The
internal combustion engine drives two
clutch packs. The outer clutch pack drives gears 1, 3, 5 (and 7 when fitted), and reverse – the outer clutch pack has a larger diameter compared to the inner clutch, and can therefore handle greater torque loadings. The inner clutch pack drives gears 2, 4, and 6. Instead of a standard large dry single-plate clutch, each clutch pack for the six-speed DSG is a collection of four small wet interleaved clutch plates (similar to a
motorcycle wet multi-plate clutch). Due to space constraints, the two clutch assemblies are
concentric, and the shafts within the gearbox are hollow and also concentric. Because the alternate clutch pack's gear-sets can be pre-selected (predictive shifts enabled via the unloaded section of the gearbox), un-powered time while shifting is avoided because the transmission of torque is simply switched from one clutch-pack to the other. While the DSG has one of the fastest
shift times on the market, the claim that the DSG takes only about 8
milliseconds to upshift is un-proven with 3-party data nor claimed by the manufacturer. The variant of DSG fitted to
plug-in hybrid vehicles (such as the Golf/Passat GTE and the Audi A3 e-tron) also have a third clutch - its function is connect the electric motor to the combustion engine when both power sources are required simultaneously to propel the vehicle (the motor armature permanently turns with the input shaft of the transmission) - it also is engaged to
bump start the combustion engine from the electric motor whenever the transmission is in the "N" position - this is due to the engine not having a conventional
starter motor.
DSG controls The direct-shift gearbox uses a floor-mounted
transmission shift lever, very similar to that of a conventional automatic transmission. The lever is operated in a straight 'fore and aft' plane (without any '
dog-leg' offset movements), and uses an additional button to help prevent an inadvertent selection of an inappropriate shift lever position.
P P position of the floor-mounted gear shift lever means that the transmission is set in
park. Both
clutch packs are fully disengaged, all
gear-sets are disengaged, and a solid mechanical transmission lock is applied to the crown wheel of the DSG's internal
differential. This position must only be used when the
motor vehicle is
stationary. Furthermore, this is the position which must be set on the shift lever before the vehicle
ignition key can be removed.
N N position of the floor-mounted shift lever means that the transmission is in
neutral. Similar to
P above, both clutch packs and all gear-sets are fully disengaged; however, the parking lock is also disengaged.
D mode Whilst the motor vehicle is stationary and in neutral (
N), the
driver can select
D for drive (after first pressing the foot
brake pedal). The transmission's outer clutch K2 engages at the
start of the bite point, while on the alternate gear shaft the reverse gear clutch K1 is also selected. The clutch pack for second gear (K2) gets ready to engage. When the driver releases the brake pedal, the K2 clutch clamping force is increased, allowing the transmission to drive the wheels. Depressing the
accelerator pedal engages the clutch and causes an increase of forward vehicle speed. Pressing the throttle pedal to the floor (hard acceleration) will cause the gearbox to "kick down" to first gear to provide the acceleration associated with first, although there will be a slight hesitation while the gearbox deselects second gear and selects first gear. As the vehicle accelerates, the transmission's computer determines when the second gear (which is connected to the second clutch) should be fully used. Depending on the vehicle speed and amount of engine power being requested by the driver (determined by the position of the throttle pedal), the DSG then up-shifts. During this sequence, the DSG disengages the first outer clutch whilst simultaneously engaging the second inner clutch (all power from the engine is now going through the second shaft), thus completing the shift sequence. This sequence in a fraction of a second (aided by pre-selection), and can be performed without lifting off the throttle, resulting in minimal power loss. Once the vehicle has completed the shift to second gear, the first gear is immediately de-selected, and third gear is pre-selected. Once the time comes to shift into 3rd, the second clutch disengages and the first clutch re-engages. This sequence repeats through the gear changes. Downshifting is similar to up-shifting but in reverse order. At 600 milliseconds downshifting is necessarily slower, due to the engine's
Electronic Control Unit (ECU) needing to 'blip' the throttle so that the engine
crankshaft speed can match the appropriate gear shaft speed. A downshift occurs when the ECU senses the car slowing down, or when more power is required. The actual shift points are determined by the DSG's transmission ECU, which controls a hydro-mechanical unit. The transmission ECU, combined with the hydro-mechanical unit, are collectively called a
mechatronics unit or module. Because the DSG's ECU uses
fuzzy logic, the operation of the DSG is said to be
adaptive; that is, the DSG will "learn" how the user drives the car, and will progressively tailor the shift points accordingly to suit the habits of the driver. In the vehicle instrument display, between the
speedometer and
tachometer, the available shift-lever positions are shown, the current position of the shift-lever is highlighted (emboldened), and the current gear ratio in use is also displayed as a number. Under "normal", progressive and linear
acceleration and deceleration, the DSG shifts in a
sequential manner; i.e., under acceleration: 1st → 2nd → 3rd → 4th → 5th → 6th, and the same sequence reversed for deceleration. However, the DSG can also skip the normal sequential method, by missing gears, and shift two or more gears. This is most apparent if the car is being driven at sedate speeds in one of the higher gears with a light throttle opening, and the accelerator pedal is then pressed down, engaging the
kick-down function. During kick-down, the DSG will skip gears, shifting directly to the most appropriate gear depending on speed and throttle opening. This kick-down may be engaged by any increased accelerator pedal opening, and is completely independent of the additional resistance to be found when the pedal is pressed fully to the floor, which will activate a similar kick-down function when in Manual operation mode. The seven-speed unit in the 2007 Audi variants will not automatically shift to 6th gear; rather, it stays at 5th to keep power available at a high RPM while cruising. When the floor-mounted gear selector lever is in position
D, the DSG works in fully automatic mode, with emphasis placed on gear shifts programmed to deliver maximum
fuel economy. That means that shifts will change up and down very early in the rev-range. As an example, on the
Volkswagen Golf Mk5 GTI, sixth gear will be engaged around , when initially using the DSG transmission with the default ECU adaptation; although with an "aggressive" or "sporty" driving style, the adaptive shift pattern will increase the vehicle speed at which sixth gear engages.
