Ooops... looks like I blew another...

OutLore

OutLore

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Gearbox that is.... Darn DSG gearboxes... Blew one up in my last car, had to be returned to Audi in Germany - and tonight it looks like I may have killed another one. 2.5 hours sitting on the side of the road waiting for the RAC and now back at home, waiting for them to take the car back to the dealers tomorrow. :thumbsdown:

At least I don't have to pay for the repair :)
 
Is there a reliability problem with VAG DSG 'boxes then?
 
Ouch, I'm glad I don't have an Audi after reading that!
 
RichardC27 said:
Is there a reliability problem with VAG DSG 'boxes then?
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No, far from it - the 1st one I blew up was apparently the 1st one that had a major problem reported (hence Audi DE getting the car transported over there) - it was one of the "clutch" packs inside had burnt out.

This one looks like it's lost it's oil through the heat exchanger into the engine coolant.

Problem is that the gearboxes are a sealed unit - there are no servicable parts inside them at all, so it's a new box each time.

susie said:
Ouch, I'm glad I don't have an Audi after reading that!
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I'm glad I don't have to sign the payment cheque after all the work is done (its under warranty) :)
 
OutLore said:
Problem is that the gearboxes are a sealed unit - there are no servicable parts inside them at all, so it's a new box each time.
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That's going to cost some people a lot of money once they are out of warranty. I've read a few articles on DSG gearboxes and they are very complicated bits of kit. A fantastic engineering achievement, but very complex
 
RichardC27 said:
That's going to cost some people a lot of money once they are out of warranty. I've read a few articles on DSG gearboxes and they are very complicated bits of kit. A fantastic engineering achievement, but very complex
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True - but apparently they are more reliable than a standard auto box :thinking:
 
If it was two seperate issues each time I'd just put it down to bad luck...those things get driven hard over here and if there were any issues you can bet German motorists would be going through the roof about it...
 
I didn't know Dixons sold own brand gearboxes, but not surprised to hear they're crap...
 
Arkady said:
If it was two seperate issues each time I'd just put it down to bad luck...those things get driven hard over here and if there were any issues you can bet German motorists would be going through the roof about it...
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Yeah, TBH it's the only 2 incidents I have heard of over here... Having looked through the service record, the gearbox oil was supposed to have been changed on it's last service... seems a little odd that now it's blown it's gearbox oil into the coolant.....

Steep said:
I didn't know Dixons sold own brand gearboxes, but not surprised to hear they're crap...
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:LOL: Every time someone posts something about "DSG" I think "What does that have to do with it!!"
 
OutLore said:
Having looked through the service record, the gearbox oil was supposed to have been changed on it's last service... seems a little odd that now it's blown it's gearbox oil into the coolant..
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I'd be looking hard at the dealer that did the service in that case - though if it's getting fixed under warranty, maybe not...
Maybe pick another Audi dealer next time?
 
Arkady said:
I'd be looking hard at the dealer that did the service in that case - though if it's getting fixed under warranty, maybe not...
Maybe pick another Audi dealer next time?
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It's been sent to the same dealer - they are useless TBH, always have been - they fail to diagnose issues and respond with "No fault found" whenever I report anything, even though I've showed them the issues when checking the car in!!

It's a lease car, so it gets what it wants when it wants... But, Audi's customer service is notoriously bad, so this will probably be the last Audi I drive for a while - and I am a HUGE Audi user, having driven them for the last 12 years or so.
 
Had been looking at the Seat Altea with a DSG box, bit concerned about the sealed unit with no serviceable parts issue though. Perhaps a good reason to get Seat to provide some extended warranty cover if possible (will be a second hand car).
 
Photek said:
Had been looking at the Seat Altea with a DSG box, bit concerned about the sealed unit with no serviceable parts issue though. Perhaps a good reason to get Seat to provide some extended warranty cover if possible (will be a second hand car).
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I would not be too affected by my experiences though - I would still have another DSG box - there are plenty of components on a car which are non servicable, which could be fixed easily with cheap components (ECU's for example), and as has been said, if there were a major problem with this type of box there would be a massive uproar about it...

