Scirocco Central

I have had my manual, petrol 2.0l Scirocco GT almost 2 years now and am starting to think about it's replacement.I have been more than happy with it, but if i have another Scirocco i need it to be different enough to make it feel like changing it was worthwhile. So at present i am thinking 170 Diesel GT Dsg as a starting point
There are a few people on here who took the plunge at the time and opted for a Dsg box for the first time.
What i want to know is. After a couple of years of living with it. Is it the first box you would tick on the options list next time as it really is the dog's dangly bits or if you are really honest has it not been everthing you thought it would be and have found yourself yearning for a plain and simple manual box ??
Does it lurch around at slow speeds when you are manouvering into a tight parking spot or slow moving traffic ?
If you leave it to it's own devices does it hunt around between gears at a certain speeds and drive you mad ?
Also. do any of you with a 170 Diesel Dsg wish you had had a manual box instead and why ?
Come on. Don't be shy. You are amongst friends. Let it all out

I have to say that as nice as the Rocco is, the DSG box is what makes it special. It drives very well, it's very well put together, it's a real looker (well, maybe not the "american lady butt" looking rear)..but so are many of the cars I had in mind before I finally decided, but without the DSG box I still think it would've been an ordinary, extra-ordinary car..if you know what I mean. This is my first automatic, I've always thought of manual's as the "choice of a younger generation" kind of thing but that was perhaps true before the double-clutch thingy made it onto the market. If it's worth the extra money, well..is it ever worth the money getting a new car? I'd guess my next car will also be a DSG, PDK, R-tronic or whatever that car manufacturer choose to call it..even on the 160 BHP petrol, it's always ready and willing to take off, so to me it's a real no-brainer..it's just that good.

DSG all the way, if you drive in rush hour traffic it will be worth its weight in gold. Don't forget you can also use it in a manual mode as well as full auto. One thing I would say is that in comfort setting the box does like to get in 6th as quickly as possible which can be a pain. Where as in sport mode it red lines every gear, think they could do with a middle ground setting. Anyway my last car was an auto (MB SLK) and I would now only pic cars with an auto box.

I took the plunge and picked DSG on mine and I'm glad I did. I love it.

When you want to just tootle along in rush hour traffic it's seemless in D mode. No more of that on and off the clutch business while you move along in queues. You just lift off the brake and it trundles along, smooth as silk. You won't even notice the gear changes. It's very good at staying in the right gear at the right time. Also if you give it some welly it will just drop a couple of gears automatically and you're off!

Then when you want to really go for it on A roads you have the fun of the paddle shifts. The pop on upshifts is worth the money alone for me

I think the only time when it feels a bit lumpy is if you're approaching standing traffic. It tends to shift down to 2nd a bit too soon when you're doing about 30mph and you're off the throttle and it kicks in a bit too much engine breaking but you get used to it.

I like it so much I don't think I'll go back to a manual in a hurry.

Ditto with Kev,

I only got a DSG cause when I was looking there were hardly any manuals. Best decision I ever made. Dsg must be the best dual auto box from any manufacturer at the moment.

I had the DSG box on my old MKV Golf for 5 years and now on my Scirocco.

Would never go back to manual and will always stick with DSG for all of the above mentioned reasons.

It's superb!!

Take it on a long test drive and see how it suits you, we may love it but you might hate it

I moved from a 140 TDI manual to a 170 TDI DSG and I'm loving every minute of it. The DSG is so easy to live with and takes a lot of hassle out of driving, without feeling like you aren't in control. My only moan is that it likes to change up through the gears a bit quick in D mode, but with the padles you are always still in control if you want to be.

If you can afford DSG it's a no brainer as far as I'm concerned. Perhaps your bigger consideration is whether moving to the TDI is the right thing for you? Sort yourself a test drive to see if you can live with the 170 TDI.

Everyone so far is very positive about their DSGs, my view is a little less wholehearted... Like ABN1C I moved from a 140 TDI Manual to a 170 DSG Scirocco.

All of my cars to date have been manual with just two exceptions, my current DSG Scirocco, and an 1986 Ford Granda Auto in my distant past. The Ford was a traditional "slush-box" auto which confirmed all of my fears about automatics, but it was cheap and I needed transport.

The VW DSG is a revelation when compared to the Ford's old-style automatic gearbox. I agree with all of the previous posts saying that the system works very well, low speed, high speed, smoothness of changes, readiness to change down, and when driving it as a Manual, but you can't escape the fact that there's something in the decision chain between you and the gearbox, and you won't always agree on what gear is required.

I've been driving diesels for quite a while and like to use the low down torque they provide, you can make fairly rapid progress without having to stir the gears. I've found that the DSG is too eager (for my taste) to drop a gear or two and rev. Rolling up to a junction, you can see it's clear, and the present gear will do nicely thanks, but it will change down and set off like a scalded cat. The only way I've found to bend it to my will is to wait until it's selected 3rd and is accellerating, and then feed the throttle in. The 170 DSG pulls very well in third, without troubling the traction control too much, and without making you look (too much) like a hooligan.

Driving the car as a manual all the time doesn't work very well, I think 1st gear is way too low, lots of revs, traction control, and a very quick change to 2nd. I generally use Auto until it's up to 3rd and then take over in manual. If I'm just cruising in traffic I'll stick it back in auto.

I don't like "Sport", and never use it. When I want to run it up towards the red-line I use manual. Most of the time the car is quite fast enough just taking it to 3 or 4 thousand rpm. If you could set the change up points using the MFD I might use it more...

