DSG Replacement question

[Natjac]

Hi all,

I have a 09 GT Sport that is used for a lot of highway driving ( it has 91,000kms ) and is just two years old.

After experiencing some interesting noises and shudders from what sounded and felt like they were coming from the transmission area I took it into my reasonably local dealer (who also conducts all my services) for a look see. After getting the workshop foreman out for a test drive he agreed that everythign was not what it should be and had a look under the bonnet and up on the hoist.

He returned fairly smartly with the pronouncement of "it's terminal".

Apparently there has been some kind of transmission cooler failure which has resulted in DSG oil being present in the coolant and coolant in the DSG box. The result was to be a flush and cleanse of the cooling system and a complete replacement of the DSG.

My question, after reading about DSG boxes etc, is will the Mechatronics unit be replaced as well? i.e will a new unit come part of a new DSG box or can they recycle some parts from the old box. Also is there anything else I should be concerned about i.e. would there be any other parts of the engine/drivetrain that may have suffered damage as a result of oil in the cooling system and vice versa.

I must add that the dealer is being very helpful about it all and the replacement DSG is quite handily located in Australia. However Volkswagen Australia have been particularly unhelpful and were not going to provide a loan car immediately. I was told by the dealer that if the car had failed outside the dealership a loaner would be made available straight away and the difficulty arose because I had brought it into the dealer under its own power.

As an aside, I am also after some opinions regarding the extended warranty. Obviously I will never get to the time period of the warranty but the extra 60 000kms would add just over a year to the factory warranty. Considering the car has already had a replaced turbo and DSG, is it worth the extra outlay for the extended warranty??

Cheers

Natjac.

[Umai Naa!!]

Loan cars are supplied by the dealer. If they can't help, then VW Australia is the next port of call.

As for the Mechatronics, yes, it will be replaced as part of a complete DSG transmission.

[Nathan_B]

If they are replacing the whole DSG box under warranty then i believe extending that warranty should be a no brainer... ive never had a problem *touch wood* with anything on my car and still went with the extended warranty..

keep us updated on the progress

[Natjac]

Well the car has been returned with a new gearbox after just under one week.

Very happy with the service as provided by the dealer but still not sure how the loan car is sorted out between the dealer and VW Australia.

I asked the service dept if the mechatronics unit was replaced as part of the gearbox and was told that it was, so hopefully any potential issues with it have been nipped in the bud.

Also confirmed that the service schedule would now be adjusted accordingly i.e. no dsg oil replacement at 120,000 kms as per the regular schedule.

I was also told that the new gearbox came with its 'own' 2 year warranty outside the new car warranty.

Here's hoping nothing else major happens for a long time !!!!

[sugilun]

Just wondering which dealer did u go to? I may have problem with my DSG but I'm not happy with my current dealer

[ian]

Just wondering which dealer did u go to? I may have problem with my DSG but I'm not happy with my current dealer

If your not happy with the response the dealer has given you then do what i did, go on line and contact VWA direct, write exactly what the gearbox is doing and what the dealer has done to rectify the trouble.
I had mine serviced by Camden GTI and he told me to go to Barlo who couldn't diagnose the faults the DSG was throwing up even VW in Germany couldn't find a fix except to upgrade the software,
So i wrote to VWA direct and with in 10 days i was told a new mechatronics unit was being delivered to Barlo for my car ,which is booked in on the 30/31 for the install.

[Blue.:R32]

If your not happy with the response the dealer has given you then do what i did, go on line and contact VWA direct, write exactly what the gearbox is doing and what the dealer has done to rectify the trouble.
I had mine serviced by Camden GTI and he told me to go to Barlo who couldn't diagnose the faults the DSG was throwing up even VW in Germany couldn't find a fix except to upgrade the software,
So i wrote to VWA direct and with in 10 days i was told a new mechatronics unit was being delivered to Barlo for my car ,which is booked in on the 30/31 for the install.

Interesting. My R32 is going in tomorrow for dsg issues. From my conversations with the dealers i already have a feeling they are trying to pass the buck already. Will keep this in mind

[Umai Naa!!]

