Would you buy VW again?

[m4tild4]

Hi all - Im in the market for a new family car and keep going back again and again to the Passat 125TDI Wagon as something that seems to tick a lot of boxes for me. For just under $40K I'm finding 2011/2012 models with pretty low KM's that have all the mod cons you would really want. Im someone who tends to buy and hold my cars, so the TDI seems to be the better long term fuel conscious option - though my heart would really love the V6.

So my real concern is...I'm looking to buy a car that may only have 12 months warranty left and with my 'buy and hold' approach to cars I will probably have it for 5+ years. I have a few family members who own Golfs and Polos that haven't had any real trouble, but I read a lot about problems people have experienced with the DSG, Injectors etc etc - big $$ problems on a car out of warranty.

From what I have seen in the VWW forum so far, you all seem to have a healthy 'call a spade a spade' attitude, so I'm very keen to hear from existing owners - would you buy VW (and a Passat) again? Should I be buying and selling the vehicle within the warranty period? Apart from being vigilant with servicing, what else can I be doing to avoid BIG $$ issues in the past? Any other words of wisdom?

Sorry for the war and peace post - I'm keen to get some honest feedback to (hopefully) help clear up my confusion...

[booba]

Yes, 2012 Passat V6 owner here, car only about 2 years old and 30000km. Also just bought a 2014 golf r even though previous GTI has a failing of cam bucket, cam shaft etc but i still went back.

[saint70]

I have 2009 tdi passat with common rail engine and 6 wet speed dsg. Now i got 120k and after another 100k i will go for another passat without any doubt....probably i will go for cc edition
Like any cars, my passat got few problems but nothing major like pd injector or 7 speee issues....still, i beleive germans makes best diesel car...so, i would not change to mazda or kia or something else....this is just my opinion.
I am way out of warranty...so, unless you got money so can cbange car every 5 year, do not worry. Diesel engine is not so easy to brake...i am not sure about petrol bur every vw which i had got over 300k easy...
Minor things like tail light or interior staff somethjng has to change..even so, you can get parts overseas cheap...
Sorry for my language, english is my second language...

[Creampuff]

Love the VW, my Jetta has 50,000 Kms..no problems...and I will continue with VW from now on!

[dopey]

I have had 3 new VW's since 2009 and my current one (2011 Passat 125) will be my last. Nice cars, but the after sales support in my experience has been atrocious in the last couple of years. No thanks, I'll be going back to Japanese next.

[saint70]

My wife got outlander....brand new but maintenance cost is high...part prices is almost high like vw. Now, she want to change...we see it.
I do not think japanese is something beter in term maintence and service...maybe i am wrong.

[Amalgam]

Hi M4tild4,

We own a 2012 125TDI wagon with 28,000km and it doesn't have any major issues. It consumes about 600ml of oil every 7500km and there is a minor coolant loss that will be investigated at the 30,000km service.

My input would be that european diesels need a little bit more TLC than a petrol Toyota. You need to

1/ use the correct oils. 504/507 VW Approved
2/ there is some discussion on the brand of diesel to use
3/ DPF maintenance issues. The need for regular long high speed runs to get the DPF up to temperature to do a passive regeneration.
4/ the 6 spd DSG has proven to be reliable
5/ the current injectors seem OK. It was the older PD injectors that were problematic.
6/ you can purchase an extended warranty from any dealer while the car is still covered by the original warranty.

As with any marque, you may end up with a lemon.

[kleung]

I have a few family members who own Golfs and Polos that haven't had any real trouble, but I read a lot about problems people have experienced with the DSG, Injectors etc etc - big $$ problems on a car out of warranty.

There's always the option of extending the manufacturer's warranty to 6 years to give you a little extra peace of mind. As others have pointed out, any marque can have the occasional lemon. Personally, I'm still not convinced that VW are significantly less reliable than other marques. We've had 5 VWs in the family, 4 of which are still in the family, none have given us any trouble. Early on, my sister's MkV Golf had a slight rattle in the exhaust caused by one of the cats, which was replaced under warranty with no fuss at its first service.

would you buy VW (and a Passat) again?

Yes, if they have a product that suits my needs, VW (and VAG for that matter) would be on the list. I've been very happy with my current Passat, my dealership experiences have been great, and I still enjoy driving it immensely. The fuel economy isn't particularly good (R36), but let's just say I didn't buy this car for its fuel economy.

