2005 Passat 1.9tdi

Niallers__M

Hi all,

Just wondering on people's experiences with 2005/6 passats. I see plenty on done deal at what look like reasonable prices but I'm also reading mixed reviews.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

Niallers

Focus_sligo

Good enough car, however like most VW cars they are over rated and overpriced IMO. 05 will have issues with the parking brake button. Good car for big miles. We have a taxi we service with near 500000 Kms on it and still going

Victor Meldrew

We had a 2006 comfortline 1.9tdi. Very spacious. Very heavy. Very dull to drive. Also big and annoying to park. Felt high quality inside.

If you want a big safe car then they are great. But not a drivers car. So, very good for what it is.

166man

If avoid them, the petrols of that vintage are slow slow slow and the diesels are trouble trouble trouble. Parking brake issues are all too common too.

They're cheap for a reason.

joefish1

Have a 2005 new shape one this past few years now with 175 miles on it and never gave me any trouble with parking brake or the button ... Seriously reliable but as stated they are a big big car with a mere 105 bhp so they are not going to snap your neck with speed but I think most people buy them for the same reason I did; reliability and safety and so far she is doing both very very well ... I would buy one again no problem

ba_barabus

Had one and found it to be utter rubbish reliability wise.

Underpowered, leaden to drive and fitted with a sqeektastic dashboard.

Comfortable however and felt solid.

Never again however will I have one.

_Kaiser_

Had a 06 2.0 TDI with the DSG auto gearbox and racked up almost 200,000 km in my 5 years with her (244,000 when I traded it in recently) and never had anything serious go wrong with it

- The infamous injector issue on the PD 2.0 TDI engines is covered by a VW recall so no longer an issue really
- Parking brake issues: In the 5 years I had it one of the callipers failed but it was more an inconvenience until I got it fixed
- Fuel pump died on me one morning alright but with that mileage I'd consider it wear and tear. Was also the only time the car stopped dead
- Aside from that it needed 2 timing belts, tyres, suspension bits and a flywheel (all of which are wear and tear items really)

However, I serviced it on time at a main dealer (at one point it was getting serviced every 3/4 months as I was doing 1000 km a week) which wasn't cheap but I do believe that's why I didn't have any of the horror stories that you read on the internet .. which of course only represent a fraction of the total cars out there.

The 2.0 TDI is definitely the better choice though as it is a big heavy car (personally I don't think they should have even been offered with the 1.9 TDI - it was fine in my previous B5.5 Passat but the B6 is a different story).
Yes it can be a pain to park as the boot line is very high and things like those metal poles that line car parking spaces disappear long before you reach them, but parking sensors can be retrofit for around €200 these days if it's a big issue

All in all a very comfortable car IMO that's well able for the mileage and the interior wears extremely well. I regularly got compliments on how fresh mine looked. Also has a huge boot and plenty of room in the rear seat area.

Honey-ec

I still have mine. 05 B6 1.9 TDi, BKC engine, I've 190,000km on the clock at the mo.

As Kaiser has pointed out, the horror stories you read online represent only a tiny fraction of these cars. It's human nature - people are far more likely to go to the trouble of complaining rather than praising.

Anyway, my personal experience:

- at 105bhp, it's not going to have you glued to your seat as you take off from the lights, but she's torquey enough for perfectly pleasant everyday driving. Listening to people here, you'd swear they're all driving the Nurburgring on a regular basis and anything less than a 3 litre supercharged engine isn't worth buying.

- Flywheel went at about 150k kilometres. Cost me about €400 to fix.

- Never had any trouble with the parking brake. Some of them do have issues with the electronic steering column lock, but I got this done on goodwill by VW

- I find her ridiculously easy to park. Yeah, she's long, but she's not the Exxon Valdez, like. Once the space is physically big enough for the car, you'll be in in less than a minute

- fuel economy is good. Not amazing, but good enough. I drive hard enough, and I'll get about 7 litres per 100km. On an 8 year old car, I don't think that's too bad.

At the end of the day, it really depends on what you want out of a car. if you want a big, comfy, diesel bus that won't give you a lot of trouble (unless you're very unlucky), then I'd definitely buy one. If you're looking for a monster that you can throw around the road and feel every bump and pebble on the surface while you do so, then you'll hate it.

MugMugs

Wasn't the B5 still around for a good whack of 2005?

Which are you looking for OP? B5 / B6?

Honey-ec

MugMugs wrote: »

Wasn't the B5 still around for a good whack of 2005?

Which are you looking for OP? B5 / B6?

I'm guessing B6, seeing as he said 2005/06

Niallers__M

Hi Guys thanks for all the replies. Some good info there and its good to know some people have positive experiences with the B6.

And yes it was the B6 i was referring to but there is a B5 after catching my on donedeal and i was wondering what people thought?

http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/passat-05-tdi-highline-chrome-pack-leath/4751524

I hate the way people cover the reg up!! Anyway to me this seems a bit pricey. I love the B5 though. Had a '02 130bhp for a number of years and it was a brilliant car. What are peoples thoughts on the price? Where should the price realistically be at?

Thanks for all the comments.

FrontDoor

Niallers__M wrote: »

http://cars.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/passat-05-tdi-highline-chrome-pack-leath/4751524

Where should the price realistically be at?

A number starting with a 3 I'd imagine.

A B6 passat is a far better car to drive than that yoke though.

Honey-ec

FrontDoor wrote: »

A number starting with a 3 I'd imagine.

You have to admire his neck. Jaysis.

MugMugs

UK import with low mileage..... Yeah, no.