are passats that bad?

[waxgti]

hey everyone,

I am in need of a station wagon and the b6 has caught my eye for its relatively low price for so much car. especially the 3.2 4 motion.

having owned a polo gti i quite like the personality of vw...

Now ive spoken to mechanics and they have said to steer clear of passats especially the 3.2 4 motion. Isnt it the same/similar car as like an a4/a6 3.2 quattro? the audis dont seem to have a bad wrap...

Are passats really that bad? What should I look out for. Should i concentrate my efforts finding an audi or skoda??

thanks!

[Lucas_R]

I cant see why the mechanics are advising you to stay away - the 3.2 and 3.6 V6 motors used in the Passat are pretty solid and reliable. They rarely have issues outside of regular maintenance/servicing needs.

Likewise the gearbox and 4motion drivetrain are also quite solid in most cases. Just make sure if its got the DSG gearbox that its been serviced (expensive service done at 60,000km or 4yrs - whichever comes first) and that it operates smoothly.

The sporty R36 Passat in particular is sought after among VW enthusiasts because they are so well equipped, reliable and look good.

My step sister and her husband have an R36 Passat (b4 model) that they bought new, and have only had an issue with the electric parking brake actuator/solenoid (quite common for these electric park brakes) which was $600 or so, and the swaybar end links on the front were worn out (about $80 for new ones from o/seas).

[kleung]

Isnt it the same/similar car as like an a4/a6 3.2 quattro? the audis dont seem to have a bad wrap...

The A4 3.2 Quattro is a completely different beast - the B6/B7 series Audi A4 (2000-200 shares very little with the Passat 3C (2005-current). The engine is different (longitudinal mounted 90-degree V6 vs transverse-mounted narrow-angle V6), the AWD system is different (Torsen diff in the Audi vs Haldex coupling in the VW, even the underlying platform is different (PL46/PL47 for the Audi, PQ46 for the VW).

The Passat 3.2l V6 actually shares essentially the same powertrain as the Golf R32, and even as an R36 owner, I think the 3.2l Passat makes quite a nice noise.

[volksMuller]

Judge each Passat on it's own merits.....how many k's , service history, knowledge base of the person giving the advice etc etc

[Mikrou]

Hey Wax,

Have been looking at the B6s for some time now and the right one just hasn't popped up.
The stories I've read about the Passat can be quite off putting.

I've started restricting my searches to the FSI models (ie petrol // single-clutch, non-DSG).
From my research, most of the issues and recalls arise from;
1) both the 6-speed, but particularly the newer 7-speed dual clutch (DSG) gearboxes
2) the diesel injectors - which were known to blow and cut power completely
3) the diesel particulate filter - which is expensive to replace and can cause semi-frequent warning lights.

The 4-cyl FSI is the 2 litre petrol, most without the DSG (as far as I can tell) so it sidesteps a few of this issues.
Of course it has it's own issues - of which I'm struggling to find as the net is just littered with DSG/DPF complaints.

The biggest downside is that it just doesn't drive as well as the TDI - The DSG is a dream (when it's working).

[saint70]

Hmmm..strange...i have dsg with 6 speed wet on my passat tdi...no problem. Did update software and since then drivin 60 km on 5-th speed with minimum rpms.
For injectors...just look for conmon real engine and problem solved.
Dpf...my activate if i drive short distance. So before driving i do warmip engine and no problem...
Yes every passat is defferent but this car is dream to drive..
That is my opinion...if i am wrong please correct me..

Sent from my GT-I9305 using Tapatalk

[Mylotian]

Hope not I just brought one and seems to run AOK.

[Amalgam]

Hi Wax,

All marques and models will have some issues. This is what happens when you build millions of machines with thousands of parts.

Reading through the forums, the 3.2/3.6L DSG Passat seems to be very reliable. As with all cars, please check that the maintenance has been CORRECTLY performed. VWs are very fussy about the oil, coolant and other fluids used. Depending on age check that the DSG has been serviced and the timing belt and water pump has been replaced.

If the car has been properly serviced the dealer or even better, a VW specialist it should be reliable. If it has been serviced by the local
K Mart/ AutoMasters/ UltraTune or Joe the local mechanic, I would leave it well alone.

[Darks RS]

Agree with Amalgam.

Having owned a 3.2 4mo, a tdi CC and the current owner of an r36, I can say that they are reliable. As with any car the services need to be followed.
My 4mo had the handbrake problem (fixed under warranty), the cc had the seal issue and a random acc fault (fixed under warranty) and the r36 had a farked Dsg, which was wholly replaced/ funded by VWA.
The R36 was fixed by VWA out of good will as it had complete VW service history and warranty out by 6 months. Total cost of repair was more than I paid for the car (and I didn't get it that cheap). In saying that, 3 Passats and only 1 real problem. Not too bad in my book. I've had other cars where it would have a major problem every month..

