Delay on take-off (DSG)

**'fatboy'** · 27-05-2010, 09:56 AM

Hi all,

Sorry if this is covering an older post... tried to search but didnt see anything conclusive on this.

We've finally taken delivery of our Golf 118TSI and aside from the 'common problems' most people have faced (leaking rear washer, rattling parcel shelf, rear senors that didnt work consistently) I'm loving this car! Actually prefer driving this more than my other daily driver.

One thing i noticed was a lag on take off (e.g. at lights or around corners). Is this normal for the DSG? Although it's nothing serious (yet), I can imagine myself trying to turn right quickly and the car taking a 1 sec to respond. I almost need to start pressing the throttle before i actually want to go.

What do you guys do to compensate / fix this, or is this one of those things I'm going to have to live with? I've only done 250k's so I'm hoping it will improve over k's / time.

**Corey_R** · 27-05-2010, 10:43 AM

The hesitation of the DSG gearbox on take off is a complaint that gets mentiond in almost every single review of the Golf ever published. Most people don't care however, as the numerous other advantages far outweigh this single disadvantage.

As team_v mentioned, if you're stationary with your foot on the brake, tapping the accelerator pedal will engage the clutch for the next 2 seconds so that you can have immediate drive away (at least it did on the MKV GTI with 6sp DSG).

You can also use the handbrake method STV4SYT mentioned.

Beyond that, as you get more familiar with the car and the gearbox, you will learn to adapt a bit to it, and it will adapt a bit to you - however that delay will never go away.

**'fatboy'** · 27-05-2010, 11:27 AM

Thanks Coreying

I'll experiment with those tips. Does having the shifter in S mode keep 1st gear engaged?

**team_v** · 27-05-2010, 11:45 AM

Originally Posted by 'fatboy'

Thanks Coreying

I'll experiment with those tips. Does having the shifter in S mode keep 1st gear engaged?

I don't think so.
From memory it just increases the rev limit before the DSG shifts up a gear.

**Corey_R** · 27-05-2010, 11:52 AM

As team_v said - no.
Basically, the DSG is two manual gearboxes strapped together, and the reason there is no clutch pedal is that you'd need two of them, which means you'd need 3 feet

So it won't keep 1st gear engaged to reduce wear on the clutch etc.

**'fatboy'** · 27-05-2010, 01:14 PM

Ahhh.. it all makes sense. Thanks guys, this has been most helpful.

That aside I love the DSG gearbox. It shifts so quick and smoothly - just keeps it on power with no noticeable drop off. If only the 118 had paddle shifters...

**Corey_R** · 31-05-2010, 02:07 PM

Originally Posted by Dubya

Sounds like one gearbox more than necessary and a lot of extra weight.

Isn't it one gearbox with two clutches?

Both the 7sp and 6sp DSG equate to 20kg difference in weight on the entire car. Considering it's one of the lowest points of the car, it's hardly "a lot of extra weight".

On a side note, the new Polo GTI is only available in 7sp DSG because "the manual gearbox does not fit".

And no, for the purpose of my statement, the explanation of two manual gearboxes strapped together is correct. It is more than just "one gearbox with two clutches".
To quote Volkswagen:

The direct shift gearbox comprises in essence of two transmission units that are independent of each other.

Each tranmission unit is constructed in the same way as a manual gearbox. Allocated to each transmission unit is a multi-plate clutch.

Both multi-plate clutches are of the wet type and work in DSG oil. They are regulated, opened and closed by the mechatronics system, depending on the gear to be selected.

1st, 3rd, 5th and reverse gear are selected via (multi-plate clutch one). 2nd, 4th and 6th gear are selected via (multi-plate clutch plate two).

One transmission unit is always in gear and the other transmission unit has the next gear selected in preparation but with the clutch still in the open position.

Every gear is allocated a conventional manual gearbox synchronisation and selector element.

**cameronp** · 27-05-2010, 02:20 PM

Originally Posted by 'fatboy'

One thing i noticed was a lag on take off (e.g. at lights or around corners). Is this normal for the DSG? Although it's nothing serious (yet), I can imagine myself trying to turn right quickly and the car taking a 1 sec to respond. I almost need to start pressing the throttle before i actually want to go.

What do you guys do to compensate / fix this, or is this one of those things I'm going to have to live with? I've only done 250k's so I'm hoping it will improve over k's / time.

There is definitely a lag when taking off from a standstill, though it's much less than a second - I'd guess it to be more like a fifth of a second, though haven't tried to measure it at all. It took a while before I felt comfortable pulling out into or across gaps in traffic, but in practice it hasn't been a problem.

There's much more of a lag from when you're almost but not quite stationary. The impression that I get is that the DSG changes to neutral at some point decelerating below 30 km/h. Even though the gear indicator reads "D2", the engine is at idle revs and you can hear a clicking sound and get about half a second's delay when you press the accelerator, presumably from the DSG changing back into gear.

I also felt like the DSG got a lot better over the first 100-200km, but I'm not sure whether that was me adjusting or the DSG adjusting itself. Fuel consumption on my first tank of fuel was dreadful, too. Now with 1300km on the clock, it's still quite a bit worse than I was expecting, but much better than my last car: averaging a bit under 8 L/100km from suburban driving in a mix of traffic situations, short and long trips, etc. The trip meter matches exactly what I get from calculating fuel consumption by hand. No rattles or leaking rear washer.

**MkVIGTI** · 27-05-2010, 08:51 PM

The great engines and the quick gear shifts more than make up for it! My old car's auto was way more sluggish in its operations so I don't really have a problem with the slight hesitation.