03 TDI passat buying advice

homerjk

Lads, I'm going to look at ’03 1.9 TDi Sportline Passat this evening and was just wondering is there anything I should keep an eye out for? I did a search on the forum and I know I should keep an eye out for the water leaking problem. If its been garaged though is there any other signs of it I could look out for to show there may be a leaking problem? A damp smell probably?

Its got a 100k miles so I know the timing belt should have been changed, should the water pump have been done too?

I appreciate any advice...

Thanks

darragh o meara

homerjk wrote: »

Lads, I'm going to look at ’03 1.9 TDi Sportline Passat this evening and was just wondering is there anything I should keep an eye out for? I did a search on the forum and I know I should keep an eye out for the water leaking problem. If its been garaged though is there any other signs of it I could look out for to show there may be a leaking problem? A damp smell probably?

Its got a 100k miles so I know the timing belt should have been changed, should the water pump have been done too?

I appreciate any advice...

Thanks

Ok,

A few things ; At 100k the timing belt and waterpump SHOULD definitely have been done. If the seller says it has been done make sure it has!! I wouldnt even drive the car if it hadnt cos if it does break it will cost a lot

Water does leak in to the cars and usually a damp carpet or damp smell is a definite give away.

Electric window motors and central locking mechanisms give trouble on the passats so check that they all work perfectly, A replacement is pricey enough.

Check for play in the front wishbones, If your experienced you will feel it in the wheel when your driving it, The tyres will not wear evenly if there is a problem here so check carefully, Also listen out for knocks etc.

The MAF gives trouble in them but it wont run well if its gone so you'll spot this easy enough.

Check for the usual suspects, Creamy oil under oil cap. Excessive smoke on acceleration. Check for previous accident damage

homerjk

Cheers Darragh, thats great.

cadaliac

cv joints are also soft, so listen when going around a roundabout for a clicking noise.

GTE

Oil

If you search my posts I go on about this like a broken record but the type of TDI engine in those cars need a specific oil. If its not used there can be problems with wear on parts of the engine. From the research I have done it seems that those problems are cropping up now or in the next couple of years for those generation engines.

The oil should conform to the VW505.01 standard. So, if you can ask the owner incase they did their own oil changes are maybe give the garage that pops up ON THE FULL SERVICE HISTORY (:p) a buzz and ask what oil they use for those engines.

If the engine has been well maintained it will last you a very long time, if not you could be walking into a lot of problems. Most engine problems that come up from engines that old seem to come down to bad maintenance rather then inherent problems with the engine itself.