Dave Plowman wrote:

Andy Burns wrote:

the gearbox was getting "fussy"

Did wonder what the expected life of these boxes is compared to a
conventional auto.

My first one was 'chauffeur smooth' for a year, then as good as a decent
driver with a manual for 3-4 years, very enjoyable.

Then, on cold mornings, it sometimes gave a bit of a thump in your back
the first time it came to a halt as it was changing down into 1st, as
though it wasn't sure of the bite point, I had it recalibrated at next
service it was better for 6 months then started doing the same again, it
then occasionally put the gearbox into "limp mode" for few seconds after
long journeys on hot days, only ever a warning, not an error. Main
dealer option at that point was a "DSG rebuild kit", not cheap, and not
much guarantee.

OBD cable showed it was occasionally unhappy with pressures and
temperatures of hydraulic clutch valves, so it got chopped in, maybe
I'll resist using the launch control on this one :-)

Was on a London single decker bus the other day that appeared to have an
SMG type auto, and that crunched when changing up into what I think was
third gear. Like you get with worn synchromesh.

I thought they were pre-selector boxes?