Communte in the truck is killing my bank account. Another motorcycle would be ideal but there are too many idiots on the road in Colorado. Thinking about buying a Jetta TDI (or Passat). Any of you own or have owned one and wouldn't mind passing a little advice my way? I'm looking at 1998, 1999, 2000 with about 125k-200k on them. Any reliability issues I should be aware of? Anything I need to look for when shopping? What about maintenance/cost of ownership?

Any advice/info would be helpful.

Thanks

 

I really like my Jetta TDI it is a 06.5 model and I got it new last fall
Oil changes are 10,000 miles and they require a timeing belt every 90-100,000 miles. That is something that is a must from what I here.

 

I have a 2005 Passat TDI and I like it a lot. It does not get the mileage of a Jetta but I think it's a little better car. It has more power and better suspension with a more room.

VWs are a little quirky and you can learn a lot at TDIclub.com

I get 40 MPG on trips and have averaged about 35 or so over the 45,000 miles I've had it. Short runs in town average about 25. The power is fine with lots of low end torque. I wish mine was a stick because the tranny is controlled by some fuzzy logic.

All things considered It's a very nice driving car. I would definately buy it again.

Some mods I'll get around to sooner or later are tranny re-programming, EGR delete, and better shocks. I don't think I'll bomb it but guys do and the engines will take it.


John

 

Stick with the last generation jettas or earlier. The new one do not get near teh mileage of the older. My Jetta gets honest hand calculated 45-55MPG on every tank.

little 5spd gets up and moves just fine for a whopping 90HP

Stay away from autos if possible as they have some problems...

Would have to sell my truck if it wasn;t for this little awesome car!

 

Thanks for the input guys. I've done a bit of research on the web and most of what I read is positive but it is nice to get some unbiased advice/input as well. I need the truck but using it as a daily driver is getting too expensive.

As for the power on the little v-Dubs, how are they on uphills? I work outside of Denver (elevation 5200), but live in the hills (elevation 8600). I love passing everyone on the climb home in the Ram and am curious as to what these little cars will be like. I plan on test driving one early next week to see if I like it. And yes, I realize there is a big difference between 350hp and 100hp!!! I'm only looking at the TDI's because I'd kill a gasser. The wife drives a Subaru Impreza and I hate the lack of power on the climbs!!

Thanks again for your input.

 

Dad had a 2000 TDI Golf 5 speed (4 door). The pump was tweaked a little, and he had the MAF sensor replaced, 100000 on the factory one and it didn't work as well, big difference after he replaced it! Hand calculated he got between 40 and 45 around town depending on how hard he drove it, and 50 solid on the highway. Very reliable little car, I would drive one! From what I understand, there not that hard to bomb either

 

I get from 45 - 48 mpg out of mine. No HUGE hills around here in the flatlands, on the decent hills pulls fine. 195K on the ticker, and she still runs great. Do some searching and you can find a deal, it took me awhile and I had to do some work to it , but I could dang near double my money on it if I wanted to sell it!

 

The Passat is 137 HP and it will pass just fine. This is a different engine than the Jetta. All hills are in OD and passing at the most requires a drop to 4th for a quick pass. I don't know how fast it will go but it will cruise at 90 with plenty left. Aside from the sluggish shifting the tiptronic feature is nice and locks it in gear in the mountains or forces a higher gear when reving is not needed.

These are not the old '70s VW diesels. I could loan it to someone and they would never know it was a diesel. I like the diesel character but the point is it starts and drives like a lively gasser but with little more bottom end torque and a little less top end power. Tuned like a mini Cummins.

John

 

I have the DSG auto and I am not a auto fan but that is the finest auto I have ever driven, and after haveing it I wouldn't consider a manual!!
The VW manual has a Dual Mass Flywheel and it is junk just like the ones in the Dodge Ram

 

And the 2001-2004 autos are lucky to make it to 100k without a rebuild... Sluggish and worth a solid 5-7MPG LOSS over a manual... Definitely a manual fan here. There is a reason the manual trans are harder to find and generally more expensive, they are much more desireable!

I understand the new autos are much better than the old, but are still worth a considerable loss on MPGs.. I purchased the car for economy, why throw it down the toilet on a slushbox... IMHO

 

This might help: www.tdiclub.com Great forums, with most of your questions probably answered before you post (they are big on wanting you to search before posting, because its big enough that type of question is probably already answered)

 

Thanks again for the valuable info. I'll check the TDI forum as well to continue my research.

Now I'm off to the shop to install the leveling kit in the Cummins!!! Just can't stop spending money!!

 

Will have to agree with you as my cousin had his go out and he had a heck of a time getting VW to replace it under warranty. He drive the heck out of it and still gets 42 mpg and would bet it can get a few more if he drove it slower.

 

The DSG auto if I remember right are rated at 1 mpg less then the manual transmission! And if you drive the two back to back the manual seems sooo slow!!

You can still find new 06 TDI with manuals on autotrader.com the less desireable DSG's have been sold out for some time
I remember looking at a few Jetta's I think it was around 04 and yes their was a big mpg differance between the auto and manual.

 

What it is 'rated' at and what people see out of them are completely different things... Lots of good info in TDI club ... Anyways, good cars and the increased economy has let me keep my truck!