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.