| Author | Message | ||
     Pkforbes87 |
Early last year I got a job requiring a large amount of travel, most of which ends up being spent driving my personal vehicle. My vehicle at the time was on it's last leg, with a terrible head gasket leak, so I bought myself a 2013 VW Passat TDI SE with the 6-speed manual. This thing blows my mind every minute of every mile. I picked her up last March, slightly used with 32k miles, and am currently sitting at a little over 96k. In that time, I haven't had to do anything but change the oil, filters, and DEF. I'm probably most impressed with this car in mountainous terrain. It has climbed everything from Mt. Washington in New Hampshire (12% grade for 8 miles) to the San Gabriel Range north of Los Angeles, and never breaks a sweat. I thoroughly enjoy setting cruise on 70 in 6th gear and passing Priuses (Prii?) gasping along with their A/C turned off. 800+ miles to a tank has me pretty spoiled too. I fully expect this to be a 500,000 mile car and have no complaints, other than the stereo is a little disappointing. Really, VW? All that effort put into very solid fit and finish but you couldn't make the thing sound impressive on the inside? Heading back to Missouri, via the Dragon, after two weeks in the northeast last fall:  Some cost-to-own figures: (tracked with the "Road Trip" app on iPhone)  Fuel economy over the last >60k miles. The dip is when cold weather arrived in MO. Then I ran away from all that mess by moving to CA.   Every location I've filled up with this car. I've driven through 44 states with her so far. Will likely reach MT and WY within the next few months. I never got to MI or FL, and will likely never reach AK or HI.  (Message edited by pkforbes87 on May 27, 2015) | ||
| Pwnzor |
Dude... sweet write up, thanks for that. I'm starting to look around at fuel efficient cars, and this helps a lot. | ||
| Dave |
In 2012, I bought my 2011 TDi Sportswagen used off craigslist. Previous owners only had it for 9 months. 90k on it now and I really like it. ...so we got a Golf TDi for my wife last spring. We both commute so not having to fill up twice a week is a real plus. DAve | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Hope you guys arent buying the ones with automatic transmissions. | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
Pwnzor, I can't imagine a car being cheaper to operate than this is. My last two were Saturn S-series cars and although they both got great fuel economy, they didn't get it at 70+ mph, or offer creature comforts like the Passat. Now if we could just get the Passat Wagon back in the states.. I do have a manual-recommended timing belt replacement coming up at 130k miles but a local independent VW shop quoted me $950 for the job. I haven't personally quoted the work from a VW dealer but have heard it can run around $1800. Some more photos, because she's such a beautiful machine: Coke plant in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Clear Lake, across the street from NASA in Houston, Texas.  A couple taken while wandering around southern New Hampshire.   About halfway up Mt. Washington in norther New Hampshire.  Bonneville Salt Flats.  Four Corners. I believe this is looking toward Utah.  Craters of the Moon in Idaho.  South-central Washington, looking across the Columbia River into Oregon.  (Message edited by pkforbes87 on May 27, 2015) | ||
| B2tomtom |
TDI's seem to be hit or miss. I have an 06 BRM Jetta 5 speed that has given me a lot of headaches. I bought it with 150k on it and have changed the cam, clutch, temp control actuator, egr valve, sealed a leak on the egr cooler bushing, torn the transmission apart (due to previous owner who dropped a part inside the trans when changing axle seals), changed a door latch, and both front door harnesses (original harnesses are too short from the factory). Unfortunately from what I have read on the forums all of this is normal issues with the BRM series. So I am really curious what it has lurking since I just passed 205k. I would say my experience has been on the extreme side but the general consensus on the tdi club forum is that the VW's do not make a good economy car. If you have one and perform your own maintenance, VAG COM is a must have to diagnose any issues. I love the way the car drives and I average almost 50 mpg out of it but it is definitely a maintenance intensive car and requires special fluids that meet certain VW specs (model specific). That being said, I don't plan on getting rid of my Jetta in the hopes that I have all the issues ironed out. If anyone is interested in getting a TDI I suggest checking www.tdiclub.com | ||
| Aesquire |
