I was looking at vRS but may need to downgrade to the 1.5 TSi and would welcome thoughts on Auto v Manual transmission - pros and cons please.

 

I do a mixture of local trips and some longer motorway journeys. My decision will mainly be based on reliability rather than a random preference. (I happily drive with either)

Welcome to the forums.

 

From my experience the 6sp. manual is absolutely fine and I see no reason to doubt its reliability. My current Octavia Mk IV has covered about 32k miles, so not a huge amount I admit. I see no reason why it should be any less reliable than my previous two Škodas, Octavia Mk2 and Superb Mk2 both of which I covered in excess of 80k miles. BTW, I know the Superb is currently in excess 105k on the original clutch. Again, not massive mileage compared to some, but hopefully gives you a feel for them.

 

I find my Octavia MkIV estate is very economical too, returning about 57mpg overall since I've had it (based on spreadsheet calculations and brim to brim tankfuls). Others have reported (in other threads) good economy from the 1.5 TSi manual too. With the gear ratios and engine (low revs) flexibility I find that around town 30mph limits I'm usually in 4th, occasionally 5th if light on the throttle; 6th only becomes useful above 40mph, and even then 5th is potentially more economical.

 

I can't vouch for the 1.5 TSi automatics though; the only DSG auto I have driven for any distance (~8k miles) was a MkIV estate 1.0 e-TEC mild hybrid. It was surprisingly lively with two and modest luggage on board, returning mid-50s mpg; I suspect it'd be a bit lacking for a fully loaded motorway run though, certainly compared with a vRS. The 1.5 e-TEC would be better I'm sure, and probably what I would go for now/next.

 

There are others here with much more knowledge and experience of the DSGs so hopefully they will add comment too.

The main (about the only) disadvantage of DSG is it costs more

 

Its advantages are :

extra gear, and is programmed to generally keep engine in sweet spot

longer warranty than a clutch

if you have ACC it will do more as it can respond fully without having to wait for driver to change gears

less stress for driver

can be driven by those with B licences (which are becoming common at tests)

 

The dry-clutch DSG on this model does not have a good reputation in Australia, so much so that the mk 4 Octavia sub 2.0tsi model is a 1.4tsi with an 8 speed Aisin torque converter box.

The historical dry DSG issues where an incorrectly specified oil caused major issues in our climate have long been fixed but there are still a couple of other issues that need to be considered.

The first, is that most Aussies do not drive manuals and they drive the DSG box like a torque converter box balancing the torque box drag against a light brake pressure when stationary on a hill for a quick take off, this is like riding the clutch on a manual and can prematurely wear them out.

The second, is that most reviews here complain about a 'dangerous' delay when you want to accelerate from a stopped into a traffic gap that suddenly appears such as on a roundabout.

 

Neither issues barely get a mention in this forum, where most are experienced manual transmission drivers, but ideally you should try each to see what YOUR preference is.

Edited 15 December, 20232 yr by Gerrycan

23 minutes ago, Gerrycan said:

The second, is that most reviews here complain about a 'dangerous' delay when you want to accelerate from a stopped into a traffic gap that suddenly appears such as on a roundabout.

 

I've seen that discussed in this forum, especially with the additional delay caused by the engine Stop/Start system. Not something I had really considered (being one of the manual 'box drivers).

Mrs Gaz has a 2015 Polo GTI with the DQ200 seven speed dry clutch DSG, and it's been faultless in the five years we've owned it.  As @Gerrycan mentions, the oil spec. issues were a long time ago, and our DQ200 would appear to be after that timeframe.  Mrs Gaz previously drove manual cars, but since having a DSG now wouldn't go back to a manual.

 

I've driven autos for 42 years and the DQ250 six speed wet clutch DSG's I've had in my previous vRS, and current GTI are as good as any i've owned or driven.

 

In my experience, I don't get any delay when pulling away.  Ours are both off like scalded cats.  I think it's a case of getting used to the stop-start and auto hold and having the car ready to go - I tend to twitch the steering wheel, which fires the engine back up, when I see a gap coming up.

 

Agree with Gerrycan that you really ought to try both before deciding.  If you're not used to a DSG, then you probably should go for an extended test drive to get a bit more familiar with them.

 

Gaz

 

Edited 15 December, 20232 yr by Gaz
grammar

thanks everyone for your feedback. My Mk2 1.9 tdi estate  (2007) is manual and it has not had any transmission issues at all. It has 190K on clock and easily most reliable car I owned !