Volkswagen Jetta 2005 and earlier

colorado_kid

I have heard before that one "drawback" from the VR6 is the gas mileage. I have found just the opposite.

I can go over 400 to about 415 miles on a tank without re-fueling. I can also get consistant 30+ mpg results with about 85% highway driving.

One more reason to love the "old school" VR6! ;-)

blueguydotcom

wow, you guys even without the TDI are getting huge mileage numbers. Since i got new tires my mileage has dipped to around 21 mpg.

vocus

Stop driving around at 4000rpm all the time and you mileage will go up! Just kidding.

I get higher-type mileage because I drive 80% highway in my 1.8T, and also have the 5-speed auto., which runs the engine at only 3200rpm even at 80mph.

chmeeee

Heh, I haven't even hit 3k RPM yet at 80 mph (manual tranny)! :-P

vocus

Well you have a TDI, that's why. What's your redline, like 4500rpm or something? I have gone past redline in mine (6700rpm) many times. The transmission holds second gear until then, so it's not me doing it manually. I am shocked VW programmed the tranny to do that, but they must have.

I want that whole "700 miles a tank" thing, man! I should have gotten the TDI when I bought, since I drive so much. But once I got behind the wheel of that 1.8T and spooled up the turbo, nothing was stopping me from getting it!

vocus

How much additional power do you get with an automatic TDI if you chip it and change the tuning box? What would be its 0-60 time? Just curious.

8u6, you might also be able to help with this too.

Whomever does, thanks.

fish8

I can usually go 360 miles on a tank. I then can usually put in about 12 gallons. I guess I would be able to exceed the 400 mile mark, but I am just to chicken to run out of gas.

8u6hfd

the chip or tuning box pushes the horsepower to about 115 bhp to the wheels, torque hovers close to 200 lb-ft.

I drive 80 miles a day....which was why I chose a TDI.

If I drove say 40 miles....I would have gotten a WRX wagon instead.

justin

but it is like clockwork. light on at 280 miles. everytime. UNLESS i drive to different places on a highway. but in my everyday work and school (all i have time for anymore these days) it is always the same. not so great, but better than i expected from never shifting before 3500rpms....;)

vocus

Dang, you do worse than I do. I am at 260 miles right now, and still have 1/4 tank left. That's surprising to me. I have even been using the AC since the other day, because of the rain.

vocus

Who has an automatic TDI that they drive fairly hard? 8u6, don't you have one? I was just wondering what the economy is on them. Edmunds did pretty badly on their TDI, and they pushed it. I would push mine alot, so I was just curious how it compares to my 1.8T (24mpg when pushing it hard). Thanks.

8u6hfd

I have a 5-speed manual.

Consumer Reports did a test with the manual golf tdi and got dissappointing city mileage also...but they never really complained about the overall mileage (they got about 50 mpg overall if I'm not mistaken). In fact they estimated 700 miles in a single tank, which was kinda optimistic.

vocus

I have that test actually. I think it was more like 47mpg they got. I was just curious to see the TDI mileage from a driver that drives like me with an auto. Thanks.

hoodornament

I have a 5 speed, I really dont see the advantage of revving the engine's RPM's so high? Whats the point?

Thanks

8u6hfd

there is no point.

It's something people are used to, driving gassers. It took me a while to avoid revving over 4000 rpm when I'm merging into traffic.

vocus

I had heard that before. When I test drove the TDI and was merging onto the highway, I floored the pedal (it was an automatic, of course). The car seemed kinda slow, but did feel peppy. Then I drove the 1.8T. Well, flooring the pedal from a stop induced the wheels to chirp a little bit, and pushed me back in the seat. So, of course, you all know which one I chose.

Sometimes I wish I had chosen the TDI, for its fuel economy. Especially since I drive about 100 miles daily...

hoodornament

On the Mercedes high-end SUV:

Edmunds.com Says: A luxury sport-utility for those with considerably more money than sense.

vocus

I saw that when I read the review yesterday. Thought it was pretty funny.

I mean, come on now. I read somewhere that this truck has exposed door latches, very easy to pry open. And it costs HOW much?!?!? No thanks.

fish8

It's hard not to rev past 3-4K RPM's in my 2.0. if you keep the tach below 3K, you will NOT get much speed.

