I think I don't like my gearbox

[Blackwhite]

Nice veeeight! Your color too!

 

[Pulp84]

We have loads of these at work They are nice to drive !

(But shhhhh - they are a Renault Kangoo in origin )

Great things aren't they? The Renault switch gear inside and radio gave it away!

 

[Pulp84]

I had a 6-sp Manual S3 8P, and enjoyed that when I had it.

To get the best out of my S3 8V DSG, I've had to learn how to "drive the gearbox" (which can detract from driving the car). Small tricks like easing off the accelerator before paddling down, gives an instantaneous downshift etc.

The box still gets it wrong for 5% of the time, but the remainder of the 95% of the time, it behaves. And then I occasionally have to ignition reset my car when it doesn't behave etc.

I am undecided what my next car will have. Hopefully it'll be one of these

Good choice veeeight.

Mrs Pulp tells me that the order book for the "standard" AMG has been fairly slow. The "S" on the other hand has been an instant success with a long(ish) order book. People want the full fat version. Give it 6 months and Mrs Pulp believe you would get a fairly decent discount (5% minimum) on the "standard" one. Should be more than enough

A few F80 M3 owners have put deposits down - the word on the street is the AMG 'S' sounds better and has the "wow" the BMW is missing......

 

[veeeight]

Drive a 6 speed MAN ual

From:

 

[AndyB-S3]

Coming from an S-tronic A1 185 to a manual S3 I kind of have a foot in both camps. I love them both. My commute is 17/18 miles made up of 3/4 miles through town and then rest on dual and country roads. Going through the town the S-tronic is simply awesome, i really do not like the manual for this section but as soon as I leave the town and on the dual/country roads my love for it comes flooding back! Maybe had I bought an s-tronic S3 and used the flappy paddles I may feel otherwise but at the time my A1 did not have these so my comparison is based purely on stick for stick changing etc. But saying that we are due to replace the TT with a new TTS so will have a drive in the S-tronic and see what that feels like compared to my S3, will prob end up with that as the other half does a lot of town driving so she should love it. And then I will be in both camps again.. yippee..

 

[Psyman79]

Think i'll stick with s-tronic if it means i don't have to wear v-neck t-shirts

I could never dream of being that manly.

 

[The_Ironist]

Anyone with manual have issue putting in first sometimes?

After stopping at lights usually, just won't go in foot to the ground.

1000 miles in and happened 3-4 occasions.

If go to 3rd then back to 1st usually sorts it.

 

[AndyB-S3]

I have had difficulty with 5th gear a few times.. i put it down to me being lazy and not put clutch in enough?

 

[Psyman79]

Perhaps you guys aren't man enough either maybe they should have a dummy rig set up at the dealers to make sure people can handle a manual

 

[AndyB-S3]

Darn you are maybe right.. maybe i should give up my gym membership and return all my v neck t shirts to the shop!. ;')

 

[mjcourtney]

Anyone with manual have issue putting in first sometimes?

After stopping at lights usually, just won't go in foot to the ground.

1000 miles in and happened 3-4 occasions.

If go to 3rd then back to 1st usually sorts it.

Yes, happens occasionally in my 1.4 manual. I have to drop back to neutral, pump the clutch and then try 1st again to get it to go in. All whilst the cars behind lean on their horns as I'm sat at the green light lol.

Probably once every few months (so every few thousand miles).

 

[h5djr]

One of the reason I was keen to try a s-tronic originally back in 2004 was I had difficulty with 1st gear on my existing and previous manual A3s. I do have quite short legs for my height so it may well have been me rather than the gearbox. Also, although the A3 has synchromesh on reverse it often 'crunched' when selecting reverse. Having tried a demo car with s-tronic I was convinced it was the way to go and all my other A3s have had s-tronic ever since.

 

[0B1001001]

Anyone with manual have issue putting in first sometimes?

After stopping at lights usually, just won't go in foot to the ground.

1000 miles in and happened 3-4 occasions.

If go to 3rd then back to 1st usually sorts it.

No issues selecting 1st here, occasionally feels slightly reluctant to go into 5th but it's so minor I doubt most people would notice.

