40k miles on my 2018 VW Golf Sportwagen. DSG service and Haldex (awd). First time DIY for both but looks simple enough. Haldex fluid is VW; DSG is Liquimoly which BTW doesn't actually have the approval but is fine to use...it's "recommended" for and lots of folks use it. Maintenance interval on the DSG is 40k miles and Haldex is 3 years for the first change and every 2 years after that. It's easy enough to do them at the same time. May do UOA on both fluids for kicks as well as virgin.
DSG and Haldex fluid change time
- Thread starter TiGeo
- Start date
Is the Haldex simply a bolt to drain and another to fill?
I am pretty miffed overall when VW dealer recommended changed the fluid at 30k 1.25 years out when wife brought our 2018 Tiguan for oil change and she accepted. Now stuck with 2 years.
I am pretty miffed overall when VW dealer recommended changed the fluid at 30k 1.25 years out when wife brought our 2018 Tiguan for oil change and she accepted. Now stuck with 2 years.
Last edited:
Originally Posted by madRiver
Is the Haldex simply a bolt to drain and another to fill?
I am pretty miffed overall when VW dealer recommended changed the fluid at 30k 1.25 years out when wife brought our 2018 Tiguan for oil change and she accepted. Now stuck with 2 years.
Yes pretty much. However, you also should remove the pump and clean the filter screen.
https://youtu.be/dLbWuHiFJLM
Is the Haldex simply a bolt to drain and another to fill?
I am pretty miffed overall when VW dealer recommended changed the fluid at 30k 1.25 years out when wife brought our 2018 Tiguan for oil change and she accepted. Now stuck with 2 years.
Yes pretty much. However, you also should remove the pump and clean the filter screen.
https://youtu.be/dLbWuHiFJLM
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Scott
I did the Haldex and Bottom fill transmission service on my Tiguan a few months ago. Not a big fan of the transmission fill process as it seems wasteful. Next time I am going to measure the exact amount drained, add the suggested fill and see how much drains after warmup with the stand pipe re-installed. That amount is just a waste of resources and money and I bet it is at least a quart. The Haldex is easy except disconnecting the wiring fastener on top to get the pump assembly off for cleaning. The 800ml of fluid is also pricey. I have two DSG services in about 9 months, I am going to drain and measure and refill through the filter opening instead of bottom fill on those vehicles. Not possible with the Tiguan. I am going to use the Red Line DSG fluid and a Mahle filter for the DSG's. The Tiguan used Toyota 4 fluid.
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Originally Posted by TiGeo
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Good, thanks for verifying. I use ramps and jack stands on my wife's E90 auto. Will do the same for the Passat. FWIW, I use a level on the rocker sills so I get the rake of the car right. I'm going to change the Passat at 20K miles. I will fill from underneath to set the proper level. When people refill with the same amount that drained out, IMO this might not be correct. How does one know if the fluid level was right to begin with?
Related question. Does your DSG take moment to engage reverse during a cold start?
Scott
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Good, thanks for verifying. I use ramps and jack stands on my wife's E90 auto. Will do the same for the Passat. FWIW, I use a level on the rocker sills so I get the rake of the car right. I'm going to change the Passat at 20K miles. I will fill from underneath to set the proper level. When people refill with the same amount that drained out, IMO this might not be correct. How does one know if the fluid level was right to begin with?
Related question. Does your DSG take moment to engage reverse during a cold start?
Scott
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Originally Posted by TiGeo
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Good, thanks for verifying. I use ramps and jack stands on my wife's E90 auto. Will do the same for the Passat. FWIW, I use a level on the rocker sills so I get the rake of the car right. I'm going to change the Passat at 20K miles. I will fill from underneath to set the proper level. When people refill with the same amount that drained out, IMO this might not be correct. How does one know if the fluid level was right to begin with?
Related question. Does your DSG take moment to engage reverse during a cold start?
Scott
Yes, it does delay the reverse engagement sometimes for sure.
Originally Posted by TiGeo
Originally Posted by SLO_Town
Are you going to do the final fluid level adjustment with the engine running?
Scott
Per the DIY, yes. I have an OBDEleven so can monitor the DSG temp. My biggest issue with this service is simply getting the vehicle lifted and level - I'll probalby use my ramps and my driveway as it's sloped vs. the PITA it is to raise the rear end onto jack stands.
Good, thanks for verifying. I use ramps and jack stands on my wife's E90 auto. Will do the same for the Passat. FWIW, I use a level on the rocker sills so I get the rake of the car right. I'm going to change the Passat at 20K miles. I will fill from underneath to set the proper level. When people refill with the same amount that drained out, IMO this might not be correct. How does one know if the fluid level was right to begin with?
Related question. Does your DSG take moment to engage reverse during a cold start?
Scott
Yes, it does delay the reverse engagement sometimes for sure.
