Volkswagen Passat Maintenance and Repair

staerkajk · October 2005

I have a 2002 6cyl, 4wd Passat that has been a great car till now. It has about 45000 miles- still under warranty. Three days ago I drove the car on rainy roads & it ran fine. Parked it by 7:30 pm and we had heavy rains overnight. The next morning tried to start the car. It started very rough and when depresssing the brakes to put car in drive there was a rusing liquid sound and white smoke. The car stalled and has not restarted. It was towed to the dealership - they find that the car was driven into water and the engine is shot. According to the dealer it would have to have been a puddle of around 2 feet deep to get in the air intake. No such instance occurred. They tell me to contact my insurance company and file a claim due to heavy weekend rains. Does anyone know of any similar problems? The rushing sound - could it have been the water pump? Please let me know if you have any related info.

Mr_Shiftright · October 2005

No, challenge and investigate this further!

I have no way of knowing if you are reporting the facts accurately (I don't mean dishonestly, I mean according to how best you remember them), but based on what you posted, and not taking any sides, I would say your engine could not have suffered hydraulic lock from driving through a puddle.

Why not? Because the engine would have seized immediately upon sucking up the water.

What MIGHT have happened is that a slowly leaking head gasket would have allowed water to drip into the cylinder overnight, filling the cylinder with water, where only air and gas should be.

Result, piston comes up when you start the car, runs into wall of water, which it cannot compress, and piston rod bends....this is hydraulic lock.

You should ask for the engine to be dismantled. (cylinder head removed) If the rods aren't bent and/or the head gasket is compromised, it might be on their (VW's) nickel. If the rods are bent, then you have a good claim for insurance (check with your agent FIRST about this!)

I'm just not satisfied with the explanation you heard. Either you missed something or they forgot to tell you something or something is very wrong here.

ryguy152 · October 2005

I have a 03 Passat V6 with 4motion and about 55,000 miles on it. In the last 5 or so thousand miles I have noticed a shudder while driving at 65 - 75 mph. I don't feel it slower than that and I don't feel it faster than that, but in that window it shakes the car significantly. I was curious if anyone might know what this is caused by and if it is something I should get taken care of immediately or can I wait? I would also mention it really feels as though it comes from the front of the car and almost like I had a flat (which I don't). Any ideas or insights would be much appreciated.

staerkajk · October 2005

Thanks for your input. We are meeting with a VW Rep at the dealership tomorrow.
The dealer says they ran a coolant pressure test and it was fine so there is no problem with the head gasket. But the rods are bent. I don't understand why this is an insurance matter? Shouldn't it be a warranty issue?

robr2 · October 2005

If the rods are bent then it indicates hydrolock. Hydrolock only occurs when there is liquid in the cylinder. If there wasn't a leak from the head gasket, that fluid had to come from somewhere - most likely the air intake.

If water was sucked up into the engine, you should be able to file a claim with your insurance carrier under comprehensive coverage. You of course will be liable for any deductible. It isn't a warranty issue because there isn't any indication of a defect.

Trust me, once you file the claim your insurer will be out at the dealer checking out the damage and they'll advise you if it's a defect issue.

Good Luck.

staerkajk · October 2005

Thanks. I filed the claim a little while ago to get the ball rolling. Hopefully it will be resolved quickly.

Mr_Shiftright · October 2005

If the rods are bent ask your dealer how you drove home in the rainstorm. I'm dying to here the answer.

Obviously, the dealer doesn't believe your story, so now it's up to him to show you all the water that went into the engine supposedly. If they drain a pint or two out of the oil pan, well then, I might go along with the dealer's version. But if that water contains coolant (in the oil), then I go along with your story.

