02 tdi passat Info please

cantona1111

Hello people, Im looking to buy a diesel car and i have seen a few passats and they seem to fit the bill, but i would like to canvas opinion from owners and mechanics about reliability and the automatic gear box, also if you could suggest similiar type cars, maybe im missing something obvious, my budget is about 5k

Thanks

emurphy

cantona1111 wrote: »

Hello people, Im looking to buy a diesel car and i have seen a few passats and they seem to fit the bill, but i would like to canvas opinion from owners and mechanics about reliability and the automatic gear box, also if you could suggest similiar type cars, maybe im missing something obvious, my budget is about 5k

Thanks

main thing to watch for is the leak problem. Water can come in to the footwells on the drivers and passanger side. If this happens its a BIG problem as the ECU (electrics for the car) are underneath.
So feel the carpet see is it wet/damp smells etc...

Also passats have a problem with regulators in the electric windows not as bad as the first problem but they can break regularly can cost 200euro plus each time.
I had a passat in the year and half had 3 regulators break and a leak problem.
My advice is stay well clear of them unless its the newest version as they seemingly have fixed these issues
I bought a Mazda 6 and couldnt recommend it enough.
Jap all the way from now on. I had a passat VW and a Cordoba although its a Seat is essentially VW and again had loads of problems. I'm not alone in this.

PaulKK

The leak problem can be fixed by removing the rubber bung under the battery and making sure the drainage area there is not blocked periodically.

Op, I've had the previous model (B5, basically the same) TDI to the one your looking at for over 2 years, put up 50K miles and have had no major problems with it with 116k miles on it now and its perfect.

I had to replace a split pipe going to the turbo, a ball joint and a link arm but apart from that just regular servicing, which I do myself.
I get about 15K miles out of front tyres and I've still got my first set on the back with 4mm left, and their not crap tyres either.

I find it very comfortable on long journeys and very light on diesel, the boot is massive and theres loads of rear legroom space. As far as I am aware they are built on the A6 platform.

I can't speak about the auto but for 5K I would think you could do a lot worse for a diesel.

By the way I wouldn't recommend a Mazda diesel as the above poster has mentioned, they are reported to be plagued with problems and are best avoided.

cantona1111

Thanks for that, i have heard that there was issues with them, but there are so many on the road, I thought they couldnt be that bad, have u much experience with the mazda 6 diesel, they dont seem to be available with the same spec

$lash

I would have no problem recommending a passat - its worth getting one from the UK with a good spec and lots of history - I used to bring them in on a regular basis. Go for the 130bhp model if you can as the others are a bit lacking in punch.

PaulKK

Think my edit went in after your post cantona, have a read again

Nonoperational

That mazda 6 diesel problem is over stated imho. To say they are plagued with problems is a serious exageration.

cantona1111

PaulKK wrote: »

Think my edit went in after your post cantona, have a read again

I was replying to the post above ya, just a timing issue, should have quoted, sorry, thanks for advice, i cant seem to get away from the passats, seem to be lots of car for the money

PaulKK

gpf101 wrote: »

That mazda 6 diesel problem is over stated imho. To say they are plagued with problems is a serious exageration.

Would you say so yea?

Honest John wrote:

Enough reports of premature clutch and clutch/flywheel failure to state that the model seems to suffer a much higher rate of this than would be normal.

Several complaints of 5th gear failure on diesels. On the 136PS 5-speed diesel, labouring of the engine in 5th (and towing) can lead to a short 5th gear life as the selector pins wear. Not a problem on later 6-speed box.

ECU light of diesels come on intermittently due to Exhaust Gas Recirculation Valves getting gummed up and needing replacing.

75,000 mile service of diesels expensive at around £700 as includes timing belt and tensioner change. Headlamps can be prone to blowing bulbs.

Failure of suction valve in the fuel tank lifter pump of diesels leads to stalling. Faulty batch of valves in 2003 build cars. Mazda has offered 60% of the parts cost.

Numerous reports of crankshaft big end failure on 2000 - 2003 136PS diesels.

Diesels with DPFs suffering contaminated oil and raised oil levels that can lead to engine damage. The dip stick has a Low, Full and X mark. Between L and F is 1cm and then X is 6cm above Full. The handbook says do not fill past X or you could damage the engine, yet unused fuel gets deposited in the sump by the DPF. So crucial to check the oil level at least weekly, and it it starts to rise towards X, book the car in to your Mazda dealer. It may be that an ECU software upgrade can cure this, and the engine will need an oil change anyway.

Some owners believe the car is not suitable for town and/or stop start driving as the build up of particulates cannot be removed and contaminates the engine with diesel fuel, leading to costly engine replacements or 3,500 mile oil changes. More on this problem and how to avoid it in the DPF FAQ answer on this website.

bazz26

OP I'd also look at the Skoda Superb, uses most components and engines from the Passat but has yards of extra space and more car for your money.

An example:
http://www.driving.ie/usedcars/index.cfm?fuseaction=car&carID=200939195320458

bbam

Both the B5 and B5.5 Passats TDI are good cars, I would agree to avoid the standard 90BHP models as they are a little dead...

I put 160K on my first and appart from replacing two air mass meters everything else was standard service....

I've only put about 2K on my 2002 TDI but I love it...

Lots to choose from, I got mine with full main dealer history and 100K on the clock for €4500

Best of luck

cantona1111

Bought an 04 1.9 tdi octavia, 94000 miles, 3 month warranty, clean as a whistle 4900 euro, will be on the rd tomorrow

BlackWizard

I put about 15k on my current Passat 03 TDI. Not many issues with it. I had to replace the clutch though.

Make sure you get one with air conditioning and an arm rest. They are my favourite features