Anybody ordering or has ordered a TSI 1.4 ACT?

[glospete]

Jeremy Clarkson has given the 1.4TSI GT a good report in his Sunday Times article today (unusual for him). But his car did have the full set of options!

[J400uk]

Jeremy Clarkson has given the 1.4TSI GT a good report in his Sunday Times article today (unusual for him). But his car did have the full set of options!

Yes I noticed that also, very positive review. Don't think it was the DSG though. I have a feeling this engine will prove better with the manual, whereas the 2.0 TDI is always a match made in heaven to the 6-spd DSG.

[sebtomato]

I don't really care about what Clarkson says! He is far from impartial and gets free stuff from car manufacturers...
I much prefer test driving cars and make my own mind!

Based on my own test drive (see previous page), DSG with the 1.4 Tsi ACT was not great.
I have S-tronic on my current Audi A3 2.0 TDI and it's great. However, some of the reviews of the new TDI on either the Golf or the A3 with S-tronic are not that great.

Therefore, it depends very much how they tuned it and the engine associated with it...

[h5djr]

The difference between the DSG used in the 1.4 TSI ACT and the 2.0 TDI is that the 1.4 uses the cheaper 7-speed dry clutch DSG where as the 2.0 TDI uses the original 6-speed wet clutch DSG. The replacement cost of the 7-speed is £3720 where as the 6-speed is £5050.

A while ago my wife had a test drive in a new 1.4 Polo and it had the 7-speed DSG and it was no where near as good to drive as my current 2.0 TDI with the 6-speed version.

[gamichea]

Autocar mkVII launch video of 1.4TSI ACT/DSG here Volkswagen Golf Mk7 video review Car Video | Autocar
I think the only -ve comment on the DSG was it can be a bit slow to react at times. Driving it on Sardinian roads would have been a totally different experience to London traffic. Mind you I'd want a lot longer than 25 minutes to form a definitive opinion.

After nearly 21 years and almost 300k miles driving TDIs this is the first petrol engine to interest me. The loss of torque compared to the 2.0 TDI is a concern but the TSI's torque curve is claimed to be quite flat and in conjunction with the DSG is an appealing combination on paper. Some of the stories I see about the DSG in everyday use are a bit concerning, particularly hesitation at junctions and roundabouts. That I would find difficult to accept whereas slow reactions I would be happy to deal with by resorting to the paddles or gear selector.

[h5djr]

I would definitely try and drive the 1.4TSI ACT/DSG conbination BEFORE making a decision. My wife view as the driver when testing the 1.4 Polo (not the ACT version) was that it hestiated at junctions and roundabouts which meant it was not very nice to drive, unlike the 6-speed on my 2.0TDI which she loves as much as I do.

She ended up not replacing her Polo with another Polo but with a new A1 1.6 TDI manual.

[J400uk]

The difference between the DSG used in the 1.4 TSI ACT and the 2.0 TDI is that the 1.4 uses the cheaper 7-speed dry clutch DSG where as the 2.0 TDI uses the original 6-speed wet clutch DSG. The replacement cost of the 7-speed is £3720 where as the 6-speed is £5050.

A while ago my wife had a test drive in a new 1.4 Polo and it had the 7-speed DSG and it was no where near as good to drive as my current 2.0 TDI with the 6-speed version.

The 7-speed also has a torque limit, which is why they only fit it to lower powered engines. Having said that it does generally get similar or better MPG than the equivalent Manual, whereas the 6-speed tends to worsen the MPG a little.

[h5djr]

I agree the 6-speed DSG has a torque limit but it is much higher than the 7-speed which, as you say, is why the 7-speed is used on engines with a lower torque output. All geaboxes and clutches have a torque limit, even manuals. Personally I'm more than happy to sacrifice a few miles per gallon for the pleasure of driving with a 6-speed DSG.

[sebtomato]

It was the first time I was driving a car with a 7 speed DSG gearbox. I have been driving a TDI with a 6 speed DSG/S-tronic gearbox for about 8 years. I have test driven a few petrol car in the past, but they had the 6 speed DSG gearbox also.

I guess I was assuming that the newer gearbox would be better (and lighter), but clearly, that's not the case. The gearbox, at least on the car I drove, didn't feel at all the same as my S-tronic gearbox.

I was already happy to test drive the car for 25 min, as a 1.4 Tsi ACT DSG is very hard to find.
If it hadn't been for the gearbox feeling like a traditional auto gearbox, I think I would have ordered one, as it is a very good car and well equipped...

[Handydave]

Must say, I find the 7 speed DSG on our Golf Mk6 is very good indeed. Smooth changes, no hesitations. Just as good as the 5 speed torque converter on our Merc E250 CDI Coupe.