How do they know the rods are bent by the way? Did they pull the head off?

altair4 · October 2005

It might be a good idea to draw off some oil and have it analyzed. Maybe the coolant, too (but I don't know where you would get that analyzed).

jdimaria · October 2005

I have an 06 Passat 2.0t with pkg #2, dyna audio, rear air bags, and 17" Lemans Wheels. According to the owners manual (book 3.1 page 9) if you press and hold the 0.0 button the Odometer can be changed to a digital speedometer, displaying your speed in numeric form in mph or kmh. When I do this I only get the option to display kmh. I never see the mph option. I called VW America customer care center, they suggested that I check the settings in the MFD under the Units menu. I have checked this and it is set to miles per hour. Does anyone know how to set this correctly? The VW Customer Care center says that I need to bring it in to have technician look at it. But I'd rather not waste a day just for this.

Thanks

2carowner · October 2005

I own an '03 Passat 1.8T. So far the car has had no problems. Its been taken to all the regular maintenance checkups. When I had taken it in for the 35K mile checkup - the steering wobbled at low and high speeds (Less than 30mph and more than 80mph). The technician said that it was becasue of a bent fron trim and it would cost $850 to replace. I just picked it up from a 40k mile service (cost $643....which I think is too pricey).Now, the technician said that the car wobbles because I needed new front tires and a rebalancing and that would get rid of the wobble.
I am confused....any suggestions..?

robr2 · October 2005

I would start with the cheapest thing first - have the tires balanced at a tire shop. If you really need new tires, get all 4 done and they will balance them. If the wobble goes away, great. If not, you may have a bent rim.

Good luck.

jefferyg · October 2005

It's could be a problem with one of your front tires. You may have a tire that is "out of round" or one of the steel belts inside the tire may have broken. It's not an uncommon problem and balancing usually will not fix it. I'm guessing with 55,000 miles on your car you've put a new set of tires on recently. Take it back to the dealer who sold you the tires or to another reputable tire dealer. If you are still running the original set it's probably time for some new ones.

staerkajk · October 2005

We met the rep this morning. When you have the hood up the engine is forward in the compartment. Back by the fire wall is a panel covering other items. The cover has vents for air etc. When they removed that panel there was about 5-6 inches of standing water. The brake air intake is there - when we pushed on the brake it sucked the water into the engine. They say what happened was a clog to the water vents due to leaf debris (I have trees!) so its insurance and not warranty. The insurance adjuster will be going there today.

However our normal mechanic has been doing some research for us and has found a 2004 advisory to dealerships warning intake in that region!!! This may be what we need to battle VW.
I'll let you know. Thanks

altair4 · October 2005

Freaky. I knew about the drain problem (it's been mentioned on these forums and others dedicated to the Passat), but I think this is the first time I've heard of it hydrolocking the engine! Gotta keep this in mind. Good luck with your battle.

accordfreak · October 2005

I have a 98 Wagon 1.8T auto w/ 128K.

1) From reading the discussions, it seems that one of my problems is common: the gasket around the antenna rotted a few years ago and I'm guessing now that my radio gets only really local FM stations and no AM stations it's due to the antenna connection corroding. Dealer wants about 600-700 to fix this. Where can I get parts and a reliable repair in Middlesex county NJ?

2) My ABS and brake lights are on and it looks like its the ABS control module. Is there any more info on if there's a recall on this as it seems to be a common problem?

3) When I shift the car into triptronic mode, it no longer "engages" (the LCD gear display doesn't change and up/down sifts do nothing).. Strangely every now and then under hard accelerations it feels like the cars slips into the next gear (only on down shifts). Any one know if these last two symptoms are related and if you've had a similar repair what did it run. I'm almost affraid to ask the shop as they probably tell me I need a new tranny. :confuse:

Thanks! BTW, great and helpful forum.

