[Rajeevraj]

Originally Posted by heydj

In comparison to DSG in Rapid TDI or Vento TSI how good is Hexa's AT? In terms of quick shifts & lag.

Just adding my 2 cents. Based on my experience with the XUV 6 Speed AT (Not sure if Hexa also has the same unit), I found it very close as compared to my Vento TSI- The TSI was definitely better, but I felt this was more due to the TSI rather than the DSG. The XUV500 drive was part of a TD for a friend and was followed by a Test Drive of the Rapid TDI DSG. Here I felt the TC on the XUV was actually better-Of course, definitely helped by the larger/better engine.

[aniyo]

Have driven friends Ameo dsg and TC on the Brio. Well yes the shifts are good on DSG, however the fact that you might get stranded on the road is not a good feeling.
I remember in the official review of the x- trail that the TC was smooth and quite good. It is quite good on the Brio as well. So I think the TC suffers less from the engine size than other type of automatics. I will pick TC over other at least in India.

[civic-sense]

Having owned a Honda Civic (TC) and Ecosport (DCT), I haven't felt any difference between the two as far as performance is concerned. The creep is lower in the DCT though. I am a sucker for new tech, so DCT would be my choice. But if I have to choose one from the current ATs available in India, I'd rather play safe and get a TC or CVT.

[fuelinmyveins]

I voted for torque converter.

Modern torque converters are not only robust but are smooth, efficient and quick as well. Points in case would be ZF 8 speed transmission, 9 G-Tronic, new Powercor 10R80 ten speed automatic transmission. These are quickly becoming the industry norm for most of the cars from North America and Europe.

Torque converters also provide torque multiplication at low engine speeds resulting in better acceleration at low engine R.P.M as compared to dual clutch transmissions.

As for CVT and AMT, both only give headaches. The former due to engine noise under load and latter due to head bobbing with every shift.

Dual clutches transmissions are again being relegated to ultra high performance cars where crazy shift times matter over everything else.

[purohitanuj]

Voted for torque - converter setup due to its reliability, service free nature and inherent creep behavior(which is true for CVT as well). The fuel efficiency is now much closer to manual version due to lock-up converters.

[Brishti]

My test with the BMW 330i GT was fully reliant on the ZF gearbox which according to my research is much more dependable than the DSG technology and has an Indian operations to back it up "Localization?".

The best part is that these are almost as fast as a DSG and with less maintenance issues with a reliable characteristic.

EDIT: Also would like to add that the dual clutch gearbox with paddle shifters are a lot "A lot" of fun and when you buy a cheap enough dual clutch gearbox car you will receive a smaller gearbox repair bill.

[reignofchaos]

It's more a question of the particular gearbox than the tech in general. My favorites are the following:

PDK - nothing else is in this league

Getrag 6DCT4xx and 6DCT6xx variants - used by the Evo x, e92 M3 and for some odd reason my humble v40. This is a wet clutch, fast shifting smooth box that is also reliable.

ZF8 - enough said. This surprisingly isn't that nice in the Jags.

Merc 9spd - very fast smooth box

DQ200 - just for shift speeds. Reliability and smoothness be damned.

DQ250 - wet clutch variant of the infamous DQ200 used in diesels and vRS. Slower and smoother, more reliable

Aisin TG-81-SC - Used in Volvo, Lexus, BMW fwd, very smooth though not as fast as zf8

[StarrySky]

I don't have too much experience with different kinds of ATs. However:

- I quite like the 7-speed DSG in my Octavia (although there are times when it's not doing exactly what I want) and the 7-DCT in the C and A class back home
- I absolutely hated the e-CVT in the Toyota Auris that the test drove

[AtheK]

for some one who has both TSI(Vento) and CVT(Baleno), there is just no comparison, the TSi is miles ahead.

[anilp]

I'm personally a big fan of the torque converter due to its all round maturity. That's the reason why I've ended up ignoring CVT, DCT and AMT options so far during purchase. AMT test drives were horrible in the past (looking at you here especially, Celerio).

However, I had the chance to drive an AMT Tata Nexon extensively, and I must confess that there's potential due to maturity of AMT technology when it's supplemented by a torquey diesel engine. Head nod was hardly present, even in sport mode. I'm now of the opinion that it's too early to write off AMT technology altogether.

[troublemaker]

I would vote for Torque Converter as I have extensively used them:
- Civic 4 speed
- Camry 4 speed
- XUV 6 speed
- C300 7G
- E250 7G

I have used various CVTs on rental cars but never liked it.

[landcruiser123]

I'm a student and I get different cars as rentals in the USA. My observations are also from some cars in India. I've never owned an automatic, so my experiences are purely on the basis of driving them.

1. DSG: I've driven a polo TSI in India and Jetta in the US. Love the quick nature of the gearbox. Very rarely hesitates to downshift if I slam the throttle.

2. TQ: I liked the grand i10 and Ford Focus. This transmission is smooth and its the easiest to drive if you account for the delay in shifting. The Grand i10 loses steam after 70-80 km/h.

3. CVT: The god for fuel efficiency. The best car equipped with a CVT I've driven is a Corolla and the Honda city is almost up there. Other cars like the Baleno, Jazz, and Nissan Versa/Sunny are irritating to drive when you need instant go. Baleno is manageable in Indian highway traffic, the Jazz is bearable. The Nissan Versa/Sunny is irritating in US freeway traffic.

4. AMTs: Horrible. (No offense meant to the owners) I hate the alto AMT, it is simply too jerky. I've heard that AMTs equipped with larger engines are smoother, but I haven't driven any of them.

[Guna]

I haven't driven DSGs and CVTs extensively and hence I have not voted. But wanted to point out couple of things about 'Torque Converters'

• Many of the modern TC based automatics engage 'transmission lock' at certain speed and this will help reducing the power loss.
• TCs can instantly multiply the torque and this is a reason they allow you to climb steep inclines (imagine climbing a slope which also has a speed breaker) effortlessly
• When you are driving in a relaxed way, there is always a small power reservoir getting built, which helps you to get that instant boost with a slight nudge on the accelerator.

One of the drawback would be : AT fluid overheating

[narayans80]

Torque converter with a high powered motor for me, based on 9 months of ownership.

Haven't driven the AMT for comparison.

Have driven the CVT only in a rental Dodge Caliber couple of times. It hardly made its presence (rubber band effect) felt. Didn't have a chance to own/drive one in India.

The DSG is brilliant, from my Vento TSI test drive, I wish there was more to rely than a goodwill replacement.

Originally Posted by Rajeevraj

Based on my experience with the XUV 6 Speed AT (Not sure if Hexa also has the same unit), I found it very close as compared to my Vento TSI

XUV's transmission is from Aisin, Hexa's AT is from Punch Powerglide, France.

Originally Posted by landcruiser123

The Grand i10 loses steam after 70-80 km/h.

The i10 is a pain to drive even in the manual avatar. Owned one for 2 years and can relate to what you are saying. Progress incredibly slow beyond 80 even in a manual. So it'll be all the more lousy in AT.

[aadya]

TQ : Rahul Dravid (Height's of reliability - Failure rates are low - but consumes time and balls)

DSG : Sehwag (Nightmare to opponents and some time to own team mates - hits the ball out of park or throws away the wicket cheaply)

CVT : Laxman (has the potential but stretches too much)

AMT : Yusuf Pathan (Plays IPL well but cannot take for international match)

Search for Sachin+Lara combination continues.

I voted for TQ - Reliability first for normal middle class human beings and DSG for Gambling Gods.