So I thought I was finally ready to pull the trigger on my dream 190 L&K manual with the following;

Lava blue

Black leather (kids + farm)

Traffic sign recognition

Smart Light Assist

Crew Protection Assistant

Rear parking camera (standard on L&K ?)

Spare alloy wheel ? (yet to be sought/confirmed)

Integrated factory towbar

Lane assist multifunction camera

Travel assist

Front heated windscreen

Wind deflectors

Rest assist

Rear wiper (functionality beats looks)

I was finally able to get my hands on a 190bhp for a test drive only the problem with this was the car wasn't a manual. It was the 190 DSG.

And what a car. Therein lies my newest but hopefully final conundrum. I don't want anyone to think I'm ageist but I always associated automatic cars with the older gentleman, I'm mid 30s. The manual was always in my sight and I would consider it more fun to drive, giving you the gear you want exactly when you want it. I have no experience of automatics and there lies my absolute hesitation. I've looked at the following links but I just need that little bit of extra nudging if to get DSG or stay with a manual.

DSG does it ever learn

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/397399-dsg-does-it-ever-learn/?view=getnewpost

New to DSG

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/topic/395369-new-to-dsg/?view=getnewpost

I commute 20k miles to work p/a alone excluding local runs.

I am self financing this car

I intend on keeping it at least five years

If I spec the DSG I'll also get ACC and paddles

Is DSG any good with diesels or is it really at its best with petrol?

Manual or auto is what it boils down to but fuel economy is also to be considered.

I thought ACC was standard?

I test drove a 190 dsg but have ordered the manual 150 tdi.

Steve

I thought ACC was standard?

I test drove a 190 dsg but have ordered the manual 150 tdi.

Steve

Not in Ireland. Adaptive cruise control is €385 extra.

The dsg combined with acc will make you wonder why you'd never had an automatic car before!

I have 150tdi dsg with ACC (210 km/h). My first automatic. I have quite regular long trips through the Austria and Germany.

I'm really positively surprised how usefull are both dsg and acc. Would be difficult to go back now.

Another great option for my usage (a lot of night driving) is dynamic (smart) light assist. This in combination with dsg and acc means I'm now much fresher at the end of the long drive.

Edited 21 August, 20169 yr by 5er

DSG without a doubt, I have a Company Octavia Business 2.0 TDI DSG, it has been faultless, on the strength of that I purchased my Superb Hatch 2.0 TDI DSG, which works even better than the Octavia with the ACC, needless to say, I would never go back to manual.

 

What I would add is the Paddle shift steering wheel, I have them on both cars, really useful and can make driving a little more fun at times.

I always thought I preffered manuals, but this 280 has DSG and ACC.

I don't think I would want to go back now.

(Although picking up was a little embarrasing as my left foot kept straying over and causing an abrupt halt)

 

 

ACC with the DSG is amazing if you are communting, as you can just set it at a nice speed and distance and just pootle into work all relaxed.

DSG without a doubt. It just makes driving effortless in combination with Auto Hold. 

 

Shame the ACC is an option in Ireland - I see standard cruise with speed limiter is standard over there on the L&K.

I have a diesel coupled to a DSG (not a superb) and it is great, really smooth.

Although I have a 190DSG with the 4x4 system on my L&K I'm not certain I would choose the DSG again. I have driven autos for years (not through choice but because BMW don't fit manuals to the X5/6 in the UK).

The 190 engine should work very well with the DSG, and on motorways it does. Where it fails is rural roads where it needs intervention as I regularly find mine is in the wrong gear for the road (something my BMW autos have never yet got wrong on the same roads) conditions. I reach for the paddles all the time when running in 'Normal' though it is better in 'Sport' or Manual mode.

I suspect it's a program problem as Škoda have aimed for economy rather than performance. The 190 economy is also well short of the mark with most Owners on here reporting less than 45mpg (mine is just 43.2 after 12k miles).

I have a 150 PS diesel with DSG and would not buy it again. It feels wooly and doesn't seem to make full use of the torque curve.  Normal mode is sluggish and sport mode just revs past any useful power. It also cruises at higher revs than the manual so it sounds slightly more busy at motorway speeds.  I didn't specify flappy paddles with mine and I probably should have.  I particularly dislike the lack of proper engine braking entering a roundabout - in a manual, I'd drop down to second and power through with the car nicely balanced but with DSG, even if I brake beforehand to disengage the freewheel functionality, the car is in too high a gear and along with the soggy suspension it wallows through the roundabout.  One of the selling points of DSG is its lightning-fast gear changes.  Mine doesn't feel any different to a modern auto box - changes are certainly not motorbike quick.  My wife's diesel manual Peugeot 208 feels much more immediate in its responses.  My Superb seems to have a little think before responding.