99passat1 · October 2005

I'm having a huge problem with my 99 Passat. Everything was working really well and I had no real problems until I took it in for it's 90K mile check up. I had my serpentine and timing belts replaced and a cam valve replaced and they thought it was all fixed but the MIL light came on. When they ran the computer check I had 3 misfiring pistons #3-5 and while the car drives okay (feel vibrations in engine when driving) the MIL light keeps going on an off and they say that the "engine is shot". It's about 11K to fix (not going too). But when I tell my friends the longer story they're convinced there's something fishy going on...

tfrzb · October 2005

I have a 2003 Passat, I've had my ups and downs with this car, my 3 VW, I've had a hard time opening my trunk since we got this car, I asked the dealer to check it during maintenance once and they said that it was normal. It feels like the pistons are not doing anything. Should the trunk open easily? It's out of warranty now.

audreym · October 2005

We have an 03 as well, and on one of our normal maintenance intervals, we asked them to re-lube the trunk b/c it was stiff. Turns out they replaced the pistons, so this may be a common thing.

puno_tx · October 2005

Anybody there knows of a good "added protection" off-market Floor Mats and Cargo Mat/Liner for 2006 Passat 20T? Please advise. Thanks.

altair4 · October 2005

I'd see if Weathertech has floor mats and a liner for the '06 yet. I have one of their liners in my '03 and I love it.

I'm going to replace my front VW Monster mats with Weathertechs, as the old style Monster mats developed some cracks and they are not protecting the carpet on the driver's side.

jefferyg · October 2005

I checked Weathertech this morning after reading the earlier post. No mats for 06 Passat yet.

jgveldt · October 2005

Hi, I'm looking at a 95 passat. The owner told me that after 10 minutes of running it overheats. He said the thermostat needs to be replaced, but another friend told me there could be trouble with the head gasket. Any opinions???

fish8 · October 2005

Don't buy this car!!

altair4 · October 2005

I agree with fish8...pass on it.

Mr_Shiftright · October 2005

run like hell. FAST overheat like that is almost always a head gasket or cracked head. The engine is boiling tea water.

brentr · October 2005

Recently had to replace mass air flow sensor etc. on my 2000 Passat at 70K miles. Additionally, my mechanic indicates the secondary air pump is on the way out. They are apparently located at a place (by design flaw from VW) where they fill with rain water from the road. He was able to dry my pump out and get it working but it will not last long. BMW has redesigned the pump on new cars locating it further up and enclosing it to avoid water problems. Needless to say, before mine completely fails, I will be contacting VW and asking for assistance in replacing the part. HAS ANYONE else had the same problem and had a mechanic tell them the same thing? Interestingly, when I went to order a new air pump, none could be had unless refurbished because the demand is so great. Thanks

dcover · October 2005

Just bought a 2004 Passat, and I don't like the automatically locking doors. Does anyone know how to disable this feature? Seems every time I pull in the garage, and need to get something out of the back seat, the door is locked. I no longer have little kids that I would worry about opening a door on accident.

I looked through the manual, and it doesn't say a word about the automatic locking feature.

Any ideas?

puno_tx · October 2005

Appreciate your response. Called up Weathertech too and they said it will be available in 6 weeks.

bjbird2 · October 2005

Regarding automatic locks. My dealer disabled mine for no charge.

Regarding floor mats. A car comes with carpeting. The carpeting is often covered with 4 floor mat carpets. The floor mat carpets are often covered with rubber mats. What's next, clear covers for the rubber mats? :confuse:

altair4 · October 2005

I'm guessing that you don't live in the snow/slush belt of the country. The OEM carpet floor mats that VW provides are...well, in a word, crap. They are very thin and wear out quickly and don't retain much water/snow/slush - so then you've got wet carpets that never really dry out until the warm weather returns. The weathertechs hold the water and allow it to either evaporate with the heat from the ventilation system or allow you to sop it up - I'm in and out of the car a lot in unplowed areas and I'm always tracking in snow, so periodically I use an old towel to dry the mats.

