PD 130 TDI gearstick "play"

[a6mother]

I own an 2003 a6 1.9 tdi and amongst other problems I find the gearstick to move (on it's own) stilghtly when accelerating/decelerating in the first and second gears. It that normal?
I also find the car to be extremely sluggish of the mark, it can be quite stressful at lights, if I tend to hurry it stalls easily.

Sorry for asking this question in the passat section, but I guess gearbox and engine are the same, a6 is only 100kg heavier.

Cheers.

[glynnd]

Movement in the gearstick is normal due to the engine being mounted longitudinally ( front to rear )
I would be a little concerned about the sluggish performance.

[a6mother]

Movement in the gearstick is normal due to the engine being mounted longitudinally ( front to rear )
I would be a little concerned about the sluggish performance.

Thanks for your reply Glynnd,

It is sluggish only off the mark - ie moving off at lights, the car in front gets at 10-15 yards even before I start to build up speed. Once it gets moving it's great - fast with great acceleration.
I know these engines have uneven torque across rev range but still not sure whether it is normal to be so slow off the mark.
The funny thing is that if I try to speed things up, it either stalls or the clutch slips.