DSG or not? Which car would you choose

[kmc6]

I am looking at buying a used Tiguan which will be used to tow a Jetski. Am looking at an 09 TDI (without DSG) but with a tow bar from a dealer and a ’10 TDI (with DSG and 20,000Km’s more) without a tow bar. The ‘10 is about $4k more, plus the costs for a tow bar. The ’10 has a few extras which I like and both are under the $40k mark. Is DSG that much more of a difference vs a “normal auto”? Which option do you think is better?

[Tigger]

Personally I reckon that the 'older' style Auto would be better for towing, especially when reversing the load slowly into the water down the ramp.

The DSG is a little slower on grabbing the gears, and rolls a bit first, whereas the normal auto is more predictable.

However the hill holder would probably make up for all of that perhaps...

I would go Auto....

[Sharkie]

I had a manual Tiguan, now a DSG Multivan and would change the DSG for a manual any day. Plus there is the eventual looming DSG failure at horrible cost to replace/repair/

Go the auto in this case.

[fung9420]

i like the DSG myself.
It's actually a manual with automatically shifted/controlled.

someone may find that jerky when choosing gear... usually at low speed or suddenly aggressive throttle. pretty similar to manual if u don't shift perfectly. Therefore, u have to learn how to communicate with DSG...

I go DSG myself. That's one of the reason i bought a VW.

[Blitzen]

I would go a manual anyway... Unless you plan to get rid of the car before the warranty period is up, or you have an endless supply of money for DSG repairs, I would avoid a DSG gearbox like the girls you have left at grab a granny night when the lights come on....

[kmc6]

So the dealer is a bit confused, as am I. He originally said the 09 was not a DSG but another rep says it is. It is definately an Auto, which means it must have DSG?

[Corey_R]

The original Tiguan auto's were traditional torque converter boxes. They didn't change over to the DSG until the 550Nm 7-speed DSG was available. I'm not sure what production date that occurred though.

But anyway, that's how you can tell what it is... if it's got 7 gears, it's a DSG.

[team_v]

The original Tiguan auto's were traditional torque converter boxes. They didn't change over to the DSG until the 550Nm 7-speed DSG was available. I'm not sure what production date that occurred though.

But anyway, that's how you can tell what it is... if it's got 7 gears, it's a DSG.

I believe the DSG was only available in the MY11 model's as it was still the old slushbox when i got mine in mid 2010.

[aussietig]

I believe the DSG was only available in the MY11 model's as it was still the old slushbox when i got mine in mid 2010.

Spot on!

I know this for a fact because I bloody waited 5 months to get mine!


Sounds like you're dealing with another "knowledgeable dealer" kmc6 or what I call an "oxymoron" [emphasis added].

[tigger73]

I suggest you drive both and see which you prefer. I bought my 125TSI DSG from a Nissan dealer with 3,000km on the clock and they knew nothing about the car. There were a number of options that were on it they didn't even know about so I managed to get it at a good price. I like the DSG (apart from sometimes hesitating before getting going).

Suggest you do your homework on what the costs of fitting a towbar are. Genuine by the dealer is about $2k. There's a few topics here about towbars you may want to havea look at before deciding which way to go.

[Tigger]

Simple way to tell...look at the shifter itself...if it is DSG, it will have DSG written somewhere on it.

If it is the older standard Auto, it will not have DSG written on it.

[Corey_R]

lol... state the obvious That's why too logical, hehe

[RGE]

Simple way to tell...look at the shifter itself...if it is DSG, it will have DSG written somewhere on it.

Having to look at the top of the gear knob so as to see "DSG" deeply recessed into the knob may have been a bit too obvious.

[fung9420]

If u don't mind a demo, u can look around. Dealers are keen on run out those my11.
I got my 125 dsg with leather and sunroof and this and that well under 40k mark. that 2 options already cost over 6k originally. And still 2+ yrs on warranty.
In that case I wouldn't bother to buy a 2 years old and warranty running out soon and not much cheaper.

[shawno]

I picked up my 09' 147 about a month ago and it's the first auto I've ever owned (and it's the non-DSG).

So far it's been hard to fault, actually that's an understatement, I'm loving the car/ride etc. The only bit that I'm a little unsure about is when going up an incline, the auto box (to me) doesn't sound like its changing down quick enough to a lower gear (seems to favour 5th instead of dropping to 4th). That could just be me having to get used to an auto in general or possibly using the auto like a manual.

If you do end up taking both for a drive, would like to hear if you think there is any difference going up an incline between the two.