DSG issues...

[MrTea]

I've recent bought a 2nd hand 2005 DSG 2L TDI and changing from 1st to 2nd to 3rd is a bit jerky which gets quite annoying It feels like the equivalent of tapping the brakes when changing gear.

The only way I can achieve a smooth 1st to 2nd gear change from standstill is to acellerate extremely slowly until it has changed into 2nd gear in D mode, or the other method is to change to tiptronic and get the revs go to about 2500rpm in 1st then change into 2nd.

This cant be right can it?

 

[Jo Sharp]

Not right - my new s-tronic S3 is super smooth all the way through the gears. Get it checked by a dealer - is it still under warranty from your supplier?

 

[MrTea]

yeh it is still under warranty. I think I'll take it to Audi first so they can properly diagnose it; if I take it back to the supplier he'll probably just say it's fine

If Audi say there is a problem then hopefully my supplier can't argue and will pay for repairs

Are you able to brake smoothly to a stop? I find mine changes down gear too soon when coming to a stop which causes the car to lunge forward and judder, which is probably even more annoying! It's more noticeable when braking at slower speeds.

It could just be because I have 2005 version and newer models have had these issues ironed out since then... Anyone else have a 2005 A3 DSG TDI?

 

[leighharris]

do you let car warm up alittle , try and leave it started for 5mins and it should be fine . mine is same when cold

Wrong wrong wrong

The worst thing you can do for your car is leave it idling when cold.

You need to get the engine warmed up as quickly as possible and the most efficient way to do this is to drive the car gently until warm.

This is especially important with diesels as due to their relatively high efficiency they produce very little heat, meaning you'll pretty much never warm the car without driving it.

 

[bropa09]

Got the car back after 3 weeks! Anyway, DSG is a lot smoother than it was so I'm quite pleased that I finally put it in thanks to the advice here

Just in case anyone is interested, the coolant issue was the EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) part which had an internal fault and was leaking slightly. Audi in the UK had to liaise with Germany to diagnose the issue so it sounds like it was quite a tricky problem.

 

[MrTea]

Got my car back yesterday from Audi after their gearbox specialist checked it out.

They said everything was normal and it's just how DSG is. They did however reset the ECU so it will start re-learning gear changes or something.

It currently feels exactly the same so unless it improves that's £120 down the drain

I can't live with the jumpy gear changes in 1-2-3, as if it's changing up too quickly, and the harsh engine braking back down from 3-2, as if it's changing down too quickly... it's really annoying. I feel pretty gutted as if it doesn't improve in a month I think I'll have to get rid of the car

 

[Dandy Andy]

Another "me too" with regard to the jerky DSG box!

I had a '55-plated 2.0TDI 140 A3 Sport with DSG and it was flawless. I later traded it for a '57-plate 2.0TDI 170 Sportback Sport and it had all the symptoms that daveyjp reported: sluggish take-up, violent clutch action at low speed, etc.

I traded the car in for an A4 some time later, before I got the chance to have it looked at, though. Even now, I wish I'd kept my original A3, as a working DSG 'box is a joy to behold!

 

[h5djr]

Got my car back yesterday from Audi after their gearbox specialist checked it out.

They said everything was normal and it's just how DSG is. They did however reset the ECU so it will start re-learning gear changes or something.

It currently feels exactly the same so unless it improves that's £120 down the drain

I can't live with the jumpy gear changes in 1-2-3, as if it's changing up too quickly, and the harsh engine braking back down from 3-2, as if it's changing down too quickly... it's really annoying. I feel pretty gutted as if it doesn't improve in a month I think I'll have to get rid of the car

What happens if you drive it in 'manual' mode. Does it behave the same.

 

[MrTea]

What happens if you drive it in 'manual' mode. Does it behave the same.

The engine braking is the same going from 3-2, however I can achieve smooth up gear changes from 1-2-3 by allowing revs of around 2500 before changing up but this is not convenient whilst in traffic!

The only way round the engine braking is to stick it into N when braking down to 2nd gear, which again is not ideal.

 

[bropa09]

I later traded it for a '57-plate 2.0TDI 170 Sportback Sport and it had all the symptoms that daveyjp reported: sluggish take-up, violent clutch action at low speed, etc.

