I've just passed 2,000 miles in my new Octy 2.0 TDI L&K DSG.

Maybe it's me, but I wish I'd not bothered. The gear changes, especially gears 1 to 3 are very lumpy and noticible (Lots of "nodding-Dog" from passengers) no matter how I drive it. Sport mode stays in 2nd for far too long. Manual mode insists on changing down through gears when slowing, meaning I don't know what gear I'm in.

This is just for starters.

I don't like the fact the car creaps with handbrake on, meaning I have to shift into neutral for long stay stops and have to press the brake pedal to go back into drive, resulting in a flash of brake lights to confused drivers behind.

I've made a list of things the 'box should do: -

1) Handbrake should operate interlock

2) Manual changes should never be overridden (If about to stall in can just dip the clutch)

3) There should be a facility to hold the 'box in a low range, like a conventional auto - for driving in traffic and descending steep hills.

I know I still haven't had it long and may get the hang of it but, at the moment, I remain unimpressed.

My Dad loves it on his Touran 2.0 TDI, but I feel I could get far more from the engine when I drive it if it was a bog standard manual......

Silk, I don't suffer from nodding dog syndrome so maybe yours isn't right. As for the other critisisms - In many ways it is just like a normal auto. If the handbrake were to operate the interlock then that would defeat the point of the interlock. It is good practice in any car to go into neutral if stopped for any length of time. I don't see how other road users are confused by your brakelights. And when going down hill just knock it into manual and hold it in second that way. That's what I do on my auto too. As for which gear you are in, look at the dash display. That's what it is for.

I'm sorry if I sound a bit unsympathetic but (jerkiness aside) I think you are being a bit silly here.

Silk' date=' I don't suffer from nodding dog syndrome so maybe yours isn't right. As for the other critisisms - In many ways it is just like a normal auto. If the handbrake were to operate the interlock then that would defeat the point of the interlock. It is good practice in any car to go into neutral if stopped for any length of time. I don't see how other road users are confused by your brakelights. And when going down hill just knock it into manual and hold it in second that way. That's what I do on my auto too. As for which gear you are in, look at the dash display. That's what it is for.

I'm sorry if I sound a bit unsympathetic but (jerkiness aside) I think you are being a bit silly here.[/quote']

Hmm,

Don't get me wrong, I like the Octy, but I'm just being honest here. In my experience DSG is just not as good as I was led to believe.

I really love the way I can just floor it and it just continues accelerating through the gears and sport mode is fine on the twisty stuff above 3rd, but it just has too many faults for me to give it a whole hearted recommendation.

Having to look at the display to see what gear I'm in at precisely the point I need to be looking at the road is just not acceptable to me. I don't see why it just can't stay in the gear I've selected. It's ok if it preselects first when it comes to a stop, but going down through the gears is just pointless and illogical.

At what speed does it drop to second. Just been out in mine and it only dropped to second at walking speed, presumably to aid a quick pull away.

Manual mode insists on changing down through gears when slowing, meaning I don't know what gear I'm in.

Doesnt it show up between your instrument cluster? It should.

I don't like the fact the car creaps with handbrake on' date='

meaning I have to shift into neutral for long stay stops and have to

press the brake pedal to go back into drive, resulting in a flash of

brake lights to confused drivers behind.[/quote']

Well, that is in your manual box same thing, you need to put

your clutch down or neutral.

1) Handbrake should operate interlock

2) Manual changes should never be overridden

(If about to stall in can just dip the clutch)

3) There should be a facility to hold the 'box in a low range' date='

like a conventional auto - for driving in traffic and descending steep hills.

[/quote']

1) It would make it really hard to use handbrake in emergency,

and it would brake the gearbox.

2) Well, I dont see why on earth you would want to stall or overrev

the engine.

3) Havent seen that kind of autobox. On mine the D-mode tries to keep

revs down. If it changes gear i dont like, i use manual mode.

I know I still haven't had it long and may get the hang

of it but' date=' at the moment, I remain unimpressed.[/quote']

Ofcourse, that depends what you were waiting.