Just because Audi don't supply components doesn't mean they are not repairable, many manufacturers don't supply parts for regular auto boxes but they can be repaired by auto box specialists if required.

Just make sure the car has a documented service history and that the gearbox oil has been changed when required (40k I think from memory).
 
Is it time for a 'Destroyer of Gearboxes' user title? :naughty:
 
Wow, first I've heard of DSG failure, and that's incredibly bad luck to have had two gone. Glad you're not dipping your hand into your pocket to sort it though.

It's funny, I was talking to the owner of DMS Automotive recently (the do remaps and tuning), and he was saying how incredibly strong the boxes generally are, and how they seem to deal with massive amounts or torque very easily. But if there is a fundamental problem with a component fitted to a paticular example, I guess there is nothing you can do.
 
Well, Audi have confirmed that I have in fact killed my second box, but it was caused by the gearbox oil cooler breaking and mixing oil/engine coolant, then throwing this into the gearbox - and wrecking it.

So, 10 days to get a new GB, then 3 days to fit = 2 weeks in a Ford Focus:puke:
 
Well, it's back, new gearbox, oil transfer unit, radiator, oil pump...

Had to go back to them after 3 days though as they hadn't fitted a hose properly, which blew off at 70mph resulting in a HUGE cloud of steam...

Anyway, it's back and fixed. I'm happy about going from 110bhp back to 200, but not so happy about going from 55mpg to 28!! :eek:

(y)
 
Im after a DSG to pull apart to work out how to fix em because when they are a few years old and people have uber tuned engines they are gunna need it and no-one is going to know how to work on them because they are sold as none servicable.

I did the same with the piece of crap Selespeed from Alfa Romeo, even Alfa worm out of working on them out of warrenty but they are very unreliable and no-one wants to work on them. Except me, if someone is happy to pay for repairs im happy to do them :D

If you get chance to keep the old gearbox which you probably wont under warrenty or see any for sale im happy to pay £350. Thats a lot of money for a broken gearbox ;)

Glad its not put you off though, these things are bulletproof at the moment. But long term and tuned up only time will tell.
 
Mancunian Lee said:
Im after a DSG to pull apart to work out how to fix em because when they are a few years old and people have uber tuned engines they are gunna need it and no-one is going to know how to work on them because they are sold as none servicable.

I did the same with the piece of crap Selespeed from Alfa Romeo, even Alfa worm out of working on them out of warrenty but they are very unreliable and no-one wants to work on them. Except me, if someone is happy to pay for repairs im happy to do them :D

If you get chance to keep the old gearbox which you probably wont under warrenty or see any for sale im happy to pay £350. Thats a lot of money for a broken gearbox ;)

Glad its not put you off though, these things are bulletproof at the moment. But long term and tuned up only time will tell.
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You're absolutely right - they are (already) at the limit of torque that can be put through the box with the 3.2 - it may take a little more but not a lot.

Having said that, the concept is very good - it's based on F1 technology and heaven only knows how much torque runs through them in F1!!!

Also, highly modified cars are, in my opinion, more likely to be manual boxes. Although, if you have the ability to work on them and improve their mechanical ability I say go for it. While you're at it - see if you can edit the mapping for the GCU, make it a true manual with no auto change when in +/-!!!
 
Yeah modifiers are going for manual boxes, but the same DSG is in Audi's, Seats etc and I know in the S3 people are prefering the DSG and some of them are pushing 350bhp so some are going to need work at some point, id imagine having the friction plates swapped out for better quality jobbies.

