Squeaky noise from DSG gearbox

[Koulou]

Hey folks. Yesterday, I started having an issue with a squeaky sound coming from the DSG gearbox of my 2016 Leon 1.4 EcoTSI 150 FR. The car has ~32K miles on the clock. After some research online, it doesn't seem to be unique to me. The sound comes for sure from the gearbox area, occurs when I pull away (especially if it is uphill) and when the 3rd gear is engaged. This made me think that it might be coming from the odd gear's clutch. I didn't film a video of the noise, but it is the same as this one. I understand that my car has the DSG DQ200 with dry clutches, which might not be the most reliable.

To add some details about the car, I bought it as an approved used from a Seat dealer in March 2022, and the provided warranty ends in ~40 days. I noticed the sound for the first time a few miles after I received the car from its yearly service (a "major" one at this time) and MOT check in a Seat dealer, which makes me sceptical. Could the issue be somehow caused by the dealer during the service and MOT check?

Any ideas or suggestions would be highly appreciated.

Cheers.

 

[Koulou]

Trying to figure out the details about the provided warranty, Seat doesn't seem to separate it from the one provided with new cars here, and DSG clutches seem to be covered, which is good news.

 

[Walone]

I had a similar noise but much louder when my car was fairly new, I only noticed it twice, both times on a fairly hot day moving from standstill on a hill.

 

[Koulou]

Thanks for your response, @Walone. What model is yours? Have you noticed any issues apart from this noise twice?

The issue seems to be related to the temperature indeed. Today I noticed that the squeak starts only after I drive for some time - the gearbox is completely silent when it is cold. I'm afraid this may make troubleshooting trickier.

 

[Walone]

Thanks for your response, @Walone. What model is yours? Have you noticed any issues apart from this noise twice?

The issue seems to be related to the temperature indeed. Today I noticed that the squeak starts only after I drive for some time - the gearbox is completely silent when it is cold. I'm afraid this may make troubleshooting trickier.

I have 2016MY 1.4ACT FR ST, i've only done 32,000 miles in the 8+ years i've had it. Not had any other issues with the DSG, touch wood!!

 

[Koulou]

So... I dropped my car at the dealership this morning, although the squeaky noise has gone. I provided a video showing the noise, although it was not as loud as it had been initially; an engineer who watched it agreed that the noise is indeed obvious and does not sound normal. However, the root cause is not obvious and they are not sure what they will manage to do with the noise gone.

They also said that it may not be covered by the warranty; they will have to contact Seat UK if the issue is diagnosed. Let's see..

 

[Nozza]

So... I dropped my car at the dealership this morning, although the squeaky noise has gone. I provided a video showing the noise, although it was not as loud as it had been initially; an engineer who watched it agreed that the noise is indeed obvious and does not sound normal. However, the root cause is not obvious and they are not sure what they will manage to do with the noise gone.

They also said that it may not be covered by the warranty; they will have to contact Seat UK if the issue is diagnosed. Let's see..

How did you get on with this please?

 

[Koulou]

How did you get on with this please?

Not much has happened.

Reviewing one of my videos, they confirmed that the issue would be fixed by changing the clutch pack, costing ~16 hundred pounds. However, because they could not reproduce the issue while testing the car (as mentioned, the noise had gone) they wouldn't make a claim for the warranty and I'd have to pay. With that in mind, I decided to get back my car without any work done.

Since then, the squeaky noise has come back and gone at random times twice or so. I have extended the Seat warranty for some additional peace of mind, although they did not 100% confirm that the warranty would cover it, I hope I won't have to deal with this issue and I'm considering selling the car.

 

[Nozza]

Not much has happened.

Reviewing one of my videos, they confirmed that the issue would be fixed by changing the clutch pack, costing ~16 hundred pounds. However, because they could not reproduce the issue while testing the car (as mentioned, the noise had gone) they wouldn't make a claim for the warranty and I'd have to pay. With that in mind, I decided to get back my car without any work done.

Since then, the squeaky noise has come back and gone at random times twice or so. I have extended the Seat warranty for some additional peace of mind, although they did not 100% confirm that the warranty would cover it, I hope I won't have to deal with this issue and I'm considering selling the car.

Thanks for the quick reply.

it’s frustrating as I know deep down they know there’s an issue with the clutch pack but just don’t want to do anything about it, I was told that it was not covered under warranty and it’s £2,500 to replace, however it might be worth looking through the small print.

I’m just going to stick with mine and if it gets worse I’ll take it to a specialist to sort.