Hey, but to each their own. My carpets look like new even after 10 years of ownership on my past cars.

altair4 · October 2005

You can select from a variety of options with the door locks. You can have them lock automatically when the car reaches 10 mph or not. You can have the horn and lights sound when you use the keyfob to lock or unlock the car - or have either or neither. You can have the locks all open upon removal of the ignition key from the ignition switch. The problem is that you will need to either have the dealer reset the options or, if you can find someone with a VAG-com (software to access the options) in your area, they can do it, too. VAG Locator
Sounds like you bought this car pre-owner. If you bought from a VW dealer, they should make the adjustment without charge.

bronsonb · October 2005

Are you the original owner of the 99 Passat? If you are, then you should have the 10 year, 100,000 mile powertrain warranty. And it sounds like this would be covered by that warranty. We have a 99 Passat V6, and we've used the 10 year powertrain warranty on one occassion to get an oil leak fixed and also to fix a faulty cam tensioner. I would certain pursue this if you're the original owner and you've done all maintenance (oil changes using proper VW-spec'd oil and VW oil filters, etc...)

If you're not the original owner, then you only get a 50,000 mile powertrain warranty, I believe.

dcover · October 2005

Thanks for the info. It's actually a "new" 2004 that the dealer was using as a loaner. Unfortunately, the dealer is about 45 minutes away. I'll give them a call though.

Appreciate the info.

kgould · October 2005

Hi

First time on the site with a similar problem. We have a 2001 Passat estate and had the same leak in the front passenger footwell. What I eventually found is that in the glove-box is an airconditioning vent and if this was open it sends in cold air via the aircon even if you have the heater on. This then causes condensation in the glovebox and drips down to the footwell. Once I closed the vent I had no problem for over a year... until today. We had left a heavy map book on the floor in the front footwell and again noted that it was wet. now I don't know if this is true but again I am thinking that it has to do with a condensation problem with us now using the heater. Under the front seat is a vent for the rear passengers which I only presume goes under the front footwell and maybe having something heavy resting on it has something to do with it? I will keep my eye on it and see if it dries up. As I said we haven't had a problem for over a year and there is no drop in the water fluid?
Otherwise a brilliant car.

chatmando · October 2005

Also 1st time to this site...
We have a 2002 Passat 4 motion Tiptronic wagon and was just blessed with the the flooded curse!!! The rain we recieved here in the great northeast was close to 12" in 1 week. The car has been parked under a cheap temp carport since new of 10/01 and never noticed any water or dampness ever...until the snowload brought down the carport last winter and we never replaced it. The summer here was very dry with hardly any rain. During this past storm I drove the car in a down pour and backed it towards the house to unload grocery's from the tailgate. The next day as we headed out I noticed the car had no power. I turned around and headed back home and noticed water coming in from the front passenger front piller and my son said there's a flood in the back seat floor that looked like a wave pool when I went up a hill...I vacuumed out the water and turned on the heat to try to dry it out but the car still had no power and the dash looked like a Christmas tree...I ended up replaceing the TCM that is located under the rug in the "WEATHER PROOF" plastic box located under the passengers feet.The car shifts OK now and the dash is less busy but I'm still getting AIRBAG FAULT on the dash. I'm not sure if I have to have it reset or maybe there's a module that controls the airbag system that also got destroyed by water. If anyone has any answers to this issue please advise and thanks in advance...sorry for the lengthy post.

mrjette · October 2005

I have an '05 Passat with 13,000 miles on it. I noticed one of the fog lamps is not working (I honestly don't know if it ever worked). I suppose this is not a warranty item? Any advice on how to change it or where to get directions on how to replace the lamp?

fish8 · October 2005

I think it might of been covered until 12,000 miles. Unless, there was damage present from road debris.

ebbenji · October 2005

My car is having this same exact repair done today. The check engine light came on about 15k miles ago but the VW dealer I took it to told me what the problem was but also that it shouldn't ever affect the performance of the vehicle. Not entirely correct.

So, is there no way to prevent this from happening again? Do I have to drive my car only on sunny days?