 

If you need the paddles then it begs the question as to why you're paying for DSG and then overriding it.

 

The above is written in the context of DSG costing €3k with very little prospect of seeing much of that back. If it was cheaper then maybe I wouldn't feel short-changed.

 

I wouldn't really worry about fuel consumption as the difference isn't big enough to make a noticeable difference. I'd strongly recommend that you get a much longer drive in the car that you test drove and see if you like the DSG features.  That said, the L&K might have better resale with DSG.

 

I have the towbar and would highly recommend it.  I don't have the rear wiper and would order it were I starting again. 

^^^^flappy paddles make a huge difference and would alleviate some of the issues you mention.

I have jumped out of a 300bhp Golf DSG and yes the 150bhp is sluggish but it amazes me how well it drives and flappy paddles with a DSG makes perfect sense to me.

Do not get me wrong a manual is best for as a driver s car but DSG coupled to ACC and lots of motorway driving or lots of stuck in queues and there is nothing to beat it.

Edited 21 August, 20169 yr by Defenderben

 

 

The above is written in the context of DSG costing €3k with very little prospect of seeing much of that back. If it was cheaper then maybe I wouldn't feel short-changed.

 

 

I agree.  I'm in the same position at the moment, most likely going to change to another Superb (to order for a 171 plate) and considering the DSG v manual but the €3K price difference in Ireland is probably too big a jump IMO.  I have driven a DSG version and liked it but on the other hand I love driving as well and like being able to 'drive' a car as opposed to sitting in something that gets me from A to B.  The difference between a Style and an L&K is €4K so the saving on a DSG would go a long way towards that.

 

Have you covered much mileage on yours?  Perhaps the DSG box hasn't adjusted to your style of driving yet?

It's a bit of a dilemma. The DSG boxes plainly suit the petrol engines far better. They're smooth, instant and relaxed but can make for effortless driving when pressing on. Generally speaking, diesel makes sense with a big engine and an autobox for long distance cruising, but when the auto box on offer doesn't suit diesel engines, you're a bit lost. For my tastes the DSG isn't really a sporty box, so although it's a decent compromise between the two extremes, I'd still much prefer a nice ZF box for around town / commuting and a real manual for the weekends if I had the choice.

 

The DSG doesn't adapt to your driving style (as stated by Superb170 above), so that's a no go. If I had to buy a VAG diesel I'd probably just put up with a manual, but I'd only be driving one if I had to and it'd be because I was spending 99% of my time on the motorway in top gear anyway, making it somewhat moot. I drove a 2.0 150 CR Octavia DSG and then a 2.0 150 Mondeo PowerShift before getting my Superb 2.0 TSI DSG. The Mondeo PowerShift box is reputedly a bit dumb and clunky, but I found it light years ahead of the DSG Octavia when comparing diesel engine to diesel engine. The DSG does, again, suit the petrol nicely for general cruising though.

 

Just one tip - forget the rear wiper. I ordered one and regret it. Not only is it not needed 95% of the time due to the saloon style rear end, but it's literally comically ineffective. The wash wipe barely covers half the area swept by the wiper (the dealer said it was working to spec) and as soon as it's damp and dirty it judders everywhere. A proper after-thought if ever there was one. Just clay and RainX the rear and forget about it.

 

 

Have you covered much mileage on yours?  Perhaps the DSG box hasn't adjusted to your style of driving yet?

 I've 10,000 km on it now.  I think that my driving style is relatively consistent and apart from a holiday in France, I tend to drive in the same conditions most of the time.

DSG every time. Mine on a deisel, and performance, esp with kick down is excellent. More though I am fresh as a daisy after long journeys and as stated with ACC, it makes things really easy. MPG is still around 45 - 50 for mixed driving. Falls to arohnd 38 if I spend hours at 100 mph on an Autobahn. It's not an kld man thjng (I'm 56) it is about driving efficiency and pleasure. No one has the age debate about Lane Control or ACC for example!

On paddles, it's personal choice but you can get an idea by flicking the lever left and using the gearbox manually.

Have you covered much mileage on yours?  Perhaps the DSG box hasn't adjusted to your style of driving yet?

 

DSG doesn't adapt/learn in time. It will respond to various inputs you put into it like driving mode, throttle position. brake position, slope among other things. It tries to do it's best and for most part (at least for me) it works very well. I have noticed for climbing up hill on curvy road, Sport mode does far better job than Normal. 

 

As for DSG vs manual, I would go DSG any time (or any auto for that matter). Superb is not a proper drivers car. Manual would just stand in way of enjoying eating up miles in it DSG coupled with ACC is just sublime! If you have Lane Assist, you basically don't need to drive the car at all when in queues.

