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DSG Shift Knobs

GTIgolfmark7

New member
Location
UK
I just ordered the LEYO unit in. The Raceseng units look great, but I dig the overall shape and the leather wrap on these units.

I had a BFI shifter when I had my manual GTI, but I don't like how the entire knob has to be lifted to switch gears in the DSG ones. Plus, I was a little frustrated that the BFI knob wobbled until I put electrical tape between the VW shaft and the BFI one...

https://www.leyo-motorsport.com/leyo-nappa-dsg-shift-knob

Looks nice, the pull up looks like the one in my old subie ?, I don't really mind how it needs to be triggered as its like twice a day, just put it in D and P
Kinda like how the bfi doesnt have a trigger or anything, just looks clean, but after seeing some vids on youtube yesterday I'm definately not going for it with such a hefty price tag.
The more I look at these aftermarket shift knobs the more I appreciate the stock one actually, they all look so off especially with that poor shift boot connection, can't someone just make a nice OEM+ unit?
 

spiker369

on air, don't care
Location
South Florida
Thx mate, that's definately a better option than the stock gti version.

I do like the look of a ball shape with some air leather and silver aluminum, but if the bfi hasn't been improved I think I'll go this route.

I'm not sure if it's a direct swap, but I don't see why it wouldn't be, but you can always put in an audi knob, there are some that are ball shape, S3 and such.
 

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
Installed the Raceseng knob last night. It was a pretty straight forward install. Only thing I had trouble with was removing the stock clamp. That thing did not want to come off.

I was really surprised at the weight of the knob. That thing is really heavy. Heavier than any shift knob than I've used...and I've had all kinds from Momo...to Oettinger...to Abt. This one is the heaviest by far. The shape kinda reminded me of the Abt knob I had in my Corrado. No wonder they said no "slap shifting"...the weight of the knob made the shifter slightly go a bit farther and slightly pop back when I toggled from drive to sport. The weight of the knob also helps the shifter to go back down after pulling up. There is a bit more friction than I would like when pulling up...but that is really splitting hairs...like taking a hair and splitting it twice.

The boot fits pretty good around the adapter piece. There is a small wrinkle that is on one side of the knob. I'm pretty sure I can get rid of it by some re-adjusting of the boot.

Overall I'm pretty happy with it.

Video

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flipflp

Autocross Newbie
Location
PNW
Car(s)
'16 Golf R DSG
Looks great! I have definitely had a few up-shifts stay at the lower gear because the gear lever weight triggered the contacts in the opposite direction because of momentum. I'm 50/50 about that quirk, but unless you only shift with the knob which is strange when you have paddles it's not a big deal. BUT we're idiots then for buying replacement shift knobs we don't use much I suppose. :ROFLMAO:

The only other thing that I'm trying to feel out if I care about, when you pull up to change from park to reverse or drive, or back to park, you're pulling their mechanism up past the pair of inner o-rings. Those o-rings are what make the knob so solid in the lower position and is a great design. Outside of the lower position the knob play feels odd, and is basically the knob floating around a bit on the plastic center rod of the stock shifter. I'd love to know if there are long term concerns for that plastic rod having that much weight and wiggle on it, but until it breaks it's gotta be fine, right? That is hard to explain, hopefully that made sense.
 

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
Lol...a knob for not shifting. All in the name of looks.:LOL:

Haha...I didn't really look at the adapter itself. It was freezing cold outside and I wanted to just get the thing installed. The knob has a slight bit of rotational twist in the down position. I pull up pretty gently on the knob to move it out of gear. I was wondering of the durability of the plastic shaft. It looks like its made of some hard brittle plastic.

So I just went and pulled on my knob:ROFLMAO::ROFLMAO:. Unless I'm trying to twist the knob...there isn't really any movement. Pulling the knob straight up shouldn't put any more undue stress onto the plastic rod.
 