Maybe you should have had more testdrives with auto or dsg.

why is dropping down gears whilst slowing silly? :confused:

thats how i have always driven my manual cars as it allows you to react quicker to anything that may happen around you. its the way i was taught to drive aswell.

why is dropping down gears whilst slowing silly? :confused:

It's been accepted for a long time by all the UK driver training organisations as bad practice. I suggest reading the Police Driving Manual' date=' Roadcraft for further information.

thats how i have always driven my manual cars as it allows you to react quicker to anything that may happen around you. its the way i was taught to drive aswell.[/quote']

I would thoroughly recommend an advanced driving course. I never change down through the gears on a manual car.

Out of interest Silk, how old are you?

The reason I ask is that I'm 35 and my driving instructor didn't teach me (18 years ago) to gear down as I slowed, she said it was an outdated driving style. However my dad who was a pretty keen driver (back then) did gear down and encouraged me to do the same.

Since then I always gear down as I slow, it's just become 2nd nature to me. I would agree that if that isn't your driving style it would be annoying, but I agree that it always means you are ready for any need to accelerate.

Dan

If you don't drop through the gears as you slow, you must be holding the clutch in for an awfully long time. Regarding the DSG, though I don't have one, there seems to be a lot of mixed response about it.

If nothing else, this kind of thing argues for a long test drive in any new car you are buying - even though things change a bit as you run in. Ideally I like a demo with a few thousand on the clock. My last salesman said as I was leaving my old car with him I could go off in the demo all day if I wanted.

I would thoroughly recommend an advanced driving course. I never change down through the gears on a manual car.

Not wishing to start a seperate debate here, but I always change down through the gears too. It reduces wear and tear on the brakes by using the engine as an assist to breaking.

The way my driving instructor put it to me was something on the lines of; "if you cannot master changing down through the gears then I don't mind you using block changes", e.g. 4th to 2nd (5th/6th gear wasn't around back then )

Out of interest Silk' date=' how old are you?

The reason I ask is that I'm 35 and my driving instructor didn't teach me (18 years ago) to gear down as I slowed, she said it was an outdated driving style. However my dad who was a pretty keen driver (back then) did gear down and encouraged me to do the same.

Since then I always gear down as I slow, it's just become 2nd nature to me. I would agree that if that isn't your driving style it would be annoying, but I agree that it always means you are ready for any need to accelerate.

Dan[/quote']

I'm 42.

I learnt to drive at 17 and changing down through the gears was then going out of fashion, so I never did it. The highest driving qualification in the UK is the Police Advanced, or Class 1 as it was known. This does not teach going down through the gears. Modern cars have much more efficient brakes than they used to and therefore do not require any assistance from the gearbox, also brake linings are much cheaper to replace than clutchplates.

The Police method of driving is based on the publication Roadcraft and is accepted as best practice by all of the advanced driver training organisations in the UK including RoSPA and IAM.

Changing down through the gears means more wear on the transmission, taking a hand off the stearing wheel unneccesarily and reduces smoothness.

Roadcraft used the mantra, brakes are for slowing, gears are for going. I've never seen the need to ignore this advice.

Not wishing to start a seperate debate here' date=' but I always change down through the gears too. It reduces wear and tear on the brakes by using the engine as an assist to breaking.

The way my driving instructor put it to me was something on the lines of; "if you cannot master changing down through the gears then I don't mind you using block changes", e.g. 4th to 2nd (5th/6th gear wasn't around back then )[/quote']

Modern cars need no assistance with braking.

Silk' date=' I don't suffer from nodding dog syndrome so maybe yours isn't right. As for the other critisisms - In many ways it is just like a normal auto. If the handbrake were to operate the interlock then that would defeat the point of the interlock. It is good practice in any car to go into neutral if stopped for any length of time. I don't see how other road users are confused by your brakelights. And when going down hill just knock it into manual and hold it in second that way. That's what I do on my auto too. As for which gear you are in, look at the dash display. That's what it is for.