I have ordered an Sel 150 diesel manual with DCC as I like a sporty drive and reckoned this was the best and only way to get anywhere near it from a car with such numb and lifeless steering.  I enjoy the mechanical action of changing gear and I also tow a caravan, having alway preferred manual to slushbox for this task.  I test drove the DSG and liked it for ease of use but was put off by the gear hunting at lower speeds as mentioned elsewhere in this thread.  My driving these days is very mixed with nowhere near the motorway work it used to be.  I was never able to test drive a manual box as no dealer in my area had one available(!) so I have taken a gamble but comments from Legacy have greatly encouraged me to think I have made the right decision for me.  At the end of the day, everyone's needs for a car are different.

Not in Ireland. Adaptive cruise control is €385 extra.

I see in Ireland ACC up to 160 km/hour is 385 Euros, and ACC up to 210 km/hour is 778 Euros - bit of a rip off if it's just adjusting a parameter to go from 160 to 210, maybe there's more to it than that. Having said that the 160 km/hour is more than adequate for the majority of people.

DSG doesn't adapt/learn in time. It will respond to various inputs you put into it like driving mode, throttle position. brake position, slope among other things. It tries to do it's best and for most part (at least for me) it works very well. I have noticed for climbing up hill on curvy road, Sport mode does far better job than Normal. 

 

As for DSG vs manual, I would go DSG any time (or any auto for that matter). Superb is not a proper drivers car. Manual would just stand in way of enjoying eating up miles in it DSG coupled with ACC is just sublime! If you have Lane Assist, you basically don't need to drive the car at all when in queues.

Sadly all very expensive options in Ireland.  Lane Assist + BSD is over €1,000.  €381 for ACC as mentioned above.  That, along with the €3,000 for DSG begins to makes it an expensive enough car.

I love the DSG box in my Superb 150 TDi - saying this after having a nightmare with the DSG in a 2009 Octavia vRS (clutch temp. sensor fault kept putting it in neutral it was only fixed after I showed the dealer a youtube clip of a car doing the same!)

 

Yes, in normal mode it changes up early - 5th gear at 35mph! Normally put it in sport mode round town.

I find the engine braking very good as the 'box will change down when you're braking.

Hi Benny

DSG plus ACC absolutely superb!

Funnily enough you ask a group of people who have mixed opinions and you get a whole load of mixed responses.

 

The only reason I did not order a DSG gearbox was it adding £30/£40 per month to my rentals (PCH) for a car I hand back after 24 months.

 

The one I test drove did have a DSG box - it was OK. 

Edited 22 August, 20169 yr by dodsi

Well from all the replies there are so many for and against. My commute is 80 miles return but on a national road, Sligo to Ballina, which is windy and hilly (various gradients) in places. The road is improving in sections surely but not sure if I would benefit from the DSG. By the sounds of some people's opinions/experiences the gear selection and revs would drive me daft. I think it would be a further €2,500 for the option over a manual which SWMBO is against anyhow as she thinks she can't drive one and it's a bit too much on top of an already loaded car.

However I'm still open to more suggestions and advice. As mentioned earlier it might be a programming issue with the gear selection on certain gradients and a fix of that would have me ordering the DSG in the morning.

I think that sometimes modern auto boxes are a bit like sat navs. You have to learn how to use them otherwise you will still get to where you want but not necessarily by the route you would choose. Then there is the difference between absolute trust with no idea of how to get to where you want and the intervention and knowledge to ignore it when you need to. 

 

I use my dsg in auto most of the time as it suits my typical journeys very well, especially in traffic jams or slow moving high volume traffic where the ACC drives for me. I don't miss that clutch in, clutch out. slip a bit, clutch in clutch out activity that might last for many minutes at a time. It is smooth in normal operation. OK it does seem to favour economic driving so it will, in my diesel anyway, use a higher gear than I might have expected sometimes. However, I have not driven a manual so i don't know exactly which gear I would have felt correct in a manual situation. 

I also find that the box will down change on approach to area such as roundabouts when combined with active braking. Even in eco mode it will change down if I brake correctly for the hazard ahead.

 

Then there is the option to use the box manually which gives me the sort of driver control that I could achieve with a manual box. For example,. if you want to move on all the time then using the manual option can make that feel more secure and comfortable but even then I find more and more that I leave it to the box to sort out. Set it to sport and I haven't had an issue with lag or incorrect gear selection for an overtake or to negotiate a bendy bit. 

 

So in summary, I think it gives the best of both worlds for my use of the vehicle. However, faced with a £3000 cost and no obvious desire/need to switch to auto then I doubt I would pay for it.