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flipflp

Autocross Newbie
Location
PNW
Car(s)
'16 Golf R DSG
I guess it's just different than my BFI that was always the same feeling, up or down. You can definitely feel the adapter loosen up and have a bit more play when you pull up, but the plastic shaft always had play in it. It just never had someone lifting bloody 3 pounds of knob before, so I've been pretty gentle with it. I don't want to need to be gentle, or have to remember to "be in full control of the knob" during shifting so it doesn't hold a gear instead of shift.

Yep, it's definitely the best looking DSG shifter...but I'm not sure if it's the best it can be as far as feel or function.

I'm going to send some feedback on to Raceseng, since they are a small company they should appreciate it and might even be able to easily apply some changes to the adapter. I do think they should have a DSG specific knob that's no where near as heavy, but that would lose out on the HUGE selection of knobs they offer, or they'd have to pick which styles to make out of aluminum or hollow out more, etc.
 

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
At this point...the only thing is the weight of the knob. I'd like it to be a bit lighter...actually a lot lighter. Lol...it can be use for self defense. I'd imagine it can do some serious damage if I threw it at someone up close.?

Oh...I do like that it came with a cloth pouch. I can slip it over the knob on a hot day...haha.
 

GTIgolfmark7

New member
Location
UK
Installed the Raceseng knob last night. It was a pretty straight forward install. Only thing I had trouble with was removing the stock clamp. That thing did not want to come off.

I was really surprised at the weight of the knob. That thing is really heavy. Heavier than any shift knob than I've used...and I've had all kinds from Momo...to Oettinger...to Abt. This one is the heaviest by far. The shape kinda reminded me of the Abt knob I had in my Corrado. No wonder they said no "slap shifting"...the weight of the knob made the shifter slightly go a bit farther and slightly pop back when I toggled from drive to sport. The weight of the knob also helps the shifter to go back down after pulling up. There is a bit more friction than I would like when pulling up...but that is really splitting hairs...like taking a hair and splitting it twice.

The boot fits pretty good around the adapter piece. There is a small wrinkle that is on one side of the knob. I'm pretty sure I can get rid of it by some re-adjusting of the boot.

Overall I'm pretty happy with it.

Video

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Thx for sharing mate, as long you like it that's all that matters.
What's the point of a heavier knob on an automatic tranny then? Doesn't that harm the shifter mechanism?
Removed my stock one during Christmas to see how it works and if I could refurb it and noticed how light it was, which I think is a good thing if you look at the box underneath, it seems rather fragile with all the electronics.
 

Chogokin

Autocross Champion
Location
So Cal
Car(s)
GTI Sport | Audi A3
I think Flip mentioned it earlier that they use the same knobs on the DSG as the manual trans kits. Weighted knobs help with manuals...especially ones with notchy shifting...an auto...nothing. I remember seeing knobs out there that had inserts to let you customize the weight of the shift knob. The Raceseng knob is the heaviest I've come across. I use the paddles when in manual mode...so the weight doesn't really bother me too much.
 

caleb.mk7

Go Kart Newbie
Location
Denver
Car(s)
2016 DSG
A little off topic, but does anyone else ever forget that they're not in manual mode and try to shift up only to put the car in Neutral and rev out?
I hate that there's not a lockout while in D to prevent this..
 

flipflp

Autocross Newbie
Location
PNW
Car(s)
'16 Golf R DSG
A little off topic, but does anyone else ever forget that they're not in manual mode and try to shift up only to put the car in Neutral and rev out?
I hate that there's not a lockout while in D to prevent this..
Usually half way through a left hand turn, yes.
 

flipflp

Autocross Newbie
Location
PNW
Car(s)
'16 Golf R DSG
Had something very interesting happen this morning, and I can't figure out how else it happened but I took a very hard (for on the street) left turn this morning and suddenly my car was in manual mode. I'm 99% sure the weight of this knob actually shifted from Drive to Manual mode in the turn. If that's the case, that is sorta problematic for anyone that tracks their car. Not sure if it'll flop from manual to drive as easily since there is a bit of a lean, but I'm sure it's possible.

I'm going to reach out to Raceseng and see what they say.
 
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