ECU's are not my thing, im a gearbox specialist and differential guy (y) Although they are running hand in hand more and more nowadays, stuff like the Nissan 370Z blips on the downshift automatically if you go for the flappy paddle option so I really should be looking into it.
 
whitewash said:
GCU = Gearbox control Unit?
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Yeah but usually called TCU, transmission control unit, people like Porsche with their PDK combine them with the ECU and call the whole unit the PCM - powertrain control module.
 
tbh every single system of a car now seems to be interlinked, i bet even the sun visor on modern cars sends a signal to the engine when its in the down position!
 
whitewash said:
tbh every single system of a car now seems to be interlinked, i bet even the sun visor on modern cars sends a signal to the engine when its in the down position!
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Its called multiplexing and its a good thing, your car has loads of little ecu's one in the radio so it gets louder when you go faster to drown out engine noise. One in your window buttons, so when you spray your jetwash your windows will close before it sprays etc. Multiplexed ECU's found their way into the french cars everyone hates, PAS and Renault and it was very reliable.
 
its a very good thing that cars are getting 'intelligent' and can alter their behaviour to suit the road conditions to ensure that the occupants are safe.


bit of a bugger for those that have to fix them though! everything is electronic controlled and interfaced and that makes it more complex for the mechanic.... whats wrong with a caraburettor and a nice set of points :D
 
whitewash said:
its a very good thing that cars are getting 'intelligent' and can alter their behaviour to suit the road conditions to ensure that the occupants are safe.


bit of a bugger for those that have to fix them though! everything is electronic controlled and interfaced and that makes it more complex for the mechanic.... whats wrong with a caraburettor and a nice set of points :D
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You cant beat the scream of a Rover V8 on a nice set of tuned Webers (y)(y)

With regards to ECU's getting too complicated, you just hook up a laptop to the diagnostic port and it will tell you of a lot of faults, certainly any ECU related ones. All cars built after March 1996 have to have the same 16 pin OBD2 port for diagnostic work too so its a lot easier than people let on.

The only downside to it all imo is the service light, it comes on and your led to believe only a main dealer can reset it so a lot of people pay over the odds for dealer servicing just to turn the light off.

I turn reset them from home for a tenner a pop, takes me only a couple of minutes too :)
 
It just another good reason for me to grin smugly and continue driving 12 year old (reliable) cars .

:D

:woot:
 
Borats Baby said:
It just another good reason for me to grin smugly and continue driving 12 year old (reliable) cars .

:D

:woot:
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Don't get me wrong - I've had my share of older cars - the last car I owned covered 252,000 miles before I finally gave it up - with a perfect engine, gearbox and body. Everything else failed around it :D

Problem is - my company insists on new cars, so I'll have to live with that.

Todays cars though are the ones you'll be driving in 12 years, so you'll get your share of the grief :LOL:
 
OutLore said:
Todays cars though are the ones you'll be driving in 12 years, so you'll get your share of the grief :LOL:
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Thats something I often wonder about.

Will I be driving an' 09' plate car 12 years from now, or will I be driving a 20 year old car ?

Might I even be driving new ? :LOL:

Somehow, I dont think the last bit will be true, but who knows ?
 
Well, just thought I'd let you all know - that it's back in the dealership with another suspected gearbox replacement on the cards.

Seems that the replacement they fitted last time had some issues which they thought would have been resolved by replacing the computer that controls the gearbox. This was done last week and the car was returned to me in exactly the same state as it was given to them!!!

So - they have it for 10 days.... we'll see. I must have some kind of record though - including the original boxes supplied in the cars as new, this will be my 5th gearbox in 2 cars :)
 
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Back to the Focus...lol

Blue Oval - all the way...
 
Bill Roberts said:
I hazard a guess you'll not be choosing Audi next time?
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Nope - it will probably be either a Mondeo (cheap on tax) or a BMW next time - and to be honest, it's the dealer network that lets them down, aside from some issues with my cars which could happen to any manufacturer, the product is great, but the support for it is not.

Arkady said:
Back to the Focus...lol

Blue Oval - all the way...
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They've given me an A4 this time - with a manual gearbox :thinking:
 
You do know about the problems Audi have with clutches don't you.......
















Oh no. Thats tomorrow isn't it.
;):D


Kev.
 
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DMF?
 
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