2010 Passat transmission question

[RottyB5A2]

Anyone have experience with the DSG auto transmission in new Passats? The mother figure has a 2010 Passat w/about 8k miles on it and since it left the showroom floor the transmission is crazy, at best. It's been back twice and the service tech said that they get this on a lot of the new DSG auto's and there is absolutely nothing wrong. Here's the story:

1) takes a good 2 seconds to engage gears going from P to R or D.
2) it rolls a good distance when placed in Park.
3) when coming to a stop it quivers hard on downshifts from 2 to 1 and feels like it's going to stall.
4) when taking off from a stop, it shifts into 2, 3, and 4 before 25mph and constantly has to be kicked down in city traffic.

I talked to someone with an A4 of the same year and she stated all of the same things. Is this really normal for this car?

[emmettlodge]

Yes, it really is normal. But your driving skill with it factors greatly into how bad it is.

There is a reason nobody else has adopted this technology.

[Smoky_Llama]

There is a reason nobody else has adopted this technology.

BMW, Mercedes, Ferrari, Ford, Mitsubishi, and Nissan would like a word with you.

Op, setting the parking brake is a good idea when you put the car in park. But other than that most of those things you listed are characteristics, just need to get used to them. Not sure about the almost stalling thing though, how many miles are on it?

[DerSpiegel]

Only #4 sounds remotely normal, although how far does it roll (#2)? Regardless, keep up the pressure on the dealer.

[feels_road]

If #1 and #3 are exaggerations, then, yes, it's all normal. Some owners don't feel this as much, because they are not fighting the DSG all the time; for example, depending on how you drive, the DSG may not know whether you are just slowing down to a slow roll (keep it in 2nd) or you want to truly stop (shift to 1st), etc.

As to the quick upshifts, you can of course put it in sports mode or shift manually. If you really use the kick-down switch of the gas pedal in city driving, you must be driving like a maniac.

[RottyB5A2]

Maybe 2 seconds is exaggerating, I don't know. It feels like forever though when backing out of the garage and then going into D. As far as the quiver, that's not exaggerating. It's never stalled when coming to a stop but it feels very confused and harsh when doing a roll and go for Yield signs or the like.

No one drives the car like a maniac, it's my mother's personal vehicle and only goes short distances unless I take it out on the highway to put some miles on it. It's like silk on the highway, very impressive acceleration past 50 mph and very smooth shifts at higher speeds.

It just feels like a harsh transmission, are they using this same transmission in the 2012 Passat?

[jimb]

Yes, I would say 1, 2, 3, and 4 are normal for a DSG.

I owned a 2007 GTI with a DSG for 5-1/2 years and put 92k miles on it. I thought the boy-racer in me would love driving a DSG, but I was wrong. IMHO, DSG is over hyped for use in a daily driver. Its upshifts are lightning quick, but downshifts are sloooow. It can be clunky when cold, and requires expensive fluid changes every 40,000 miles. A DSG does not perform as smoothly as a traditional automatic, nor does it give you complete control that a manual transmission does. In the end, I went back to driving a car with a manual transmission and am much happier. YMMV

[rcigti02]

Could be the mechatronics unit. Bring to a different dealer and tell them you are having problems with the transmission and list these, then tell them to change the mechatronics unit under warranty. These trannys do have problems but usually only in this specific part. Chances are if it's acting up you either purchased a pre owned one that the previous owner treated like **** and never changed the fluid or serviced it (which does not sound like your case) or the problem is in this unit. This part is essentially the brain of the transmission and controls more than you think.

[FlyRide337]

Could be normal it would need to he driven to really determine if its normal or not. Lots of customers complain about dsgs. If there is an issue it is the mechatronics unit and in a few cases the dual clutch assembly. I have replaced both items for similar concerns.

[Shmi]

Could be the mechatronics unit. Bring to a different dealer and tell them you are having problems with the transmission and list these, then tell them to change the mechatronics unit under warranty. These trannys do have problems but usually only in this specific part. Chances are if it's acting up you either purchased a pre owned one that the previous owner treated like **** and never changed the fluid or serviced it (which does not sound like your case) or the problem is in this unit. This part is essentially the brain of the transmission and controls more than you think.

x2 on mechatronic. I'd have them check it out again, or take it to another dealer. Call VWoA?