S mode The floor selector lever also has an
S position. When
S is selected, sport mode is activated in the DSG. Sport mode still functions as a fully automatic mode, identical in operation to
D mode, but upshifts and downshifts are made much higher up the engine rev-range. This aids a more sporty driving manner, by utilising considerably more of the available
engine power, and also maximising
engine braking. However, this mode does have a detrimental effect on the vehicle
fuel consumption, when compared to
D mode. This mode may not be ideal to use when wanting to drive in a sedate manner; nor when road conditions are very slippery, due to ice, snow or torrential rain – because loss of tire traction may be experienced (wheel spin during acceleration, and may also result in road wheel locking during downshifts at high engine rpms under closed throttle). On 4motion or quattro-equipped vehicles this may be partially offset by the drivetrain maintaining full-time engagement of the rear differential in S mode, so power distribution under loss of front-wheel traction may be marginally improved.
S is highlighted in the instrument display, and like
D mode, the currently used gear ratio is also displayed as a number.
R R position of the floor-mounted shift lever means that the transmission is in reverse. This functions in a similar way to
D, but there is just one reverse gear. When selected,
R is highlighted in the instrument display.
Manual mode Additionally, the floor shift lever also has another plane of operation, for
manual mode, with spring-loaded
+ and
− positions. This plane is selected by moving the stick away from the driver (in vehicles with the driver's seat on the right, the lever is pushed to the left, and in
left-hand drive cars, the stick is pushed to the right) when in
D mode only. When this plane is selected, the DSG can now be controlled like a
manual gearbox, albeit only under a
sequential shift pattern. In most (VW) applications, the readout in the instrument display changes to
6 5 4 3 2 1, and just like the automatic modes, the currently used gear ratio is highlighted or emboldened. In other versions (e.g., on the Audi TT) the display shows just
M followed by the gear currently selected; e.g.,
M1,
M2, etc. To change up a gear, the lever is pushed forward (against a spring pressure) towards the
+, and to change down, the lever is pulled rearward towards the
−. The DSG transmission can now be operated with the gear changes being (primarily) determined by the driver. This method of operation is commonly called
tiptronic. In the interests of engine preservation, when accelerating in Manual/tiptronic mode, the DSG will still automatically change up just before the
redline, and when decelerating, it will change down automatically at very low revs, just before the engine
idle speed (tick-over). Furthermore, if the driver calls for a gear when it is not appropriate (e.g., requesting a downshift when engine speed is near the redline) the DSG will not change to the driver's requested gear. Current variants of the DSG will still downshift to the lowest possible gear ratio when the
kick-down button is activated during full throttle whilst in manual mode. In Manual mode this kick-down is only activated by an additional button at the bottom of the accelerator pedal travel; unless this is pressed the DSG will not downshift, and will simply perform a full-throttle acceleration in whatever gear was previously being utilised.
Paddle shifters Initially available on certain high-powered cars, and those with a "sporty" trim level—such as those using the 2.0
T FSI and 3.2/3.6
VR6 engines—
steering wheel-mounted
paddle shifters were available. However, these are now being offered (either as a standard inclusive fitment, or as a factory optional extra) on virtually all DSG-equipped cars, throughout all model ranges, including lesser power output applications, such as the 105 PS
Volkswagen Golf Plus. These operate in an identical manner as the floor mounted shift lever when it is placed across the gate in manual mode. The paddle shifters have two distinct advantages: the driver can safely keep both hands on the steering wheel when using the Manual/tiptronic mode; and the driver can temporarily
manually override either of the automatic programmes (
D or
S), and gain instant manual control of the DSG transmission (within the
above described constraints). If the paddle-shift activated manual override of one of the automatic modes (
D or
S) is used intermittently the DSG transmission will default back to the previously selected automatic mode after a predetermined duration of inactivity of the paddles, or when the vehicle becomes stationary. Alternatively, should the driver wish to immediately revert to fully automatic control, this can be done by activating and holding the
+ paddle for at least two seconds. == Advantages and disadvantages ==