DSG is still automatic transmission, no matter the technology behind it is. So you just dont get the feel of manual if you are driving an automatic.

Automatic with paddles is the same thing as DSG in the feel department, just slower to change gears and smoother at the same time.

 

I am going to have to respectfully disagree.


The auto transmission has a torque converter that allows it to slip. When you are driving on the highway give it enough gas to rev up but not to downshift, you will see that it surges up to 1600-3000 rpm (depending on the car). Do the same in the manual transmision car and the rpms do not surge, as there is no noticable slippage of the clutch. Now do the same test with the DSG.... what happens? It does the exact same thing as the manual.


The DSG eliminates the torque converter so it feels and operates like a manual transmission. The only difference is you are not working the clutch and shifter.


If by feeling just like an auto means you do not have to wear out your left leg in a traffic jam, then you are right, but if you mean the way power is applied to the wheels you are incorrect.

Yes a DSG is still a transmission that shifts itself, but it is very different from a traditional automatic transmission.

there is a reason every auto magazine/tv show refers to auto transmissions as slushboxes but refer to the DSG as the future of transmissions. It would not win over that many enthusiasts if it was the same feel as an auto.

 

DSG and its other brothers might be future of transmissions, but they still do not give you an extra sporty feel of changing gears, since you are still not changing them.

Sporty feel is not in the technology behind transmission, it is in connection between driver and the machine.

"The only difference is you are not working the clutch and shifter. " - thats what is behind the sporty feel of manual transmission :-).

I am European - i drive manuals mostly, I have driven DSG and AT's... both are fine and have their respective good and bad points. But as long as you are not changing the gears, all those changes dont make car any sportier. AT and DSG can both be equaly sporty, if they are designed to do the same thing (paddles are important in this case), but again, neither of them give you the sporty feel of manually changing the gears.

 

What you are talking about are purely in the preferences of the driver.


I am talking technical differences.


Sure some people find moving a lever and pushing a clutch more sporty (me being one of them), others find using paddles to shift more alluring as it more closely resembles the way shifting is done in most racing leagues.


My points are based soley on the responsiveness of the transmission, and what behaviors the transmission exhibits in certain circumstances.


Manual vs. Auto vs. DSG as far as driving experience is 100% in the eyes of the beholder.

 

while I agree it is the prefference of the driver, it is hard to argue that manual shifting doesnt give you connection with the car.

When it comes to racing, they all use as much as electronics as allowed, because it is faster that way - F1 uses continous gearboxes these days, it also uses traction control while ESP was used until banned.

They did it because it is faster that way, not because it makes driver more connected to the road.

It would be hard to argue that TRC should be preffered by drivers because thats what F1 uses.

 

SMT and those "select shift" transmissions (probably what's in the new xB) are two totally different things.

For simplicity's sake, I'll just say that a SMT is basically a manual without having to worry about the slow human learning to use the clutch. You select the gear, and it instantly goes into it. It's called sequential because you have to step up or down thorough each gear. In other words, you can't go from 3rd to 1st in a SMT. You have to go 3rd, 2nd, to 1st. A true SMT will let you hit the rev-limiter, blow the enginer, whatever, just like a regular manual. It's just a much faster, much more consistent shift pattern.

A "select shift" or whatever is merely an automatic trans with the ability to suggest which gear you want to be in. If all parameters are correct (speed, rpms, direction of car, etc..); you'll get that gear. Otherwise, the computer will select the appropriate gear for you. These type of trans are usually just a gimmick more than anything. The first couple of times you'll think it's cool, but then you realize how pointless it is.