Reverse gear in DSG

[SemiautoG23]

Have been driving my new wagon for a week now. Never had a car with DSG before. I notice it's kinda clunky on low speed (say ...below 20km/h). It feels like sometimes it could not make up its mind which gear to use. Also when I put it in reverse, it's hesitates a little at the begin. It vibrates a bit like I was a bad manual driver.

Is this normal?

[Spinifex]

Something newbies to the DSG world (I'm one of them) need to realise/remember, is that these are effectively MANUAL cars, with a clutch...... so if you're a "bad manual driver", it's possible you will experience bad DSG driving behaviour too.

The DSG is driven by traditional hydraulically operated clutches (2 of them).... in the same way a manual car is driven by 1.
If you're too "violent" or impatient switching from brake to throttle, when taking off from the lights, it's likely to be less smooth than you expect, as the clutch engages.

It's highly unlikely that you will stall the engine though - the electronics will take care of that, but try to remember, if you're driving it and its feeling jerky or shuddery, it's because the electronic brain hasn't been quite fast enough to select the correct gear for the situation, or it's still "learning" your driving style.

It's NOT like an automatic gearbox, with a fluid coupling (clutch/torque converter) to take up any jerkiness when driving slowly.....

Having said all that though, how long have you had the car? If this has been going on for months, then I'd be getting it looked at by the dealer.
If it's only been a few weeks, it DOES take some time to get used to all the little quirks of the DSG system.

[Guest001]

Its like this You cruise up to the lights slowing down The box senses that and sets the clutches to drop into a lower gear . The lights change before you stop so you hit the loud pedal Oh sh++ it says wrong way and has to swap clutches to next gear up.

Same with reverse, you stop It thinks you will go forward and you dont so again it has to readjust.

Just be a little more patient and it will smooth out.

[SemiautoG23]

Thanks for clearing that up for a DSG newbie (me). I only had it for a week, still learning the car. I have never driven a car with DSG before so I just want to make sure nothing is wrong. As I said, it only happens in very low speed or reverse. When it gets going, it's smooth as. I asked the dealer of I bought the car from about the reverse gear. He said it hesitates/vibrates at the beginning because it's turbocharged.... ok then, I know I won't waste my time to ask him any more questions.

[Spinifex]

Hahahaha, that's the worst excuse ever !!!

Funniest, but worst !

It hesitates/vibrates, because it's a manual!

[Tuan]

Thanks for clearing that up for a DSG newbie (me). I only had it for a week, still learning the car. I have never driven a car with DSG before so I just want to make sure nothing is wrong. As I said, it only happens in very low speed or reverse. When it gets going, it's smooth as. I asked the dealer of I bought the car from about the reverse gear. He said it hesitates/vibrates at the beginning because it's turbocharged.... ok then, I know I won't waste my time to ask him any more questions.

Lol vibrating because it is turbocharged !? How do ppl come up with this stuff ? What a numbnut.

BTW, your car should not vibrate in reverse. Do you mean shuddering like a bad manual driver is about to stall ? It should not do that either.

But it will do the funky gear WTF gear am I in thing when 'you come to a roundabout' and decide to go instead of stop. The DSG brain can't cope. If you come to a complete stop and then go, the DSG manages.

[Tuan]

Have a read of this - VWVortex.com - How to Play The DSG Game, and Win - DSG Driving Tips and Tricks

This dude has tried to do a PHD on the DSG gearbox and some of it is quite right. Anyways, food for thought. The DSG is no slush box and it seems you've found that out already

[pjam73]

Have a read of this - VWVortex.com - How to Play The DSG Game, and Win - DSG Driving Tips and Tricks

This dude has tried to do a PHD on the DSG gearbox and some of it is quite right. Anyways, food for thought. The DSG is no slush box and it seems you've found that out already

Interesting article. It makes sense that the DSG does *not* 'learn' your driving style - that would be far too complex and make it frustrating for other drivers of the car.

[SemiautoG23]

Lol vibrating because it is turbocharged !? How do ppl come up with this stuff ? What a numbnut.