 

[ACWKGYTO]

Got the s3 8V sportback manual, had the S3 8p s tronic

So both are very good....difficult choice, I did get a bit bored with the S tronic, it was just so good apart from in Sport where it sounded like a strangled cat, still good though

But as I dont drive that much at moment manual is good for me, more engaging and means I dont drive quite as fast....I got very trigger happy with the S tronic, the kick down is amazing, but you do get used to it.

Plus I dont think manual will be around forever on these types of cars so I'm enjoying it while I can !

 

[NickyF]

As others have said, despite this being the latest in a long line of auto vs manual threads, there do seem to have been some original comments.

When i bought my 8P DSG diesel (I don't think they'd coined the term S-Tronic in 2005) there is no way I would have bought a regular "slushy" torque converter auto, I was convinced that the DSG was exactly like a manual, just without a clutch pedal. It wasn't like that and the longer I had the car, the less I used the paddles and the more I left it in D as it was just easier, the paddles ended up feeling pointless (I think the diesel engine probably exaggerated this). I guess that's why I ended up disliking it. If I'd have accepted it as an auto, not a manual without a clutch pedal, I don't think I would have had a problem with it. The comments on here suggest that most people on here treat the S-Tronic how I should have done, primarily as an automatic gearbox, but with some added manualness. I think I may finally be at peace thanks to this boring, repetitive thread

 

[Rob2k68]

So now 1500m in and still learning ! Drove home yesterday using the paddles and changed down from 6th to 3rd in the blink of an eye on approach to an island which was impressive. Today drove home using the stick after being reminded on here that you could. It felt very intuitive and natural and was like being at the wheel of a touring car. M mode changes down to prevent you stalling so that seems optional when you know you're going to stop like at traffic lights for example. It also still allows you to use kickdown when you bury you're right foot which surprised me a little but you have the resistance point on the pedal so it's just another option you have I guess. Then get on the slow twisty part of my estate and slot it across to D and let the car take over.

To me in my simple mind it's like having an auto with toys - you've got the paddles, the stick, S mode, launch control and of course the sounds are ace !! I get it that you sometimes lack full control but I'm now starting to really like it finding it fun and engaging when I want to or just leave it in D when in traffic, out with the family or just messing with the MMI.

 

[Cobstar]

Well I have to disagree with you big time, we bought a brand new A1 Style for my wife last year with 122bhp engine and S-Tronic and it's a little pocket rocket, no way is it gutless in any way shape or form

Have to agree with HawkeyeS3 the 122 bhp A1 I ran for two years was a pocket rocket. Great fun and the size and S-Tronic was perfect for my job at the time. Eased the pain of moving from 2.0 litre+ cars with 200 bhp+.

Would love the 8 speed ZF gearbox in my current car in an A3 or A4 sized Audi S or RS. Fab gearbox and reversing is so much more controllable and smoother.

 

[Pulp84]

Have to agree with HawkeyeS3 the 122 bhp A1 I ran for two years was a pocket rocket. Great fun and the size and S-Tronic was perfect for my job at the time. Eased the pain of moving from 2.0 litre+ cars with 200 bhp+.

Would love the 8 speed ZF gearbox in my current car in an A3 or A4 sized Audi S or RS. Fab gearbox and reversing is so much more controllable and smoother.

Do 40,000 miles a year with the 8 speed ZF and you will find actually its an inferior box compared to the s-tronic.

They both have their quirks but for me its just not as smooth or quick to change up. The Merc 7 speed is just as good too.

 

[Jassyo06]

So all MANual Owners.........have to have the MANdatory MUScle Shirt........thought that was young David83S3 for a moment on his way to Luundin...lol

 

[Cobstar]

Do 40,000 miles a year with the 8 speed ZF and you will find actually its an inferior box compared to the s-tronic.

They both have their quirks but for me its just not as smooth or quick to change up. The Merc 7 speed is just as good too.

That feedback is good news for persuading the SO we really need an Audi S or RS next time round ;-)

 

[mfl]

. Today drove home using the stick after being reminded on here that you could. It felt very intuitive and natural and was like being at the wheel of a touring car. I.

expect that the +/- is in the wrong direction, nothing intuitive about pushing forward to go up a gear, that's why racing sequential boxes and even drag racing boxes are the opposite. - ie pull back to go up a gear. - rarely ever touch the stick for that reason, just use the paddles.

would like to know the reason why, some Audi engineer decided to change it ?

