DSG 40k mi maintenance (Yes, I searched!)

So I just performed my 40,000 mile maintenance today. The odometer was around 47,000 miles. Don't judge me. I changed the spark plugs, the fuel filter, cabin filter, air filter, engine oil & filter, and of course, the DSG oil & filter.

When I drained the oil from the DSG, it all seemed to go pretty well, as demonstrated and excellently explained in this thread. I let the oil cool in a "catch" container, then transferred it into another bottle and measured it. I wasn't sure exactly how much was in there, but marked the bottle to the exact place the old oil was, poured it out, then put new oil into that same container, right up to the line. Because I was using pre-measured bottles of DSG fluid, I was able to measure how much I put back into this bottle. It was approx 4.1L. That's not enough. It should be around 4.5L to come out. Of course I removed the little tube inside and let all the fluid drain.

Knowing that more is supposed to go into the DSG than what came out of mine, I measured to correct amount, 4.6L (added 0.1L for the filter & housing) and that's what I put in, using the measure & top fill methods. My concern is that I put too much fluid in. It drove much better after the maintenance, shifting was much smoother and so was acceleration. Creep at idle, no gas, was considerably better. There never were any loud noises and still aren't, but I DID find a little clear piece of broken plastic something in with the filter. That's a little disturbing.

So my question is, has anyone else run into this? Has anyone else seen too little fluid come out of thier DSG? How about a clear piece of plastic in with the filter? I did check on and around the trans before draining it and there were NO signs of leakage.

To be honest, I have no idea how much came out of my DSG when I recently did my change. I just added in 5L, ran the car at idle and went through the gears. Let her cool down and then undid only the first drain plug (there are two, right?) which let out the excess fluid. My car also feels much much better, which is all I care about. Since your car is doing much better, I would consider it a success and try not to think too much about it. It will just cause a headache!

Side question, do you have engine mounts?

defense05 said:

To be honest, I have no idea how much came out of my DSG when I recently did my change. I just added in 5L, ran the car at idle and went through the gears. Let her cool down and then undid only the first drain plug (there are two, right?) which let out the excess fluid. My car also feels much much better, which is all I care about. Since your car is doing much better, I would consider it a success and try not to think too much about it. It will just cause a headache!

Side question, do you have engine mounts?

Click to expand...

First off, thanks for replying. I think you're right, I'm just thinking too much about it.

Second, uhm...I'm going to honestly try not to be a smartass here. Don't we all have engine mounts? I mean, isn't that what holds the engine in place, and keeps it from dragging the ground? Or are you referring to aftermarket parts? :iono:

I helped a friend with his DSG. Drained and filled to spec, only a ballpark measurement of what came out. It was less than what you put in but was also a success. You are talking about maybe .5L over worse case scenario, I wouldn't sweat it. Kudos for doing it yourself.

zrickety said:

I helped a friend with his DSG. Drained and filled to spec, only a ballpark measurement of what came out. It was less than what you put in but was also a success. You are talking about maybe .5L over worse case scenario, I wouldn't sweat it. Kudos for doing it yourself.

Click to expand...

It wasn't easy, that's for sure. Fortunately, I've already had to replace my battery, so taking it out was no sweat. The airbox was a little harder, because I'd never done it before. The skid plate / splash guard was simple, just a few screws.

Looking at and seeing my old filter told me that it was definitely time to replace it. It was pretty gross, and starting to come apart. The paper stuff or whatever it is, was tearing and coming apart. I didn't immediately notice the little plastic piece in the little tray area below the filter, inside the housing. It wasn't until I was sucking all of the fluid out with a tool that looked similar to a turkey baster that I noticed something was moving around in there. I had been pushing it around with the tip of my turkey baster tool. I got some needle nose pliers and pulled it out, wiped it off and wondered just what the hell it was, where it came from, and if this is an early indicator of damage to my transmission. Anyone ever seen anything similar?