Hope you guys arent buying the ones with automatic transmissions. Issues with those? Mine is fine. I don't manually shift it much. DSG Twin Clutch trans. '09 Sportwagen TDI. Replaced exhaust valve, broke all the springs while camping on PA back roads.... Other than that, Been good to me. 30 mpg in the winter, 36-40 rest of the year, better on trips. 40 mpg @ 70 mph. Cozier than the Passat, but it's the GTI chassis underneath, and with 265 ft. lbs of torque, it cruises through hills in places like West Virginia without downshifting from 6th. I'd match chassis feel on par with a BWM, better than some, not as good as a M5. The shift into "sport" mode doesn't change the suspension, unlike the M5, just reprograms the trans. Could use launch control. Does not purr, more a quiet growl. Might not get another one, but I like this one. | ||
| Figorvonbuellingham |
Yeh they are known for failure. Thats why second hand tdi's with autos are so much cheaper then manuals. Timing belt isnt too bad if you are handy. There are timing locks on the injection pump and flexplate. Should be a tool you can buy or make to lock the overhead cams in place. Once all that is locked down you just pull the belt and replace it. Getting to all of hat is 80% of the battle. Now this is for diesels in general so the process may vary on newer model cars. I do the belt on my BMW 524td with no issues. | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
I enjoy the peace of mind that comes from working on my own machines, but one look under the hood of this TDI had me convinced that anything more than routine maintenance is someone else's job. | ||
| B2tomtom |
If you get the VAG COM cable the cars are very good at providing a ton of information. It actually allows you to run a bit check on all systems of the car and will give you information on any failures, if its intermittent or a hard failure, how many times it failed and in some cases it will tell you if its mechanical or electrical. It is definitely a must have for diagnosing these cars. | ||
| Etennuly |
Wow! I thought I was anal-retentive on checking mileage on my vehicles! You carry it so far beyond me annoying my wife that I am going to show her this thread. I have always tried to instill in her that the best early warning vision you have about anything mechanical beginning to fail on your vehicle, is an accurate mileage check. I once found a universal joint that was beginning to fail by a .02 drop in gas mileage, it was not yet making noises but it was dry of grease and running hot. I had a Passat a few years back that I bought wrecked. It was a gas 4 cylinder turbo automatic. Probably one of the smoothest, fastest, quickest, best mileage 4dr sedans I have ever had. Had it not been so quick and easy to sell I would have liked keeping it for a while. It was incredibly smooth and quiet in all respects. | ||
| Mr_grumpy |
Vag-com cables are cheap as chips on ebay & you can find free software downloads too. | ||
| Hughlysses |
I have an 06 BRM Jetta 5 speed that has given me a lot of headaches. I bought it with 150k on it and have changed the cam, clutch, temp control actuator, egr valve, sealed a leak on the egr cooler bushing, torn the transmission apart (due to previous owner who dropped a part inside the trans when changing axle seals), changed a door latch, and both front door harnesses (original harnesses are too short from the factory). B2tomtom- I have had mostly better luck with my 2006 purchased new in 2007. I'm at ~140k miles now. I have read a good bit about cam failures but I wonder if this wasn't caused by using non-factory spec'ed oil. VW had very specific oil requirements for this engine and the only place I could find oil meeting it locally was at the dealer. I've since changed to Amsoil with no issues after 20k miles. Only other issue of note I had was one of the radiator cooling fans quit working at about 40k miles. That was a fairly easy fix; required removing and disassembling the motor and sanding the brushes to provide more clearance. 100k miles later it's still working fine. My main complaint is the falling down headliner. Hopefully I'll get to that this summer. I do currently have the EGR cooler valve bushing issue you mention. I attempted a fix with epoxy about 20k miles ago but it did not hold up. I'm gonna try to fix it again at the next oil change. How'd you fix yours? | ||
| B2tomtom |
Hughlysses- I think mine was a bit of a lemon or neglected car by the previous owner. They probably were not using the 505.01 VW spec oil. But I have heard even when using this oil you should still inspect the cam every 10k. I upgraded to the Colt stage 2 billet cam. I am still leary about running a non 505.01 spec oil so I have been running the lubro moly and haven't seen any issues. This oil happens to be available at NAPA. I performed the epoxy repair on my bushing using quick steel but removed the actuator and put a lot of epoxy on there. I secured the arm in place by loctiting a bolt where the actuator mounts and safety wired the arm in an open position before applying the epoxy. It has been holding together for the past 10k. I couldn't justify spending all the cash and time on a new EGR cooler that would just fail again. My headliner has started to pull up a little in the back corners. A word of advice if you go after CV axle seals on the transmission. They have a hat shaped bushing with a threaded whole