If this thing goes out again, I'll have no choice but to try and turn off the check engine light and trade it in. what a crock.

mrjette · October 2005

Figures. Assuming it is just a burned bulb, how easy is it to change? If it is wirring or such, that will still be covered. I don't go in for the 20K service (TDi) for awhile, so i hate to plan a trip just for this.

fredbird · October 2005

Does anyone know where the Radiator drain is for a 93 diesel Passat. The thermostat is not closing properly and coolant is very slow to warm up - I suspect that the coolant needs to be flushed and replaced but I can't find the "darn" drain (if there is one).
Tks Davebird

angrydriver · October 2005

Hi all!

I just happen to buy a brand new 06 passat.Right from the first week,I started noticing vibrations all over the car,on the steering,the seats,the dash.Everything just vibrates in this car,i went to dealer,they balanced all the wheels,changed all the four wheels,still the same problem.dealer is saying that,this is how vw vehicles drive.Any help will be greatly appretiated,i don;t know where to go and what to test for this problem.

thanks

amit deo

pier · October 2005

I just got my 2.0T the other day. For me, the car definitely vibrates on a concrete-surfaced highway but nowhere else. This is a pet subject of mine since I recently had a buyback from Nissan for exactly the same issue. Answer me these questions:

What brand of tire are driving on?
What type of balancing was done? Was it roadforce balancing?

cmstar · October 2005

I just bought my 06 Passat about a month ago. I am having the same problem with the vibration in the front tires. The dealer has balanced the tires twice now. I also noticed sometimes when I take the key out, the radio stays on. Any problems with that?

angrydriver · October 2005

Yeah it happened to me Once,but some how i fergot what i did,i thk it should be the way,we take out the key,or it might part of the convinice settings,i am not so sure thought,so what are you going to do about these vibrations????
Thannks and let me know!

pier · October 2005

Your problems may be related to the brand of tire and its ability to hold a balance.

Are they Goodyear LS-2's? Did your dealer roadforce balance them? It's the only way to reduce the vibration. Conventional balancing (without placing a load on the tire) simply does not work. Tip: get your dealer to roadforce balance them when they are hot (after a 20 min drive). Cold tires are not operating conditions. To balance them when they are cold is a waste of time.

cmstar · October 2005

My car is at the dealership now. I just got a call. They have reprogramed my keys. Hopefully this will stop the radio from staying on. I am going to suggest they roadforce balance the tires to see if that helps. If not I am going to ask that they change the tires. The vehicle I test drove didn't have the vibration issue.

angrydriver · October 2005

I have michelin tires.I am not sure if these tires were ,balanced the way you are prescribing.I will check with the dealer.Secondly,do u feel vibrations,all over the car,like,my seats aslo vibrate,when i try to rest my head against the seat,i feel the vibrations,the passenger seats also vibrate,the portion near the gas paddle also vibrates,this car is full of annoying vibratioins,the steering vibrates aslo at about 55-70mph.The factory stereo sucks big deal(hollow sound).Any more suggestions for these vibrations thanks and let me know

A.D.

cmstar · October 2005

I only feel the vibrations in the front of the car. The inside is fine

jefferyg · October 2005

Our experience has been totally different. The car rides and drives great, I haven't noticed any vibrations and we've driven on all kinds of different roads. I also disagree with you on the stereo. If you have the satellite radio you have the ability to adjust bass, mid, and treble. Check and see if the bass and or midrange is turned way up. You may need to turn them down a bit and add some more treble to make it sound better.

I have also experienced the radio staying on. As you stated earlier I think there is some way to change the settings on it, but it also seems like I read or was told that as long as the key fob is within a certain proximity of the car then the stereo will still work. As a matter of fact, I sat down in the car one day and pressed the power/on button on the stereo and it came on while the key was hanging in the house.

The only problems we've had with our car is that the compass will not calibrate and one of the key fobs doesn't always open the trunk. I've followed to the letter the instructions in the owners manual on calibrating the compass, but it still is not working properly. If anybody out there has any ideas on what to do about the compass, I'm open to suggestions.

cmstar · October 2005

The only time I had a problem with the compass the system told me to drive in a circle and it reset itself

Volkswagen Passat Maintenance and Repair

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