[Tiny4cyl]

I blew up 2 DSG units by 36k miles on my original 3DR GTI. I now drive a 6MT GTI.

Only modifications were Revo STG1 and a Neuspeed p-flo. I didn't even use launch control all that much because too much wheelspin

[RottyB5A2]

Could be the mechatronics unit. Bring to a different dealer and tell them you are having problems with the transmission and list these, then tell them to change the mechatronics unit under warranty. These trannys do have problems but usually only in this specific part. Chances are if it's acting up you either purchased a pre owned one that the previous owner treated like **** and never changed the fluid or serviced it (which does not sound like your case) or the problem is in this unit. This part is essentially the brain of the transmission and controls more than you think.

Ok thanks, it's gotta go in for a peeling front bumper next week so I'm going to mention this to them. The car was new off the showroom and she drives very average speeds and does not beat on it. It's only got 8k miles and will probably get traded in a couple years.

Thanks for the ideas.

[JettaGT8V80]

I blew up 2 DSG units by 36k miles on my original 3DR GTI. I now drive a 6MT GTI.

Only modifications were Revo STG1 and a Neuspeed p-flo. I didn't even use launch control all that much because too much wheelspin

umm really i have never heard of anyone having this happen sounds like you blew them up not a fault

i have 30000 miles on mine it has been flawless, it sounds like she has a bad mechatronic unit or she is exagerrating things, also use the parking brake when parking it rolls too much i feel as well but using the parking brake then shifting into park takes all that away

[mujjuman]

Sounds normal to me. Please use the parking break though.

[johnny_p]

I had a few DSG equipped TDI loaners.

The transmission is absolutely bonkers, constantly shifting all over the place. A total handful in slow traffic. I switched it to manual mode and left the shifting up to me. Which is funny because if I'm going to manually shift anyway..... shouldn't I just have a manual trans?

[Tiny4cyl]

umm really i have never heard of anyone having this happen sounds like you blew them up not a fault

Because YOU'VE never heard it being a MAJOR issue means it's my fault?

[TJSwoboda]

1) takes a good 2 seconds to engage gears going from P to R or D.
2) it rolls a good distance when placed in Park.
3) when coming to a stop it quivers hard on downshifts from 2 to 1 and feels like it's going to stall.
4) when taking off from a stop, it shifts into 2, 3, and 4 before 25mph and constantly has to be kicked down in city traffic.

1&2 sound like par for the course in a regular torque converter automatic, though my dad's two Benzes ('84 380SE and '94 E420) were the worst on these counts. #3 could potentially be a problem, but I'll leave that to the experts. #4 sounds like every single slushbox I've ever driven; sorry to hear VW's DSG doesn't make this any better.

[JettaGT8V80]

Because YOU'VE never heard it being a MAJOR issue means it's my fault?

i also have a very good friend who has worked at a vw dealership for over 5 years and he has never heard of it

so it sounds to me like you blew up transmissions from being stupid

[Tiny4cyl]

i also have a very good friend who has worked at a vw dealership for over 5 years and he has never heard of it

so it sounds to me like you blew up transmissions from being stupid

Is your friend a tech for the popcorn machine or does he service the Keurig? There's fcuking 1.2 million hits on Google for "dsg failure"

All DSGs will fail at some point, it's not a matter of if but only when.

My good friend OWNSVolkswagen AG and he says he's heard of it

You don't even have launch control on the 06 haha you basically drive an automatic

[rcigti02]

This isn't a matter of breaking them intentionally or not. The mechatronics unit has been at fault since the transmissions first came out. I work in the parts department at a VW / Audi dealer and I can tell you there have been at least 4 different updated part numbers on these mechatronics units. It all lies within when the first one failed, and what one they replaced it with after that.

[hanzy]

Sounds like a mechatronic issue.

My friend/coworker had these EXACT issues on his mkv r32.

The mechatronic in his case was covered under a recall though.

Is yours not covered?

After replacement he was much happier and did not have the "quivering" aka idle drop on slow down. The slow engagement was also fixed.