I really do like the way it will change to manual, (and do as it's told for a while), when you use the steering wheel paddles in Auto. It's a very neat way to stop it changing down too many gears when you want to ovwrtake, and when you stop using the paddles it quietly goes back to being an auto and carries on as before. That's one of the best features of the DSG, just behind the engineering of it, which is so far faultless.

Overall the DSG is a very good auto box, but it has the same issues as any auto:
It can't know when you want to change down, and by how many gears. It tends to over-do it a bit.
It can't know when I want it to stay in 3rd at 3000 rpm because I'm waiting for a gap to nip past the car in front.
It doesn't know that I've given it a boot full, but I am quite happy for it to stay in the gear it's in.

I'd go for the manual. I've got the DSG because my wife's got an Auto license, she's changed her car for a TT, and we need a four seater we can both drive.

I ordered a DSG based on a test drive and the fact I only have one leg, so a manual box is out of the question. I was impressed and had no qualms about placing an order. My current car is a BMW 120d M Sport with the SensoTronic auto box and it's wonderful. If the Scirocco's as good, I'll be a happy man.

Cheers

I adore the DSG box. My first auto and the best decision I made when ordering the car.

I regularly get stuck in traffic on the way to work and it's an absolute godsend. For years I've struggled along with clutch and manual in heavy traffic but no more – and aren't I smug now.

It does have it's little foibles:

• Changes up too soon into top gear (this is for economy)
• Sport mode sometimes too extreme (should be remapped to Normal, Sport and Sport +)
• Drive mode (D) not as responsive as Sport (S) i.e. throttle response and holding gear. They should be equally responsive.

Plus points:

• Silky smooth gear change (practically seamless you only really feel the rev change)
• Easy effortless driving well worth the £1300
• Manual override when you want to take control (using paddles or stick shift)
• Kick-down for lazy overtaking
• Slightly better economy when driving normally (only on 7 speed version)
• Hooligan Sport mode for red line mayhem ;-)
• No clutch ;-)

All-in-all I just wouldn't want to go back to a manual now I've experienced DSG. I have driven other autos [primarily my fathers car] and the dual-clutch system beats it hands down. No question.

Most major manufacturers are developing or launching their own dual-clutch systems, mainly for the MPG economy benefits. So before long everyone will have one – so let's enjoy it while it lasts.

Gary

Thanks Everyone.
You mainly seem happy with your decisions to have Dsg. ABN1C. i have had a diesel before. A Mk4 Golf GtTdi 130 manual and loved it to bits. My plastic brother in law(they're not married) has a Seat Leon 170 Tdi FR albeit not the common rail version and a manual too which is no slouch so i have no issues performace wise.
I am only thinking about a diesel as if i had the same thing again i may as well not have bothered because it would feel like i had had the same car for 6 years
I had 2 Mk 4 Golfs and went from a petrol Gti to a Diesel Gt Tdi to get around my concerns about the same car for 6 years issue, so,because i like my Scirocco so much i thought the same trick might work again.
I think long test drives are called for in all combinations. dsg and manual !!

only one way to go imho rocco R, for me a tdi dsg would be a tad nose heavy for my liking

Never owned a car with DSG before, thought i had made a mistake to start with, took a bit of getting used to, but would never go back to a manual now i think it is fantastic

in terms of responsiveness, i use the sport chassis setting, rather than the S mode in the gearbox. I find the S mode revving too high up.

one annoying thing for me is i, the driver, has no control over downshift. If i am in Manual, i should be allowed to downshift by choice, not the DSG dropping the gears down for me.

the biggest advantage for an auto is, i can eat my breakfast whilst driving to work!

the driver, has no control over downshift

I'm sure on the test drive I had, you could change down manually. What kind of gearbox would it be if you couldn't?

Yes if you're in manual paddle mode you just pull the left lever. What it won't do is let you break it. You can't bang it down to 1st if you're doing 70mph! Thankfully

The downshifts in D tend to happen just over 1000rpm (in my petrol anyway).

And at any time you can just pull the left lever and it will switch to manual mode. If you do nothing for 5-10secs it will revert back to auto or you can pull in the right lever for about 3 secs and it will revert as well.

Hi all,
I am also in the same dillema about the DSG. After a short test drive with an Audi A1 1.4 tfsi 122ps DSG, i am not sure if i liked it enough or not. I had a persistent feel that i do not control the car as i do with a manual. Also the car felt a bit less responsive than the Scirocco with the same engine and manual gearbox.
My question is, can you switch into Neutral when the car is moving? for example when wou have a very long descent in the motorway, can just let the car roll and the engine just idle? And if you can, then when switching back into gear (Manual or Drive modes) will it return to the last gear in use?

Thanks

The wisdom of switching into Neutral whilst driving is surely debatable:

a) You've relinquished one aspect of the control of speed (throttle input);
b) You're defeating modern engines' ability to cut fuel usage when your foot is off the throttle - so the operation is pointless. Cruise control and leave it in gear will lead to best maintenance of steady speed and minimal fuel inputs on a descent. Of course, if you're looking to achieve Vmax (due to gravity, and limited by the length of slope), then knock yourself out and knock it into neutral No idea what gear you'll be in when you put it in drive...
c) Some reports suggest coasting in neutral is "bad" for the gearbox.

To move from Park to Drive you must have your foot on the brake to disengage the lockout. I'm not sure if that also applies going from N to D. As above though, you're not really in full control of the car so I wouldn't recommend it.