Sitting at traffic lights with dsg

[TaylorGTi]

So when Sitting at traffic lights or generally stopped I just leave the car in "d" and foot on brake but I find the engine sounds healthier if I pop into "n"

Is it doing the box/engine any hard just sitting in "d" at a stand still?

[Frenzy]

IIRC

Basically what you are doing is the general 'lazy' approach to auto gearboxes. A bit like starting a car engine without first depressing the clutch - it won't insta kill your car but long, long term it is putting undue stress on your motor. 

I believe the correct way is indeed to pop it into N when stationary at traffic lights but i could be completely wrong so best that someone who actually drives an auto box knowledgeably answers your question 

[Bennz]

I always put DSG in N when stopping for few mins. It behaves differently than usual torque converter gearboxes. When in D and stopping gearbox feels struggling but N relieves it from the pressure.


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[Sug]

I stick it in N when at lights unless I can predict a quick change. I bet the wife leaves it in D though   

[burger187]

Longer than 10 seconds in traffic or at an traffic light put it in N, when it's about to go green stick it in S

[J400uk]

I've got into the habit of putting it into N but leaving it in D shouldn't do any major harm. The clutch isn't engaged if your stopped.

It's a bit like putting a manual box into neutral, or leaving it in gear with your foot on the clutch.

[magicgilbert]

 Always put mine in N regardless, force of habit. My old mans got a 5 series and if you leave that in drive at light it jumps like mad and aggressive when pulling away :-/

[edd666999]

The vw manual says treat it as you would a manual, you're supposed to put it in "N"

[TaylorGTi]

Longer than 10 seconds in traffic or at an traffic light put it in N, when it's about to go green stick it in S

Put into S...  ... Yeah over last few days iv been putting into N and car seems to like it more! It feels as though it wants to go when in D!

Cheers!

[sub39h]

I never put it in N. I know DSG isn't a regular automatic, but I find it EXTREMELY hard to believe that the VW engineers weren't clever enough to work out that 99.9% of DSG owners will treat it the same as all other 2 pedal transmissions and leave it in D all the time. They will have designed it to cope with being left in D over the lifetime of the car.

I'd rather worry about more pressing things.

[GrayMK5GTI]

I never put it in N. I know DSG isn't a regular automatic, but I find it EXTREMELY hard to believe that the VW engineers weren't clever enough to work out that 99.9% of DSG owners will treat it the same as all other 2 pedal transmissions and leave it in D all the time. They will have designed it to cope with being left in D over the lifetime of the car.

I'd rather worry about more pressing things.

Surely all the DSG box is doing is holding the clutchpacks on the biting point which will cause wear over time?

My GF holds her manual on the clutch all the time and I can tell by the high biting point that her clutch won't last much longer.

The fact that DSG clutches on the MK5 are bathed in oil will help keep them cool and more wear resistant but as it's a physical friction bite, it's certainly not great long term or for long periods.

Also when in "D" you are holding your foot on the brake which is bad practise when your brakes are hot as you could cause the disks to warp.

If I had an auto, I'd be using N if I was going to be stopped for 20 secs or more and keep it in D if I was pretty sure I could pull away fairly soon

[Mandy]

I think this has been discussed a few times before, I sometimes stick it into N if sitting stationary for more than 30 secs or so. However, I don't believe it would cause any harm if you left it in D. Someone has measured the clutch torque values before with VCDS with footbrake applied, both in N and then in D and you can see they are the same:


Address 02: Auto Trans (02E 300 014 D)

15:37:55
Brakes Brake Light Switch (F)
N Selector Lever Position
-600.0 Nm Specified clutch torque K2
0.000 A Valve current clutch valve 2
0.08 bar Actual pressure clutch 2 (G194)
2.4 mm Synchronous travel path 1st gear

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Address 02: Auto Trans (02E 300 014 D)

15:37:59
Brakes Brake Light Switch (F)
D Selector Lever Position
-600.0 Nm Specified clutch torque K2
0.000 A Valve current clutch valve 2
0.08 bar Actual pressure clutch 2 (G194)
2.4 mm Synchronous travel path 1st gear

Also, when stopped on an upward hill with footbrake applied and leaving it in D, when you come to move off again by taking your foot off the brake pedal and onto the gas, you will notice the car rolls back slightly before getting going again. This would suggest that the car is not sat at the biting point.

[rich83]

^^^ Excellent post.

[GrayMK5GTI]

Thanks Mandy 

If the DSG isn't holding the car on the clutches, how is it holding it? 

[rich83]

Thanks Mandy 

If the DSG isn't holding the car on the clutches, how is it holding it? 

It doesn't really.... it only begins to hold when you release the brakes.