Completed both today. About 4 hours total taking my time with breaks etc. Here are my notes:
You will spend more time getting all the battery/intake crap out of the way than changing the filter. I didn't completely remove the battery tray; the clips for the wires on it are a PITA so I just stood it upright against the air duct and had no-drama access.
If you want to do a turbo muffler delete, now is the time. With the intake and battery out this is v. simple/you have plenty of room.
My car wasn't perfectly level - it was "good enough". I used wood blocks for the rear and ramps for the front.
The 14mm allen to remove the DSG drain plug is large, you probably don't have one and will have to Amazon it; no place had one locally.
I [censored] up and forgot to re-install the fill tube after the DSG was completely drained and put the reg drain plug in to warm it up. I was able to get it sorted when I went to do the leveling but did loose more fluid than if I hadn't.
The gravity fill method works well, but you do need to poke holes in the bottom of the containers to get it to drain out. The fifth liter was harder to get in b/c it's overfilling it - I had to hold it up high and work it to get it drained out.
I didn't remove the Haldex pump completely/unplug it. I just removed it and worked it into a position where I could remove the screen while it was plugged in under the car and made sure it wasn't hanging by the wire loom. The torx bolts that hold in the screen are T10, they are small and you may not have this.
The Haldex fluid was pretty clean looking; the pump screen did have some residue on it. I have 40K on mine and the manual says do the first at 3 years (no mileage given) then every 2 years after the first one just like the brake fluid. Seems that it used to be every 30K miles which seems v. excessive for this. Maybe it's b/c the fluid is like brake fluid and is hygroscopic?
The Haldex held ~700ml out of the 850ml bottle so a little left over.
I need shorter allen/Torx sockets - on the Haldex unit it was hard to get what I had in to do the fill plug b/c of pieces of the underbody/shielding.
The Haldex pump won't go all the way in without tightening the bolts due to the new o-rings. You need to do tighten them evenly (some on one, some on the other) to get it to slide in straight.
When you start the car, since you disconnected the battery, you have a host of fault that go away once you drive it. You will still need to do a full scan/clear with OBDEleven/whatever you use once done with your test drive.
When you start the car and put it in r/d to get it off the ramps/out of garage/driveway, it will freak you out b/c it doesn't start to move like normal without giving it gas. Must just be b/c the fluid hasn't circulated throughout the tranny. It's fine after a few stop/gos.
I collected a sample of the old DSG fluid and a virgin sample of the Liquimoly 8100 fluid for analysis at Blackstone, will be interesting to see what it looks like. Didn't bother doing this with the Haldex fluid.
You will spend more time getting all the battery/intake crap out of the way than changing the filter. I didn't completely remove the battery tray; the clips for the wires on it are a PITA so I just stood it upright against the air duct and had no-drama access.
If you want to do a turbo muffler delete, now is the time. With the intake and battery out this is v. simple/you have plenty of room.
My car wasn't perfectly level - it was "good enough". I used wood blocks for the rear and ramps for the front.
The 14mm allen to remove the DSG drain plug is large, you probably don't have one and will have to Amazon it; no place had one locally.
I [censored] up and forgot to re-install the fill tube after the DSG was completely drained and put the reg drain plug in to warm it up. I was able to get it sorted when I went to do the leveling but did loose more fluid than if I hadn't.
The gravity fill method works well, but you do need to poke holes in the bottom of the containers to get it to drain out. The fifth liter was harder to get in b/c it's overfilling it - I had to hold it up high and work it to get it drained out.
I didn't remove the Haldex pump completely/unplug it. I just removed it and worked it into a position where I could remove the screen while it was plugged in under the car and made sure it wasn't hanging by the wire loom. The torx bolts that hold in the screen are T10, they are small and you may not have this.
The Haldex fluid was pretty clean looking; the pump screen did have some residue on it. I have 40K on mine and the manual says do the first at 3 years (no mileage given) then every 2 years after the first one just like the brake fluid. Seems that it used to be every 30K miles which seems v. excessive for this. Maybe it's b/c the fluid is like brake fluid and is hygroscopic?
The Haldex held ~700ml out of the 850ml bottle so a little left over.
I need shorter allen/Torx sockets - on the Haldex unit it was hard to get what I had in to do the fill plug b/c of pieces of the underbody/shielding.
The Haldex pump won't go all the way in without tightening the bolts due to the new o-rings. You need to do tighten them evenly (some on one, some on the other) to get it to slide in straight.
When you start the car, since you disconnected the battery, you have a host of fault that go away once you drive it. You will still need to do a full scan/clear with OBDEleven/whatever you use once done with your test drive.
When you start the car and put it in r/d to get it off the ramps/out of garage/driveway, it will freak you out b/c it doesn't start to move like normal without giving it gas. Must just be b/c the fluid hasn't circulated throughout the tranny. It's fine after a few stop/gos.
I collected a sample of the old DSG fluid and a virgin sample of the Liquimoly 8100 fluid for analysis at Blackstone, will be interesting to see what it looks like. Didn't bother doing this with the Haldex fluid.