That's interesting - mine is a 57 plate 2.0TDI 170 Sportback S-Line. It seems the new gearbox control unit has definitely smoothed things out though.

 

[MrTea]

They did however reset the ECU so it will start re-learning gear changes or something.

Would it help me to drive the car more aggressively whilst it's re-learning my driving style?

Maybe it would then learn to change up at higher revs and allow for a smoother gear change as I think it's gear changing too soon at low revs which is causing the rough ride

 

[sprout99]

Hill starts were a barsteward, for my DSG.
Foot on throttle...revs....nothing....BANG! OFF WE GOOOOOOO!
Every hill start, you looked like an idiot learner.

our drive at home points down towards the house and quite often when cold car does not like to reverse off the drive. Lots of throttle nothing happens and then it's off like a rocket.

starting to worry me. car is out of warranty now.....so hope the DSG control isn't playing up. Other than that gear change is slick.

i shall pray ..........

 

[MrTea]

How did everyone get on with their DSG problems? The general consensus seems to be getting the mechatronic unit replaced at a steep cost but I wonder if anyone has had their issues resolved fairly cheaply...

I went back to Audi with mine last month but it was considered to be normal whilst on the road test. What wasn't normal was my driveshaft breaking at the end of the road test and having to push the ruddy thing back to the garage with the mechanic! Another £400 down the drain and the car's not even 4 years old yet

The excessive engine breaking whilst auto downshifting has driven me round the bend today (no pun intended)

 

[paddy]

Would it help me to drive the car more aggressively whilst it's re-learning my driving style?

Maybe it would then learn to change up at higher revs and allow for a smoother gear change as I think it's gear changing too soon at low revs which is causing the rough ride

The DSG holds about 12 different driving styles. It calculates the next change by comparing past styles that match...I am told...

I had a similar problem to this leaping off at the start and eventually it would switch to get you home mode. Turned out to be a solenoid in the box and was a known problem with a software update available...
Audi fixed it and its been fine ever since...

 

[MrTea]

Glad you got yours sorted. I asked them to check their computer for any known issues or updates but there weren't any for my car

 

[N8]

My DSG box has been sweet as a nut, and hopefully sweeter when I get the box mapped

 

[SteveTDCi]

I hoped that when I had the fluid changed (£152 by Peterborough Audi with good service) that it might have taken away some of the jumpyness but it didn't make any difference. Anyway i've solved the problem now by swapping it for a Leon Cupra

 

[MrTea]

Mine had a major service late last year which included changing the gear box oil but it made no different to mine either.

Didn't you feel guilty selling it knowing it wasn't right, or did you sell to a dealer?

 

[N8]

Anyway i've solved the problem now by swapping it for a Leon Cupra

Audi to Seat = Oh dear

 

[paddy]

Anyway i've solved the problem now by swapping it for a Leon Cupra

I think thats against the law actually !!

 

[SteveTDCi]

Mine had a major service late last year which included changing the gear box oil but it made no different to mine either.

Didn't you feel guilty selling it knowing it wasn't right, or did you sell to a dealer?

It went to a dealer but in all honesty i don't think there was anything wrong with it, yes it was a little jumpy but by all accounts no worse than any other. I'm sure that because I didn't like the DSG it made me feel like the car was at fault.

As for the A3 v SEAT, yes the interior plastics aren't anywhere near as good as the A3/GOlf or Skoda but they are livable, but for the money they are not bad buys. You don't get the feel good factor of the Audi brand and the local seat dealer is probably rubbish compared to Peterborough Audi but then Huntingdon Audi were the worst dealer for customer service that I have come across. I'll probably use Jabba sport and i'm happy knowing that I have a 2007 car with 240ps 9k on the clock all for 14k when a similar S3 would have cost me 20k +

 

[bropa09]

How did everyone get on with their DSG problems? The general consensus seems to be getting the mechatronic unit replaced at a steep cost but I wonder if anyone has had their issues resolved fairly cheaply...

Since I've had my control unit replaced it's been absolutely fine. The rest of the car is falling apart, but the DSG is now fine