[waxgti]

awesome comments. thanks everyone

did the 3.2 ever come out with non dsg gearbox? or was it only the petrol 2.0T that had no dsg? if the gearbox fails what is involved mechanically and cost wise in replacing fixing it?

sorry bout the questions but what are wet/dry dsg.. probably should just do a search right!

[Mikrou]

Hey Wax,

No need to apologise - it can be daunting knowing where to start.

The wet DSG is a 6-speed and the more reliable one.
It's called 'wet' as it's bathed in oil.
As I understand it the issues with this one tend to come with the higher kilometre models as the clutch was sold in as never requiring an oil change, and thus the associated buildup could ruin the unit (more than happy to be corrected on this point).

The dry DSG is the 7-speed.
The clutch was designed not to need oil for whatever reason.
This lead to a few issues which I haven't really looked in to too deeply.

Accompanying the DSG is a mechatronics unit which is also known to be faulty.
So look for that.

In any case, the wet clutch appears to be much more reliable than the dry clutch.

I don't think the 4WD B6s had anything other than a DSG - but more than happy to be corrected as most of my research was in to the 2 litre TDIs/FSIs

Cheers!

[Guest001]

The injector issue was supposedly fixed by a recall of the faulty Siemens ones.

Yes a search on here for DSG issues will give you a weeks reading.

The later mechatronics were changed due to an oil issue Also seen in a search of Mechatronics

[kleung]

did the 3.2 ever come out with non dsg gearbox? or was it only the petrol 2.0T that had no dsg?

It was only the 2.0T 147TSI that had the standard 6sp torque converter auto. All other autos were DSGs in the B6 range.

if the gearbox fails what is involved mechanically and cost wise in replacing fixing it?

Mechanically, the gearbox is generally pretty good. If there is a failure, it's usually the mechatronics unit.

There's some pricing details here, but the information is a couple of years old.

The wet DSG is a 6-speed and the more reliable one.
It's called 'wet' as it's bathed in oil.

The dry DSG is the 7-speed.
The clutch was designed not to need oil for whatever reason.

Just to clarify a bit further - the main difference between the two transmissions is the clutch packs - with the 6sp DSG, the clutch packs are bathed in oil, while the 7sp DSG uses dry clutches. Both transmissions still require oil for the hydraulics - the 7sp DSG just requires less. It also means that the 6sp DSG is able to deal with waste heat a bit better than the 7sp DSG.

I don't think the 4WD B6s had anything other than a DSG - but more than happy to be corrected as most of my research was in to the 2 litre TDIs/FSIs

Correct - only the two 6 cylinder models got 4-MOTION in Australia, and they both had 6sp DSGs.

The service interval for both gearboxes is every 60,000km or 4 years, whichever comes first.

[Darks RS]

Not sure if the r36 is any dearer, but my local dealer (upon enquiring re service history) quoted a price of $22k for brand new Dsg, brand new mechatronics Unit and who knows what else paid for by VWA. The lady reading the history was a bit taken back. The owner had no idea what it cost as he was a bit peeved that it happened at all.

Hi Wax,

All marques and models will have some issues. This is what happens when you build millions of machines with thousands of parts.

Reading through the forums, the 3.2/3.6L DSG Passat seems to be very reliable. As with all cars, please check that the maintenance has been CORRECTLY performed. VWs are very fussy about the oil, coolant and other fluids used. Depending on age check that the DSG has been serviced and the timing belt and water pump has been replaced.

If the car has been properly serviced the dealer or even better, a VW specialist it should be reliable. If it has been serviced by the local
K Mart/ AutoMasters/ UltraTune or Joe the local mechanic, I would leave it well alone.

[Sloth]

Reading through the forums, the 3.2/3.6L DSG Passat seems to be very reliable. As with all cars, please check that the maintenance has been CORRECTLY performed. VWs are very fussy about the oil, coolant and other fluids used. Depending on age check that the DSG has been serviced and the timing belt and water pump has been replaced.

3.2L doesnt have a timing belt, it is a chain.

A common issue on pre 2008 3.2L (and 3.6L overseas) models was the wrong tensile oil pump bolt from factory backing out / loosening and interfering with the timing chains which nuked alot of engines. Read up on this issue as it would be the most costly issue if it happened. There was a recall in the US for this this issue but not hear in Australia.

VWVortex.com - **Official 24V 3.6L Engine (oil pump bolt) failure thread**

As for DSG failures, VW have a mechatronics unit exchange program, I don't know the pricing for the longitudinal 3.2L engines but I do know of a non dealer mechanic in Sydney who sourced the parts for a 3.2L R32 from VW for around $2800ish.