DSG service time. 23,391 mi on Liquimoly fluid. Car is at 96,615 mi and it was changed last at 73,224 mi in Feb 2022. This fluid has 9 track days and 2 autocrosses on it. Sample to Blackstone for analysis. This makes 3 changes now. I use the bottom fill method and this change is free from FCP. I also changed the internal drain tube because I heard a crack last time....just finger tight! That part is absurdly expensive for a threaded plastic tube. DSG fluid smells terrible.
Top fill only anymore for me. I've done it both ways, I am responsible for 5 DCT VW's between those I own and those of friends. I initially did bottom fill as per manufacturer and now use the top fill method per many pro mechanics the world over. I have a lift and the tools to do it either way. Top fill is quicker, more precise, less wasteful imo. Removing the battery, tray and other interference is needed either method for filter service . Top fill with drained oil measured and refilled through filter boss is the best imo. I will overfill about 1/2 liter on purpose and bring to temperature usually by driving around and verifying with infrared gun. Sure enough, about 1/2 liter drains and is added to my waste drum.
On this subject, if I may ask: What is a reasonable practice (interval) for the Haldex service?
In the fleet is a Volvo w/Gen II Haldex. Volvo makes no recs on ever changing the fluid, at all. I changed the filter and fluid at 130k when we got the car. Bit of a pain on this car so I’m not eager to do it again - but I’m not wanting to risk undue wear of damaging it. Now the car is getting close to 160k and am wondering what’s a reasonable interval. I do PS and ATF on 30k intervals so that’s why it came to mind.
What do most, let’s say, “caring” but not obsessive/track/autocrossing VW owners do with the same system?
In the fleet is a Volvo w/Gen II Haldex. Volvo makes no recs on ever changing the fluid, at all. I changed the filter and fluid at 130k when we got the car. Bit of a pain on this car so I’m not eager to do it again - but I’m not wanting to risk undue wear of damaging it. Now the car is getting close to 160k and am wondering what’s a reasonable interval. I do PS and ATF on 30k intervals so that’s why it came to mind.
What do most, let’s say, “caring” but not obsessive/track/autocrossing VW owners do with the same system?
I've been doing it about 30K miles...I am closing in on 100K and will do it at 100K for the third time. Will also do front bevel box and r. diff oil again. VW calls for 3 years then ever 2 years to follow the brake fluid schedule in my manual, no mileage stated. Used to be 30K in the 2017 owner's manual. It's so easy to do but I also clean the little screen on the pump which isn't typically serviced...dealer will just drain/fill the fluid.
So you still get under to pull the plug to set the level? If so...why not just bottom fill then? I don't get the top fill attractiveness but whatever you like clearly. It's fast this way. Put car up stands/blocks to level it. Pull belly pan, pull drain plug, pull fill tube...let drain. Go back up top and remove intake/battery/battery tray. Change filter. Reinstall all of that. Put the fill tube tool in the drain plug hole, fill with the 6L of fluid in the kit from FCP, fills *relatively* quickly. Start car (with fill tool/tube still on). Plug in OBDEleven and pull up live data in the trans module. Target temp is 95-104 F (35-40 C). When in the temp range (I start when it hits 95 b/c it rises quickly), pull the tube off fill tool (to drain any remaining fluid in the tube to my pan/not make a mess) and unscrew fill tool....it will be draing and I let it drain until it's spurting/no longer a steady stream, install the plug and new crush washer. Drive. No need to reset the level...it's correct. I also always do all the basic settings for the DSG afterward once I test drive and it's at full operating temp (I believe you need to be at 90 C+ for them to work).
How is top fill more precise? You still are setting the level on the bottom, if it was that precise, no need right? I also have heard it takes a long time to fill through the top vs. bottom.
As stated, I have a lift. It takes 40 seconds to raise and 30 seconds to lower. I could use the Vag on it but since I drive to heat and monitor through bluetooth app and verify with infrared gun the added time for the VagCom is not needed. Contrary to what you believe filling through the filter boss is much quicker than through the bottom fill tube method.Pulling the battery and tray is maybe 5 minutes off and 5 minutes back on. Pays to have chests full of hand/power/specialty tools when working on vehicles. Adding the 6 liters through the bottom as specified ends up wasting more than a liter of DSG fluid, every time. Adding 4.75 liters through the top ends up wasting less than 1/2 liter. I suppose I really don't even need to go back later and verify fill. It is always between 1/4-1/2 liter overfilled. Running a half liter over won't hurt anything and that is time not spent otherwise. I am going to stop doing the verification step from now on after thinking about it a little. Actually the heating up to 90c isn't even called for using the top fill measure method as long as it was correct to start with. Just do the change, check for leaks, start it up and paddle through the gears and drive it. Thanks for your post! I am now going to save even more time and still accomplish the task accurately without wasteful time killers. You can do what you want if it makes you happy.
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