Volkswagen’s Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG) is the world’s first dual-clutch automated manual gearbox in a production car. This provides the driver the ease-of-drive of a car equipped with an automatic transmission, but the efficiency and flexibility of a manual transmission.
It’s like a far more advanced big brother of automated manual transmissions like the one found in the Proton Savvy AMT. Something like BMW’s SMG, but Volkswagen’s DSG was the first to have dual clutches. Volkswagen’s DSG transmission also has a triptronic function, allowing gears to be manually selected as well as an automatic mode.
A conventional manual gearbox has a human foot-operated single clutch. A DSG transmission has two clutches, one for the even gears and one for the odd gears plus the reverse gear. One clutch is in gear, while the other pre-selects the next gear. This allows really fast shifts, no more than three to four hundredths of a second. For example, if the car is in third gear, the other clutch already has fourth gear selected but is not active. As soon as the RPM reaches the ideal shift point for the car’s torque curve, the gearbox shifts into fourth gear almost instantly.
Here’s a video with a drag race comparison between a Volkswagen Golf GTI 6-speed manual and a Volkswagen Golf GTI equipped with a 6-speed DSG gearbox. The Volkswagen Golf GTI with the DSG gearbox is also pitched against other cars with conventional gearboxes but with better power to weight ratio than the Volkswagen Golf GTI. You’ll be able to see how the DSG fares.
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After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history. An avid electronic gadget aficionado as well as big-time coffee lover, he's also the executive producer of the Driven motoring TV programme.
If I'm not mistaken Ford's got a similar automatic transmission system, but I can't remember what it's called. Paul, probably you can check this out for me if you've got the time? Cheers! This is the first time I've seen the DSG in action and it looks really impressive!
that's so cool… see how it just goes ahead while the conventional MT shifts…
Woah! That was awesome man!
raptorclans – It keeps going because it changes gear just at the right rpm. If I'm not mistaken, that Astra got 245hp at the wheel and the GTi got, what? 215? 225? Quite a contender even to the Integra Type R. I wonder how the Golf R32 would go with this DSG gearbox. Hehe…damn!
Well…..hmmm….how much the GTi DSG will be cost here, eh? Any idea Paul?
huhh.. this quick shift concept improving from time to time… good la… gear system for the future, especially for those who r lazy to press the clucth.. in this case DSG works perfectly..
make me appreciate savvy AMT more…
i remember on an episode in top gear, jeremy clarkson saying that the ermm.. the highest end Audi TT has this DSG as well.. double clutches..
great technology nonetheless..
I love it…sure with DSG installed will beaten others…if manual….
rumour has it the the gearbox has trouble handling high power so it hasn't shown up in the Audi S4/RS4 yet. It has been adapted for the Bugatti Veyron with 1 extra gear and stronger parts.
Cool
Finally an auto car that's actually faster than a manual equivalent 
Thanks to breakthru DSG technology!
if i remember correctly, Wald brought the gti with DSG in and sold it for like RM240,000 or something like that.
DSG has been around for quite a while already, and its not considered new anymore.. and its no surprise also that the Audi TT has it, since VW owns Audi in the first place.
look at that first guy's gear shifting. awesome…
is that really the drift king Tsuchiya Keiichi?
yup. thats from Best motoring Racing Bonanza edition. apart from that comparo, there is even a F430, Gallardo and 911CS comparo.
If u want to see the internals of the DSG in action, check this site out
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/dual-clutch-transmi…
heard a GTi with large diameter exhaust upshifting in a suburb few weeks back, the noise is just fantastic, there is practically no lag in the exhaust note when it upshifts!
can put 1 in my wira 1.5A ar?
i've watched the whole episode of this Best Motoring before…yea i agreed DSG is reli something awesome and PLS IT RELI IS KEIICHI TSUCHIYA in the video cost he is part of Best Motoring…and of course his shift work is fast if not he wouldn't even be able to be named as DRIFT KING dudes…watch more Best Motoring to keep up dudes…
lonedrifter – I'm not from KL. Where to find the collection of Best Motoring? Any place/shop you know?
Look like Proton… made some mistake again by not team up with VW….
well.. sayang… sayang… else….we can see DSG in our future proton model…
Savvy ATM got this kind out functions? is it will consume petrol more?
are the Savvy is economic than Myvvy?
logically it shud consume less, as itr shifts at the right revs…
PaulTan said,
A conventional manual gearbox has a human foot-operated single clutch. A DSG transmission has two clutches, one for the even gears and one for the odd gears plus the reverse gear. One clutch is in gear, while the other pre-selects the next gear. This allows really fast shifts, no more than three to four hundredths of a second. For example, if the car is in third gear, the other clutch already has fourth gear selected but is not active. As soon as the RPM reaches the ideal shift point for the car’s torque curve, the gearbox shifts into fourth gear almost instantly.
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u know what..? somehow there's this feeling of deja vu that i've read this somewhere, sometime ago…
erm… actually i did read some article that mentioned about dual clutches where one engages the gear and another pre-selects the other gear.
from where and when i read that article, i cant recall but it's almost more than a year back!
i think you read something about EVO X / Lancer Ralliart SST gearbox..
watch more Best Motoring Videos by either downloading or buying online..you can always google it out…aksMs as for malaysians we usually download
The DSG is by far the best clutch-based "autos". It operates and feels just like a regular auto but much faster. The BMW SMG and the Ferrari F1 gearboxes require you to operate them with the mentality of a manual driver – they work best when you manually shift and blip the throttle when doing so at slow speeds.
Looks like the shifting up is smooth. However, is the down-shifting also smooth, and is it prone to gear hunting, eg between 2nd and 3rd, esp like the P1 4speed auto tranny?
There's one thing called ZeroShift.
The mechanism is somewhat radical.
Go google it up. It'll be somewhat longwinded to talk about it here
Too dope!
I recently acquired an 08 Skoda Octavia Estate 2 ltr diesel fitted with DSG. I have been driving since 1964 and this is the best drive I have ever experienced.
Mind you: at my age one drives quite sedately, but it's still an absolute pleasure.
I own a 2006 VW Golf – recently I’m experiencing an issue with the gear shift.
Apparently this is a known issue – anyone care to detail ?