DSG or 6MT?

madmako · March 12th, 2011, 08:11

Hello everyone,

I'm about to pull the trigger on purchasing a 2011 Sportwagen. I have spent a fair amount of time trying to determine the long term reliability of DSG and 6MT. From what I've read, both trannys have experienced issues over time.
While the DSG is an engineering and performance marvel, it doesn't appear to be much more reliable than a slush-box. Given it's now 2011, is it safe to say that all the engineering/mfg kinks have been worked out? What's the safe bet for the long term?
Thanks for any insight.

davepol · March 12th, 2011, 12:42

The DSG is a marvel but there are issues. I just had the mechatronic replaced on my 2010 JSW(under warranty) and the new unit seems to work fine. The best bet if you want reliability is to go manual.

JSWTDI09 · March 12th, 2011, 12:52

As far as I am concerned - the biggest downside to the DSG is cost. First, it costs more to buy. Second it costs a lot more to keep it working. The DSG requires a fluid change every 40,000 miles. This fluid change requires special tools and VCDS and the cost varies between $250 to $600 depending on who does it (it's a little cheaper if you do it yourself). If you put a lot of miles on your car this could be an annual expense.

As for reliability, the DSG usually appears to be pretty reliable, if it gets the required service. The manual transmission is very reliable, but the ECU/clutch (stalling) issue does take some getting used to. In the end, it's your choice - do you want to be in control of what gear you are in, or do you want a computer to have that job. In other words, do you want to shift gears, or do you want it to be automatic. If you want automatic, you have to pay the price.

Have Fun!

Don