in the center that sits in the spider gears. Unfortunately, there is no positive retention for these. They are a pain to get in with the transmission apart but if you look at it wrong they just fall out. I think the previous owner had changed the seals and knocked it loose in mine which I discovered when I went to change the seals and found the bolt just pushed in and a hole in my bell housing. I think my car is just showing its age with 206k on her now. But it seems to be improving in reliability. Has your air bag light come on yet? They have a known issue for high resistance on one of the igniters. Also if your door switches start acting funny look into the door harnesses. VW sells a replacement that is over an inch longer to keep the wires from being pulled apart. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Thanks for the tips. Did you secure the valve open or closed? I understand the headliner is basically a factory-made piece- a big piece of molded hardboard with the headliner already bonded to it. The trick is in getting the new one into the car without screwing it up. I've seen a how-to thread on TDIforum.com (or maybe it was a youtube video). It doesn't look like THAT bad of a job and would save ~$250 compared to having a shop do it. Has your air bag light come on yet? They have a known issue for high resistance on one of the igniters. Also if your door switches start acting funny look into the door harnesses. VW sells a replacement that is over an inch longer to keep the wires from being pulled apart. No air bag issues yet but the remote locking is not consistent so I figure it might be the driver's side wiring harness. So far it's not worth with the trouble of replacing it but maybe one day. My car was supposedly a "2006.5" model, actually built in 2007 as extended run of the 2006 model year. VW didn't have the new generation TDI engine ready for 2007 so they built more 2006's to satisfy the need. I've been pretty happy with it.. | ||
| B2tomtom |
I secured it open. I think my headliner is just separating from the cardboard and I might be able to bond it back together. Do you have the VAG COM cable? A quick scan would give you an idea of what is going on in there. I love mine and she seems to be doing significantly better after a lot of TLC. | ||
| Hughlysses |
The headliner cloth is foam backed and that's glued to the board. The foam disintegrates and the cloth falls down. Supposedly the cloth can't be re-glued as the foam residue prevents the glue from sticking. | ||
| Aesquire |
I've tried hypodermic needles & glue, and just about every trick you can think of, and Hughlysses is right. It's a replace job, and can't be fixed and not look like Hades, and then fall again in a week. Replacing the OLD style headliners, with wire ribs and no backing, took a lot of talent. I admire the guys who can work with cloth and make it look good, unfortunately not one of my talents. I'm a competent helper to replace a convertible top, but suspended cloth headliners are a pain. New style just takes some patience. It's not even time consuming, you just have to be appropriately gentle as you muscle the panel into place. By all means watch a video first, or pay to have a pro do it. There are tricks. | ||
| B2tomtom |
Thanks, hopefully it holds on for a while longer. Its just starting to go at the back edges. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Mine pretty much looks like hell. It's like the cloth has shrunk. It's pulled back to show the backing board at the rear corners, around the roof "console", at the C pillars, and it's drooping in the center, which I temporarily fixed with some "Help!" plastic screws. One thing about the OLD style headliners, they never fell down! | ||
| Pkforbes87 |
Etennuly, I really don't put that much effort into tracking this stuff. The app is very self-sustaining. I tell it how much insurance costs and set that as a monthly expense. (yes - these totals even include insurance) Oil+filter costs are set to recur every 10k miles, so I even get a reminder. As soon as I actually do the maintenance, I mark the recurring expense as completed so it adds the cost to my totals and starts another 10k mile countdown. Every 20k I have an additional recurring expense set for fuel filter and cabin air filter. I manually enter the $13 bottle of DEF, but that could be set up as recurring too. Mine has been a little inconsistent in needing it though, so I just do it manually. (anywhere between 10k and 15k miles before getting the 1500mile warning on the dash) Locations are automatically logged every time I add a fuel stop. Along with all the dates and averaging. All I have to do is remember to log the odometer reading, total cost, and total gallons filled at each fuel stop. When I had an Android, I did the same thing in an app called FuelLog. I don't think it had quite as much functionality, but it was free. I don't recall seeing a free option for iPhone when I started using it. I think the app was $4.99 when I got it. It's up to $6.99 now. |