I'm sorry if I sound a bit unsympathetic but (jerkiness aside) I think you are being a bit silly here.[/quote']

:iagree:

Manual mode insists on changing down through gears when slowing..............

In essence the DSG is a sequential 'box but because of its design it can skip gears, which conventional sequential (and auto) boxes cannot do. It can only skip gears when changing from an odd-numbered gear to an even-numbered gear or vice versa. So, if the situation calls for a downchange from, say, 5th to 3rd it will go from 5th to 4th to 3rd, but very,very quickly. If the need was to go from 5th to 2nd it would change directly from one to the other. Maybe you notice the downchanges more in manual (and sport) mode because don't the electronics blip the revs.for smoother changes in those modes?

If you don't drop through the gears as you slow, you must be holding the clutch in for an awfully long time.

Even from 5th or 6th, you'd be surprised how long you can wait before depressing the clutch.

Modern cars need no assistance with braking.

:iagree:

The advanced driving terminology is "gears to go, brakes to slow". Thats the way everyone is taught to drive these days but they don't seem to bother teaching learners other techniques that go with it such as reading the road, anticipating events and lifting off the loud pedal to lose speed.

The car industry loves it. 20k done? You'll need new front pads and disks. My last car (A6) did 40k on the front pads and was still on the original front disks when I traded it at 67k. It makes good sense and its good for your wallet too.

Modern cars have much more efficient brakes than they used to and therefore do not require any assistance from the gearbox, also brake linings are much cheaper to replace than clutchplates.

Your motor uses more fuel when you press clutch, than when it is enginebraking.

And DSG wont use clutch on enginebraking, a normal autobox cant use enginebraking.

Changing down through the gears means more wear on the transmission, taking a hand off the stearing wheel unneccesarily and reduces smoothness.

Thats why its auto. You dont need to take your hands off...

Ofcourse you change down gears while slowing down and skip some gears while doing it, but that is just what dsg does. And dont be silly, enginebraking is used all the time everywhere without any extra wear on tranny, you should try once.

Roadcraft used the mantra, brakes are for slowing, gears are for going. I've never seen the need to ignore this advice.

You wont be going anywhere, when you are not at the power.

You wear the tranny and engine more if you start building up speed on too high gear. DSG just optimizes the gear to use if you happen to need to start build up speed again.

EDIT:

Even from 5th or 6th, you'd be surprised how long you can wait before depressing the clutch.

Ah, so you are using enginebraking. But if you check the display of your gear, you can see that it takes a lot of time to dsg change it down too.

Don't forget also that you should never cross your hands on the wheel, police best practice driving bolocks, going down the A1 on Wednesday and passed a police horse transporter, doing well the limit and this joker was drinking from a proper 'china' mug, 3 points and a nice fine if it had been the other way round [rant off]

Don't forget also that you should never cross your hands on the wheel, police best practice driving bolocks, going down the A1 on Wednesday and passed a police horse transporter, doing well the limit and this joker was drinking from a proper 'china' mug, 3 points and a nice fine if it had been the other way round [rant off]

Thank you for your constructive response.

I've just passed 2' date='000 miles in my new Octy 2.0 TDI L&K DSG.

Maybe it's me, but I wish I'd not bothered. The gear changes, especially gears 1 to 3 are very lumpy and noticible (Lots of "nodding-Dog" from passengers) no matter how I drive it. Sport mode stays in 2nd for far too long. Manual mode insists on changing down through gears when slowing, meaning I don't know what gear I'm in.

This is just for starters.

I don't like the fact the car creaps with handbrake on, meaning I have to shift into neutral for long stay stops and have to press the brake pedal to go back into drive, resulting in a flash of brake lights to confused drivers behind.

I've made a list of things the 'box should do: -

1) Handbrake should operate interlock

2) Manual changes should never be overridden (If about to stall in can just dip the clutch)

3) There should be a facility to hold the 'box in a low range, like a conventional auto - for driving in traffic and descending steep hills.

I know I still haven't had it long and may get the hang of it but, at the moment, I remain unimpressed.[/quote']

Find gear change in mine very smooth, at time hardy even noticible.