 

[veeeight]

Oh dear god no, not this again

So we can argue about it in 3 different threads now?

http://www.audi-sport.net/xf/threads/s3-dsg-gearbox.217266/

 

[Blackwhite]

Oh dear god no, not this again

 

[mfl]

at least I didn't compare to a Golf R

 

[veeeight]

^ being the faster and better handling car, of course

(hey, you mentioned it first )

 

[Bristle Hound]

Oh dear ...

Been here before haven't we ?

 

[veeeight]

 

[mfl]

^ being the faster and better handling car, of course

(hey, you mentioned it first )

and repeated in many threads

 

[Blackwhite]

 

[Psyman79]

Golf R beaten on track by Leon Cupra though so maybe we should've all bought one of those

 

[veeeight]

Too much badge snobbery on this forum for that to happen

 

[Psyman79]

Too much badge snobbery on this forum for that to happen

Very true almost bought one myself but wasn't too keen on the styling changes from the mk2.

 

[sunscreemer]

Not necessarily badge snobbery for me. Performance is one thing, but i spend more time sitting in my car without enjoying the performance (traffic jams, motorway cruising etc) or looking at it from the outside. The A3 is a fantastic environment to be in and far better than the Seat or VW (admittedly excellent) alternatives IMO.

 

[h5djr]

expect that the +/- is in the wrong direction, nothing intuitive about pushing forward to go up a gear, that's why racing sequential boxes and even drag racing boxes are the opposite. - ie pull back to go up a gear. - rarely ever touch the stick for that reason, just use the paddles.

would like to know the reason why, some Audi engineer decided to change it ?

No Audi engineer. The DSG was originally designed as a joint venture between VW and Borg-Warner. Personally I think they made the right choice.

 

[KevinA6]

I've had 2 GTI's with DSG, 2 BMW 335i's with tiptronic and now have A6 with s-tronic. Have had a few manuals in between which I loved but will always go for the s tronic over the manual.

 

[mfl]

No Audi engineer. The DSG was originally designed as a joint venture between VW and Borg-Warner. Personally I think they made the right choice.

well ZF or Lenco obviously didn't agree and neither did the designers of racing sequential manual gearboxes boxes, but to each their own.

 

[Simon L]

Unless you live in the middle of nowhere the S-Tronic is an absolute no-brainer for me. After 30+ years of driving manuals I'm utterly sick of changing gears in traffic. After test driving the S3 I was probably more impressed with the gearbox than pretty much anything else on the car
Nothing in life is perfect but as others have said it's about as close to the best of both worlds that you can get. Paddles are standard in the UK so I guess that has to be factored in if you live elsewhere, but even without them I'd take the S-Tronic all day

 

[Audiboyz]

What would I have chosen if the s-tronic had not been available. Having only driven a ordinary auto many years ago and an A4 with a multitronic, both of which were horrible I have no idea. If the chose was between a multitronic and a manual then it would have been a manual. If Audi had not offered the s-tronic but did offer the 'ZF 8-speed' I would have tried it and then decided.

Just out of interest the new A4 when it comes out later this year is going to offer a 9-speed s-tronic.

Hi again guys. I drove manuals for many years (Ford Escort GT, Mazda sports SS hatch and Mazda Astina SP, before my previous Audi A3) and they all were to my mind a lot of fun to drive and quite responsive gearing wise. And that after learning to drive on my Dad's Holden Premier station wagon auto, which was like driving a bathtub with wheels!! But I've also driven various A4 and A6's with multi-tronic, which I found sluggish compared with manual. My new A3 SB s-tronic is definitely a better drive than the Audi multi-tronic's, but then again they are very different cars to the A3.

 

[KevinA6]

Mulitronic is no comparison for stronic. The multi box was a cvt and in my mind was a piece of crap. It put me off buying an A6 a couple of years ago after I had an a5 multi for 6 months. Hated it you could be in 3rd or 8th and wouldn't be able to tell the difference...

 

[mfl]

Hi again guys. And that after learning to drive on my Dad's Holden Premier station wagon auto, which was like driving a bathtub with wheels!! .

yes the famous Holden Trimatic auto, also known as the 'traumatic', for its stellar non-performance and habit of self-destructing. as for the handling in a Premier , there wasn't any !