They initially refused to do anything as they said it was due to abuse from the driver.

How do you abuse an automatic-press the flappy paddles too quickly?!

'However warranty appeared to be 5 years + anyway before this problem surfaced. It would appear that different warranty durations for different countries is normal.'

In most of Europe the VW new car warranty is two years. In Australia and New Zealand the VW new car warranty is three years.

IIRC the warranty in the UK is 2+1 with the third year being dealer backed ? It is 3 years in Australia as you say.

I have a 2012 Australian 1.4TSi Twin Charger DSG Golf and I have to say it is a pleasure to drive even for me with a preference for manual cars.

I understand that it's cars built between 2008 and September 2011 which have been recalled in Australia, I know that there have been numerous hardware and software issues with these cars in numerous markets from the various fora so it's not a complete surprise. I believe that these culminated in a major software (ECU) fix in early/mid 2012 plus some hardware redesign (I'm deliberately using computing terms). My car has this fix and I surmise modified parts since it was built in 2Q 2012.

If you drive it like a conventional automatic, when you apply the foot brake (but leave it in drive) it disengages drive, I can't see why you'd hold it on the accelerator rather than applying the footbrake as you would in a torque converter auto?. It will creep on the idle jet (feathering the clutch I guess) both forwards or in reverse, just like a torque converter automatic and I find it to be very controillable. Otherwise it clicks through the gears with a smoothness and alacrity which needs to be seen to be believed.

I guess VW now has to retrofit these modifications to the many recalled cars, however from a drivability, performance, economy and refinement perspective I have no complaints with this gearbox and would not put anyone off buying a newly built VW car fitted with it. An extended drivetrain/gearbox warranty might be a nice way to allay fears I guess.

My car (Austrlaian market) also has the hill-hold function (along with a converntional handbrake) and again I find this to work well - effectively removing the need to ever use the accelerator to hold the car (thus 'riding' the automated clutch), I wonder if that's why it's fitted ?

So, drive the 2012 model year car like a conventional auto and all appears (to me) to be well.

Edited by idle_chatterer on 14/06/2013 at 04:26

As I have, apparently futiley, attempted many times to explain in very clear English, our car.

(i) rolls back AFTER the clutch pack has engaged and incremental, but definate movement has started.

(ii)such movement being sufficient to overcome the standard fit hill holder parking brake.

(iii) such parking brake being applied entirely conventionally with the customary cable operated lever.

(iii) the transmission is OVERRIDING the throttle pentiometer input as can be clearly demonstrated, as I will NOT take time to demonstrate again.

(iv) my left foot ALWAYS being kept on the floor

(v) the footbrake NEVER being touched.

can I be any more CLEAR.

I understand how the transmission works, I love its open road performance.

I also drive a traditional torque convertor automatic.

I am not an engineer, but am good mechanically, having fully maintained my own vehicles until electronic advances got the better of me.(and many others)

regards

Marcus

I must confess that the symptoms you describe aren't something I recognise from my own experience, doesn't mean I doubt them - just that my car doesn't behave like that - ever.

You describe using both the cable operated handbrake and hill hold (which is electronic afaik), I generally only rely on the hill hold function and the footbrake from memory - I do have a conventional handbrake which I utilise when I park or am stationary for an extended period when I'll also knock the DSG into neutral or park depending on circumstances.

Edited by idle_chatterer on 14/06/2013 at 09:24

Dieseldogg, you describe perfectly the hell of close manoeuvering almost all vehicles fitted with these automanual contraptions, makes no difference how many clutches they have.

I liken it to trying to drive a manual car with you operating the throttle and brake and your mate operating the clutch for you, at best it will be an on/off switch.

I've had the displeasure of covering over a million miles in automated manual lorries (first Volvo on L plate) and aprt from Volvo (lorries) who were IIRC the first and who have got it as right as it will ever be, the rest are either hopeless of indeed dangerous in close confines...and simply appalling at junctions unless you override the box and drive them in manual.

I drove car transporters for many years and had to load cars fitted with these boxes in increasing volumes, i could bore you to tears with the things we had to do to get the things on or indeed off again without damage, they simply are not fit for purpose in most cases for manoeuvering or heavy traffic use.

In some cases the engine was not allowed to produce enough power to cope with cltuch engagement and we would have to precariously run it onto the back of the vehicle, then whilst transporter driver was sitting in car with all brakes on an assistant would raise the deck to level and the car could be moved forward to its chosen deck position (bear in mind the deck would be 8/10 ft from the ground at this point and nothing to stop the car rolling off if you got it wrong), if that position meant dropping the wheels in a deck cut out it could mean the car needed to be 'ratchetted' out again at the destination when again it didn't have the power to pull itself out.

The situation you describe i once had with a new Audi auto, i needed to move it only about a foot to get it over a ledge and put it in place under an angled deck already containing a car, once stopped the bonnet and roof of the Audi would have been about 2" from the deck above.

The problem being that clutch engagement coincided with the petrol turbo coming on spool up so full power, this equated to engagment being amost an on/offf switch, a very hairy few minutes trying to do this wasn't helped when the instant you touched the brake the power was cut.

I wouldn't buy into any of these sytems, give me a proper torque converter or even a good CVT any day (such as new Avensis which is a dream)...loading and close manoeuvering such good infinitely controllable gearboxes was a pleasure.

Edited by gordonbennet on 14/06/2013 at 10:21

Just to remind everyone that these problems seem to be confined to the 7-speed dry clutch DSG. The older wet clutch DSG on larger-engined VAG cars such as my Octavia works fine. Hill starts - manoeuvring in tight spots - no problem.

It helps that my car has a proper handbrake. Buit I had a test drive in a Golf GTI a few days ago and (apart from being generally verty impressed) didn't find the electronic handbrake as much of a pain as I thought it would be. The one I tried was a manual: the salesman thought the DSG in the GTI is 7-speed, but the brochure says 6-speed. I hope the brochure is right!