Where are they going to pass the buck to?

If you can demonstrate that it is not performing as it was, and that their diagnostic equipment can support this, then work will be carried out as necessary. While any dealer would be quick to dismiss a DSG replacement at the get-go, don't immediately think that your concerns with the DSG can't be resolved.

[Blue.:R32]

Where are they going to pass the buck to?

If you can demonstrate that it is not performing as it was, and that their diagnostic equipment can support this, then work will be carried out as necessary. While any dealer would be quick to dismiss a DSG replacement at the get-go, don't immediately think that your concerns with the DSG can't be resolved.

I am sure they will find something to fix. I guess what I mean is the impression from initial talks with them is they are quick to avoid talking about issues that may "appear" to be wide spread dsg issues, to avoid having to fix this under goodwill as the car is out of warranty. Granted that internet chit chat about issues are not necessarily accurate.

[Umai Naa!!]

By all means, go down the path of goodwill. They're obligated to follow it up with VW. Be prepared to pay for something, though. Repairs under goodwill aren't always free.

[Blue.:R32]

By all means, go down the path of goodwill. They're obligated to follow it up with VW. Be prepared to pay for something, though. Repairs under goodwill aren't always free.

Understand if the part in question was a random sort of problem and just bit of bad luck for my particular car. What annoys me is the fact that the dsg has known issues, the mechatronic unit are a known issue to them (they have extended the warranty on them in the US). After paying $250 to diagnose the problem they now come back and confirm it is the mechatronic unit and happily provide me with a quote for thousands to replace the unit. It should not even be called good will when it is a well documented f***up, they should not even show me the quote. This is purely my opinion. I do not know where the responsibility lies but somewhere, either the dealers or VW australia has taken the line of "let see how much we can get away with" when it comes to dsg related issues.

[Natjac]

For what it's worth. The dealer in question that I bought my car through and have it serviced with is a well known dealer on the Sunshine Coast, North of Brisbane. There is only one VW dealer up here (Not sure if I can mention the name !!).

I have several problems and disagreements when purchasing the car (what was said in negotiation v what actually happened), but these were resolved, to everyone's satisfaction. when pursued with persons higher up in the organisation. It just took all pleasure out of purchasing a new car.

I have had a few minor dramas with the servicing but these were always promptly attended to. Essentially the service department is very good. So far with recall, new turbo and new dsg box!!!

[Umai Naa!!]

Understand if the part in question was a random sort of problem and just bit of bad luck for my particular car. What annoys me is the fact that the dsg has known issues, the mechatronic unit are a known issue to them (they have extended the warranty on them in the US). After paying $250 to diagnose the problem they now come back and confirm it is the mechatronic unit and happily provide me with a quote for thousands to replace the unit. It should not even be called good will when it is a well documented f***up, they should not even show me the quote. This is purely my opinion. I do not know where the responsibility lies but somewhere, either the dealers or VW australia has taken the line of "let see how much we can get away with" when it comes to dsg related issues.

It's all well and good for them to quote it all up for you, but seriously, you're going to have to prompt them to seek assistance from Volkswagen. From previous experiance, Volkswagen are quite good with goodwill repairs, where in some cases, they have covered the costs of all parts and labour. Keep chasing it, ring Customer Assistance, too. Dealerships hate getting phonecalls from them!

[ian]

It's all well and good for them to quote it all up for you, but seriously, you're going to have to prompt them to seek assistance from Volkswagen. From previous experiance, Volkswagen are quite good with goodwill repairs, where in some cases, they have covered the costs of all parts and labour. Keep chasing it, ring Customer Assistance, too. Dealerships hate getting phonecalls from them!

The hourly rate VWA pays the dealers would be a lot less than us mere mortal pay ,of cause they would rather you foot the bill as there is more money for the same work.

[Blue.:R32]

When they replace the mechatronic unit, do they have to drain the oil from the gearbox? Does that affect when the dsg needs to be serviced next?