Erm more likely damage to the clutch i think . If gears damage
think because the gear never mesh up properly . Manual tranny dont
have the lock up mechanism . It all depends on the clutch to
connect the engine to the gearsets . The sound u heard is most
likely that while shifting gear , the gears grind against one
another.
Oh ya u said transfer of torque , that also depends on clutch .
Nothing to do with gears . As long as the gears dont mesh properly
, the car will not move and the gear will get damaged instead
.
The W3E. is not a Tiptronic gearbox . Also , Step/Tiptronic are for
cars and light vehicles only . For heavy vehicle they use semi-auto
trans . 
Btw , the
W3E. is a fully automated gearbox , not semi-auto , not
Step/Tiptronic.