We dont , measure at the dealer...just drain, then fill, then start the car and once she stops pouring out its good. Real easy

donjuan1jr said:

We dont , measure at the dealer...just drain, then fill, then start the car and once she stops pouring out its good. Real easy

Click to expand...

What he's saying is that he did the measure-refill method, not the factory overflow method. No need to measure if you have the car level, overfill the transmission with the snorkel in, and bring the fluid to 35-45*C

donjuan1jr said:

We dont , measure at the dealer...just drain, then fill, then start the car and once she stops pouring out its good. Real easy

Click to expand...

I don't want to sound accusing at all, but I know that's how this is going to come out...

Maybe that's why I was about half a liter short when I drained. Being this is my first 40,000 mile inspection, it's hard to know for sure. Especially since I bought it used with about 36,000 miles on it. I have asked the dealer and they couldn't give me a straight answer on whether they did the 40,000 mile maintenance or not on it. Being that it's so close, I would think that they'd want to, so they wouldn't have an angry customer when he discovered that he's had a vehicle for a few months, and already has to spend $450 in maintenance on it, which is what I was quoted for the whole 40,000 mile maintenance, including DSG drain & fill, spark plugs, oil change, etc, etc, etc. Hence, I did it my self! I couldn't get a straight answer from the stealership and I had no way of knowing for sure, so, better safe than sorry. As it turns out, it looks like it was NOT done, and it's a good thing I finally did do it.

Still...anyone seen anything at all come out of the filter besides DSG oil? This has me concerned. Moreso since I did the maintenance myself, and VW could come back and say I'm not a trained VW tech and I didn't pay the dealer for it. Down the road, if I have problems with my drivetrain, their records show no maintenance was ever done on it. I, of course, have my own records, but I'm sure they could care less about my records. So this could adversely affect my warranty. Not that I think the stealership would have told me that they found something in my filter besides oil, or would have documented it.

Nobody has seen this before? Something other than oil in the filter area?

Was it a chunk of hard plastic or thin like plastic wrap? If thin, it could have just been from the factory unwrapping something incorrectly. If it's before the filter, you should be fine.

Rajini98 said:

Was it a chunk of hard plastic or thin like plastic wrap? If thin, it could have just been from the factory unwrapping something incorrectly. If it's before the filter, you should be fine.

Click to expand...

It was a chunk of thick, hard plastic. True, it was before the filter, and thankfully never made it past the filter. But where'd it come from? Does the factory normally leave chunks of hard, thick plastic in the transmission? How do I know the trans didn't get hot and spit it out, and it landed in the filter area, and I was just lucky to get it before it fell back in and really caused damage? Did something inside break and is spitting chunks out to the filter area? Is there anything clear or very light yellow inside the DSG? I've never rebuilt one of these, so I really have no idea. :iono:

ZiRiS said:

First off, thanks for replying. I think you're right, I'm just thinking too much about it.

Second, uhm...I'm going to honestly try not to be a smartass here. Don't we all have engine mounts? I mean, isn't that what holds the engine in place, and keeps it from dragging the ground? Or are you referring to aftermarket parts? :iono:

Click to expand...

Ah, yeah, I was referring to aftermarket mounts that are stiffer. Trying to get an idea of how peoples DSGs are acting after installing stiffer mounts.

defense05 said:

Ah, yeah, I was referring to aftermarket mounts that are stiffer. Trying to get an idea of how peoples DSGs are acting after installing stiffer mounts.

Click to expand...

Ahh, ok. Seriously, wasn't trying to be mean. No, I have stock mounts. The whole car is stock with very few exceptions. I took out the noise pipe and added a euro light switch. I like having more than 2 options for my lights!

ZiRiS said:

Ahh, ok. Seriously, wasn't trying to be mean. No, I have stock mounts. The whole car is stock with very few exceptions. I took out the noise pipe and added a euro light switch. I like having more than 2 options for my lights!

Click to expand...

Haha, I know. It's really easy to sound like a dick on the internet, lol.