DSG Warranty Issue

[DSGMATT]

Been busy with work and the family so not really had much time to concentrate on the car much.

Though I have been noticing in my 8 weeks of ownership that the DSG gear changes at low/ stopping speeds has been 'jerky' and unpredictable to say the least. Long story short - I took the car in under warranty today for them to investigate the issue.

Booked the car in - the staff proved helpful and advised that a technician come with me in the car to demonstrate the fault under driving conditions. The tech - came with me, agreed that it was not right and mentioned that the engine 'hunting' whilst crawling at 2 - 5mph in 1st gear was not normal and something along the lines of a new Mechatronic being needed.

Dealers rang me late afternoon - car all sorted, we have downloaded latest software to DSG ECU and thoroughly test driven your car - all ok. Picked the car up (They had cleaned it too :D). Drove it home and tested the low speed changes around quiet roads.............. Guess what - still quite jerky and clunky between 1st > 3rd Gears. It has improved slightly, but in my opinion not right :(

So - I am now in that horrible situation of being protrayed as the annoying repeat warranty complainer who insists that the car isnt right - when they are adamant it is fine :zx11:

To be quite honest - I have no real attachment to the car, it is nice to drive, well specced and reliable.... That is about it, it has no appeal to me like previous cars. I wish now that I had gone for the manual version that the dealer also had in stock.

Any comments or advice welcomed. Matt

[Quatrelle]

Take it back, be reasonable when commenting (complaining), suggest they drive it again, and go on from there.

The car's not right - but that's not your fault.

[martin1810]

As you have only had the car 8 weeks I think you have every chance of getting the dealer to swap it for a manual if you prefer. Just ask nicely. If they don't have one, ask if they can find one for you.

[quattrogmbh]

Seems to have been many examples of faulty Mechatronics recently. I had one with less than 3K on the clock (June 2008 Build date) My guess is that they had a faulty batch.

The DSG should be "nearly" as smooth as a torque converter auto. You will notice a small jolt upon initial take up in 1st gear, but transition between other gears should be smooth. There is also a small jolt when decelerating just prior to the vehicle coming to a stand still.

Other jolts shouldnt be present. Their presence would indicate either an adaptation issue (Can be fixed with VCDS) or a mechanical issue.

If you arent happy, the dealer needs to remedy that.

[lorriman]

I think that the dealers are forced to go through the routine of updating the s/w, then if you take it back they'll take it the next stage.

I had the same problem and it now has a new mechatronic unit (after 3 garages saw it).

I would never go back to a manual, but then again I am not entirely happy with the combination of DSG and this particular diesel engine. It's so difficult to drive smoothly and pulling out of junctions or blending in with traffic at roundabouts is fraut with difficulty. Give me a torque converter anyday.

Good luck with the repair or replacement.

[garrad]

I was interested to read this thread - my car just had a service and the dealer reported that the DSG was lumpier than normal and has called the car back for a further diagnosis - he said it'll probably need a new gearbox (I'm glad it is still under warranty!).

I've always thought that this was a fantastic gearbox above 10mph but now I'm starting to hope that what I thought was "charachteristic" nastyness below 10mph is actually a fault!

[lorriman]

Had the opportunity to drive my wife's 2.0FSI TT DSG at the weekend and it reminded me of how an automatic box should be. The one in my Passat, in spite of having a new mechatronic unit fitted a few weeks ago, is still pretty poor in comparison, though it is the same gearbox as in the TT.

I find that I need to wait a couple of seconds between putting it in drive and actually pulling away, otherwise it'll bang into gear, then if I attempt to pull away too quickly it'll do the same.

And pulling out of junctions is just so difficult. You either get all the power in one hit or it creeps off at very slow speed.

I'm not sure whether to take it back because this is the only Passat I have driven eith this gearbox and am afraid that they'll say it's normal.

[Quatrelle]

lorriman - if it is normal, there must have been something wrong with the 170 DSG I tested when I bought my 140 manual.

I'd no intention of buying it (driving where I am doesn't really warrant the expense), but the dealer was just trying to get me to spend some more money after I'd said I was happy with the 140, and insisted I spent some time with it - he was convinced it would sell itself.

Because it is different to other autos, I spent quite a while trying to catch it out - creeping away, flooring it from stationary (very impressive), you name it, I tried it. Couldn't fault it.

As I'm sure you know, there are others on here who are happy with theirs.

[lorriman]

Good advice. I think I'll have to go back and benchmark it against another one. I'm really seriously thinking about part exchanging it for something else, but haven't a clue what.

I've only had it for 4 months, but don't think I'll ever be happy if it's going to be this difficult to drive smoothly.