Sport mode is designed to hold gears as long as possible - solution - don't use it unless your in a big hurry on a country road!

When using manual my car only chages down its self when coming to a halt or dropping to very low revs (close to stalling)

Holding in low gear is perfectly possible using manual mode.

Think you should have a word with a dealer as your car doesn't seem right.

so if you were slowig down in traffic and you were in 6th, then al of a sudden you needed to accelerate to get out of the way of a car that had lost control i bet you would love waiting those couple of seconds for it to change gear so you could actualy move out of the way

the wear and tear issue is a pointless arguement as they wear put on the transmisson with engine braking is significantly lower than the wear put on the brakes when using them. how is using engine braking a jerky way of driving? if you are a decent driver you can actually engage the gearbox with decent accuracy so that it is virtually undetectable and not just dropping the clutch everytime

I think the key here is the Jerkiness, and as said before , If youre unhappy, takie it back to the dealer and ask the Mech to com out with you and show him what is happening.

My son has the Golf with DSG, when he uses sport mode , it for getiing past slow vehicles quickly, or quick take off from lights. However I personally find that the sport mode drives the car like a petrol, holding gears till no more torque/power is available , then changes. ( if you want economy dont use sport mode ).

During normal, semi auto/ auto it is extremely smooth at all times. (As previous, take it in to be checked).

I will be changing my Furby next year, and am still undecided about DSG v Manual in my next Skoda. ( Most likely )

I'm 42.

I learnt to drive at 17 and changing down through the gears was then going out of fashion' date=' so I never did it. The highest driving qualification in the UK is the Police Advanced, or Class 1 as it was known. This does not teach going down through the gears. Modern cars have much more efficient brakes than they used to and therefore do not require any assistance from the gearbox, also brake linings are much cheaper to replace than clutchplates.

[/quote']

Yes , the police teach you not to downshift until you are at the speed you are aiming for.

In general I don't go down through every gear , though if I'm going from 70+ down to say 20 as I approach traffic lights I'll probably go 6-4-2.

It feels too odd to be in 6th at 25 mph.

I do make an effort to just let the speed roll off if I can see I need to slow down rather than keep the power on and then brake unnecessarily which is why I get such a good life from my brakes.

As for the DSG going through every gear as you slow , is the gearbox capable of doing block changes?

I don't think it can , so the alternative would be holding it in 5th or 6th until you are at a low speed then doing a set of very rapid changes before you can accellerate again

Sad to say I learned to drive when the brakes in cars were ok...ish but really it was a good idea to use engine braking to help. I was taught to change down the box, and followed that practice until my natural driving style evolved it is a mix between what I was taught and the Police method. It all depends on traffic circumstances.

If you are in the right gear, you can make the car change direction, and balance the car just by throttle control alone (as all we Fabia drivers without rear A/R/Bar have discovered) IMO it is this driver skill that seperates the wheat from the chaff.

I find that front pads usually last approx 35-40k, the best I have had out of a set of rear pads was an astonishing 91k the only clutch I have ever changed lasted 141k. I usually drive in what can only be called a"spirited" manner, so I think that in following a particular method religously is stupid. Circumstances, road conditions, weather, drivers wishes etc.. can change quickly, so must driving style to accomadate these changes. Skill is the key word, we should all try to improve our technique.

I have driven the DSG boxed car in both petrol and diesel and found auto setting best for pottering around but if I want "spirited" I stick it in manual setting.

Sorry rant over, but it annoys me when people say, you "should " do it this way regardless of who they are (The Police for example) yes there are laws to be obeyed but there must be individual freedom.

I apologise from straying (more like running away ) from topic.

Gets down off of soapbox.

Dawns flame proof suit .

Waits patiently for the proverbial to start.

As for the DSG going through every gear as you slow ' date=' is the gearbox capable of doing block changes?

I don't think it can ..........[/quote']

I think it can s/t restrictions in certain circs. See my 21:21 19/8 post in this thread.