BTW, your car should not vibrate in reverse. Do you mean shuddering like a bad manual driver is about to stall ? It should not do that either.

But it will do the funky gear WTF gear am I in thing when 'you come to a roundabout' and decide to go instead of stop. The DSG brain can't cope. If you come to a complete stop and then go, the DSG manages.

It's not like it's about to stall feeling, it's more like a "skid" feeling like the gears are grinding/trying to match with each other feeling. But only for the first second when it's in reverse. Guess I shouldn't step on the gas straightaway.

Reading the Tips and Tricks now. Thanks Tuan!

[Tuan]

Ah yes ... try this ........

In D or R .. give it a split second to engage every time you come off the brakes then progressively give it some gas (just like 'properly' driving a manual

See how that changes the jerkiness !

[Lucas_R]

Thanks for clearing that up for a DSG newbie (me). I only had it for a week, still learning the car. I have never driven a car with DSG before so I just want to make sure nothing is wrong. As I said, it only happens in very low speed or reverse. When it gets going, it's smooth as. I asked the dealer of I bought the car from about the reverse gear. He said it hesitates/vibrates at the beginning because it's turbocharged.... ok then, I know I won't waste my time to ask him any more questions.

Haha best/worse excuse ever. Goes to show how little of a clue some people in the automotive industry have.

The biggest mistake people make (and its not the customers fault - its VW/Audi/Skoda's fault because they sell the car as an "automatic") is that people try to drive them just like every other automatic they have owned in the past. As others have mentioned, the DSG is a sophisticated manual gearbox which has an electronic brain that controls the clutches for you.

Some things to keep in mind when driving a DSG equipped vehicle:

1) Clutch needs a second to engage when taking off from a standstill
2) Clutch needs a second to engage when reversing or doing 3 point turn etc. The gearbox is not as quick to respond as a traditional automatic gearbox
3) DSG's do not like to creep forward in traffic jams (it essentially rides the clutch just like a manual would)
4) If the car is shuddering its because you are going to slow and the gearbox doesn't know to engage the clutch or not - obviously this cannot be avoided sometimes when you are trying to reverse park or manouvre in a confined space, but try to limit how much of this you do (eg dont do it on purpose for extended periods of time)
5) Keep your foot firmly on the brake when stopped at traffic lights etc - only having your foot placed lightly on the brake can engage the clutches
6) If you get stuck at a railway crossing or other situation where you will be stationary for an extended period of time - put the gearbox into neutral or park to risk slipping the clutches (and to give your foot a rest).

[woofy]

I had a Mk2 RS which I bought new a few weeks before the first DSGs were available. In the years between that car and my 2016 RS I drove a tonne of DSGs a lot of them Skoda rentals but a few Audis and VWs as well. They always caught me out. But the reason I got a manual again was mainly as I don't like the lack of control I get doing it myself. And I've never been happy with reversing up a hill with DSG, it has rolled forward on me in tight parking too many times....I like the security of knowing when I can feel the clutch engaging when I let the brake go.

[Umai Naa!!]

Interesting article. It makes sense that the DSG does *not* 'learn' your driving style - that would be far too complex and make it frustrating for other drivers of the car.

It doesn't 'learn' as such. It adapts.

Have reset several over the years, that have picked up on the wife's driving habits, only for the husband to complain about it's sluggish performance and overuse of the clutches.

Reset, spirited drive, and everybody is happy again. Until the next service.

[Tuan]

What sold me on the DSG is the lightning quick upshifts when giving it the beans from a stand still. Impressive as that is, once you get over that i.e. the other 99% of driving that you do, you want it to act like a conventional auto i.e. bulletproof.

Not looking forward to the DSG service at 60,000 kms either !

[JustCruisn]

It does not learn or adapt to the driver at all.
The only thing it adapts to is how worn the clutches are, it adapts the pinch/engagement point of the clutches.
A DSG reset forces it to re calibrate those points.

If you have odd behaviour at low speeds where gear selection is concerned this may be normal, but any other shudder etc is not normal and should be investigated.