with most of engine sizes.

I would however not consider other DCTs in market, except Ford may be. I found hyundai DCTs to be a tad slow.

[nidhikapoor]

Originally Posted by Reesnat

No.1 reason for DSG issues is holding onto the brake in gear in stop/go traffic. This is the DSG’s Achilles heel. Bring the car to N if stopped for more than 10 seconds and you should be good.

I have read that DSGs are the most susceptible to damage like this, and torque converters are more 'forgiving'? Is this true?

Originally Posted by DDiSLover

Interesting. I have a very basic question - what happens with auto hold & start stop.

I'm reading conflicting stuff online about shifting to N vs leaving it in D vs allowing the auto hold/start stop to work.

I leave auto hold ON and start/stop ON, and do not keep the brake pressed while waiting at signals. I do keep my foot ready to press the brake if the need arises.

Autohold is the same as applying brakes and leaving it in D. I switch to N even when autohold is on, if the stop is more than say 10-15 seconds.

[4nd3r50n]

Voted YES.

Again, in the minority, but having been an owner of a GT TSI, a Ford Ecosport DCT, and an existing owner of Tiguan, I haven't had any issues with any of the gearboxes yet, touch wood. I believe, if you take of the gearbox, it will take care of you. For reference, I religiously follow the 10 commandments posted on this link:

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techn...gearbox-5.html (DSG, demystified! All you need to know about VW's Direct-Shift Gearbox)

Hope this helps folks who have a DCT car- especially a DSG.

[josephilip]

I can't vote. But here is my opinion. I hate gearbox failure. It's always time consuming and complicated. And if i have to shell out a lot of money for the repairs, then it's a no. Although i do like the fast shifts and smoothness. We live in hilly areas and our swift diesel manual clutch lasts around 35k kms (yeah i know that's very low). That's because we have to skip the clutch till the turbo spools up in most inclines. I don't think a dct will last long in this kind of environment. A good TC like the bmw zf 8 spd would be preferred.

[Autocaptive]

Would've voted a resounding No if I could, I know as a 19 year old with a lead foot I am committing sacrilege here but when my father was about to buy a Rapid TDI DSG, I urged him not to do so (I know it's the other way around usually) but this is my argument if it can be called that;

As I mentioned I have a heavy right foot and I know DCTs reward such drivers under the right circumstances. I've experienced all of the gearboxes on offer today and have come to a conclusion that I'd love to own a DCT when I buy a car of my own (wet clutch only) but I'd not have my parents go through such an ordeal.

Modern torque converters have really hit the sweet spot for me and I don't need to have lightning fast shifts in a 100 something horsepower hatchback which is going on supermarket duties. Why even cars like the latest BMW M5 and M8 have shifted to ZF TC8s from conventional DCTs.

[tirumalavoleti]

While agreeing to the OP for the reliability and concerns, it has been a while the tech is in the industry and the current gen DCTs are far advanced in reliability than previous gen.

Since the question is about having it in current day, yes would like to go for the super fun to drive gearbox. Of course needless to say that one should be aware of the FE with spirited driving

[androdev]

I am 100% certain there is no need to put the gearbox in neutral when the car comes to stand still. You can google for idle neutral control. Every modern automatic of all types (dsg, CVT, tc) comes programmed with this logic. There is no harm in putting in neutral but it's not required and it doesn't increase GB life compared to just leaving it in D and applying brakes. Both do the same thing.

Also note that clutches and gears rarely fail in DSG. Mechanically, DSG is more robust than a manual gearbox. It being a computer controlled, the usual human errors of clutch and GB damages are advised. Usually actuators (solenoids) and sensors fail. Sensors typically fail due to heat or electrical short circuits - this heat is not generated when the vehicle is stationary for few minutes at the signal. So keeping it in neutral IMO adds no value as the TCU takes care of this for you. You can actually feel the drive disconnection and connection when you stop for few seconds and start off. There is no slipping clutch or spinning turbine when the car is stationary in D mode with brakes applied.

Heat responsible for most failures occurs due to excessive creeping for a prolonged period of time, aggressive driving with inadequate cooling. Excessive creeping also results in way too many actuation cycles of solenoids - maybe if we know the internals of the failed mechatronics, we may find that the actuators responsible for first and second gears fail more often than those of higher gears.

VW changed from synthetic oil to mineral oil due to electrical conductivity issues. Oil properties definitely matter - some owners change oil after 4 years or so even though manufacturer recommends sealed-for-life. Manufacturer recommendation of oil changes are generally very conservative and more aggressive schedules are generally favoured.

Avoid creep like how you would do with a manual GB. Either stop fully or move in fully engaged gear. Let the people honk. Sucks but hey you can't have it all.

Avoid too many actuations during congestion by using manual mode and stay in 1st gear till the traffic clears. Otherwise GB will keep switching between 1st & 2nd.

If you drive in pedal to metal mode on a long drive, take a coffee break and let things cool down.

Don't buy "sealed for life" marketing BS and change oil every 4 years or so but only at a competent place.

Best yet, don't buy DSG if you have a lot of congestion on your route. It's also not a good choice for chauffeur driven cars (they creep a lot to keep the drive smooth).

The right tool for the right job - DSG makes perfect sense to some. I personally think it must be had with a sweet petrol engine and paddle shifters.

[RJ2285]

Originally Posted by anandpadhye

Still, I shift ZF8 also into N whenever coming to a halt, however short it may be.

In another thread, bhpian Graaja shared the below with regards to this topic:

there is no need to shift the transmission to N at signals in a torque converter gear box.

In a torque converter, the gearbox stays in D mode and the input shaft just slips over the transmission oil film. When you lift the foot off the brake pedals, the oil film transfers power from the input shaft to the output shaft and the car starts moving.