Maintenance is definitely on the expensive side, but the newer ones now come with capped price servicing, which helps.

Any other words of wisdom?

It's a natural reaction for the owner to start hating the car and/or the marque if it lets you down, especially if it's an expensive repair. The owner's opinion can go from 'best car in the world' to 'worst car in the world, hate the marque, all cars from that manufacturer suck, will never buy again' because of just one failure.

There will be those for who VW can do no wrong, and those for who VW can do no right. The truth of the matter is, as always, somewhere in the middle.

For me, VW make a product that ticks more boxes for me than the competitor's product. Take the R36 for example - when I bought mine in 2010, there was nothing else on the market with an equivalent package at the same price point. The Commodore Sportwagon was cheaper and had similar power, but was not AWD, was low tech with a relatively low-rent interior. I drove a rental SV6 wagon for a week in Tasmania, and it was not bad, but I was still glad to jump back in R36 when I got home.

Another logical competitor was the 5GEN Subaru Liberty GT (3.6R not an option - no wagon), which had symmetric AWD, but only a 5sp auto, and those hideous looks ruled it out. I had driven a 4GEN GT previously, but had come away unimpressed with both the turbo lag and the overall performance.

The Audi 2.0T Quattro is $9k more, slower and smaller.

My input would be that european diesels need a little bit more TLC than a petrol Toyota.

Japanese cars may not necessarily be that much more dependable - look at the number of cars that Toyota has recalled in recent history. They're also not immune to diesel issues (diesel dilution CX-5, anyone?).

3/ DPF maintenance issues. The need for regular long high speed runs to get the DPF up to temperature to do a passive regeneration.

I'm not sure that's so much of an issue any more - I had a Golf 110TDI as a loan car while mine was being serviced last year, and it was doing its regen while I was back to the dealership - and that was on 60-70km/h roads. I think it's more a case of making sure that you take it for an extended drive at least once every couple of weeks.

4/ the 6 spd DSG has proven to be reliable

It also seems that some drivers find the characteristics of the DSG offputting - I've found that DSGs are fairly unforgiving of careless throttle inputs.

[m4tild4]

Thanks Kleung and Amalgam for your comments. You make some good point here. I have 5 VW's in the extended family and no-one has had any issues - two of them being TDI Golfs with DSG.

I think the extended warranty is a good idea. Buying a car (as mentioned in my original post) that will probably have 12 months factory warranty left probably isnt where I want to be, so adding another 2-3 years would give me a little extra peace of mind.

Like you said Kleung - the Passat keeps drawing me back, as the vehicle ticks all the boxes for me at a reasonable price.

The DPF point is something that has played my mind a little. I live 5.5kms from my work, and do a few customer trips during the day each but i'm guessing this put me in the category of a 'short-trip driver'. But generally do a reasonable amount of driving over the weekend, and if it means me taking a trip up the hill to see my sister (a good 15-20 min hill climb drive) to 'clean the pipes' then so be it. Just out of interest - I know there is a DPF icon that pops up when the car needs attention. But does the dash indicate when a regen process is underway?

[m4tild4]

Thanks for the reply dopey.

[Amalgam]

But does the dash indicate when a regen process is underway?

No.

There is slight loss in power and a slightly higher idle speed.

I notice it most when you turn the engine off in the middle of a regen and the radiator fan continues to run on at high speed. It was disconcerting at first. It signals to me that it is time for a run up the freeway at 100+ km/h for about 30mins to complete the active / passive regen.

[kleung]

No.

Correct - The warning light should only illuminate when the DPF has gotten beyond its normal ability to regenerate itself.

There is slight loss in power and a slightly higher idle speed.

I didn't even notice it happening in the loaner. I only realised when I got out of the car at the dealership and heard the cooling fan going full wellie after I walked away from the car.

[Jath]

Not in the CC, I just get home sometimes after a commute and the DPF clean process is underway, I assume its the same for the B7 as well (could be wrong).
BTW 125tdi CC with the wet 6speed, just on 110K with a few minor issues in its lifetime (battery, cracked boot lid which was common on the CC), and yes, would buy VW again.
Looking at the technology updates in the B8 has perked my interest.

[booba]

Just be wary on the B8, Vw won't give us half of the cool stuff that you can get in eu.

[Steve]

I've had an R36 for six years since new. I'd only buy a VW again if they make something similar in the future.

Not that there's anything wrong with the car - it's been great - but I don't want a performance downgrade.