I have about 5,300 miles on my Jetta and it still has not used any oil what so ever.

willg1961

Is there any way to make the seat lower in the Jetta? I have mine adjusted to the lowest setting and it still seems high. My previous car was an Integra so maybe that's why the seating position seems high to me. Just an inch more would do the trick.

vocus

That's good that you are not having problems with the oil in the 2.0. I have a co-worker whose car didn't have ANY oil on the dipstick 4000 miles after the oil change (his car has 33K on it, I think). It's in the shop right now for a passenger side lock that wouldn't lock right, the oil consumption test, and the rear pads and rotors (which VW paid the labor on). He said as soon as it gets out, he will put it up for sale. It's his girlfriend's car, so he doesn't really make the final decision. But he said he's tired of it. And it's a 2000 GLS 2.0 stick shift.

vocus

If you have the height adjuster all the way down, then that's as low as it's gonna get. And the Jetta sits alot higher than an Integra does. You could put lowering springs on the car, and drop the entire body 1.5". That might help.

Just kidding about the springs. But no, the height adjuster is all the way down, that's as low as it goes.

vocus

I got gas last night, got 295 miles on the tank for an average of 25mpg! Even using the 1.8T's power sometimes and the AC for half of the tank (it's been raining here alot, and I need it to defog), I still got 25. That's not too bad. This tank now, I have kept the car under 4000rpm to see how my fuel economy will do. I also have been using the AC, because it's still raining here.

sntx

I love the VR6. I get similar mileage with my VR6/manual. I have no problem going 400 miles on a tank. I have yet to find any disadvantages to this engine. It might be tough to work on because it is wedged into a small enngine bay, but I am not a mehcanic yet so I don't have to worry about that (until I get the labor bills ). The engine is silky smooth, powerful, and IMO that exhaust note/growl that it makes sounds sweeter than a whistling turbo. I am not knocking the 1.8T it is definitly a great engine, but for the type of driving I do the VR6 is the best match.

blueguydotcom

I looked at the 6 but the extra weight was too much of a penalty for handling.

fish8

When I was at the dealer earlier this week I overheard a service tech and service advisor talking (and laughing) about a VW New Beetle they were working on that was low 2 Qts of oil.

vocus

I have friends who are techs. They still think the 2.0 oil consumption issues are funny. I bet they wouldn't if they were on the other side of the counter.

Glad I was not you that day. That's just not right, and not funny.

justin

for sure, they were laughing AT THE OWNER of the car.

newcar31

When I used to work at Jiffy Lube (yeah, yeah, I know) we used to have a free fluid top off program. Guess what kinds of brand new cars I used to see taking advantage of that program ALL the time? You guessed it, VW vehicles with the 2.0L engine. You may ask: "Why are these people going to Jiffy Lube when VW offered free maintenance for 20,000 miles on their vehicles?" The answer is Twin Cities VW dealers had at least a month long wait just to get that free oil change. The dealers must have been busy fixing other things...

vocus

I guess if you have so many vehicles with free maintenance, you are bound to get backed up on servicing them.

justin

i would be embarrassed to walk in my dealer with no oil. or go to Jiffy Lube to top off the oil.

it's called - check your oil. if it needs oil - add it

newcar31

Good for you. It's too bad most people aren't like that. I once had a girl stop into Jiffy Lube who said: "My car smells weird, I think it needs an oil change". Her car was running on 1 quart of filthy oil and it had been 12,000 miles since her last oil change. We had another lady call us from a gas station across the street to tell us that her car wouldn't run. She filled her engine full to the valve cover with oil. I had another lady come back after an oil change to tell me that her car is leaking. I checked it out and it was the air conditioner's condensation. She says: "It didn't do that before I came here". You would not believe how stupid some people are.

harlequin1971

I am a MN guy, relocated for the moment in AZ. Just curious...did you get your VW at Schmeltz Countryside? I have a few friends that work there, nice people...good salesmen. Not sure I love the ownership policies.

But then, I didn't find any of the TC VW dealerships worth too much. Burnsville reminds me of the sleazy TC Toyota and Honda dealers...yuck, yuck, yuck.

vocus

I have to say that the cases where the oil wasn't changed and where the oil was overfilled was dumb. But the condensation, I could believe that. Alot of people aren't that knowledage about cars, so that could be an honest mistake.

newcar31

Honest mistake or stupidity? That's a tough call. The thing that got me was that she said: "it didn't do that before I brought it here".

1. This lady had been driving for a number of years. This is the first time she noticed condensation from the A/C?

2. It was water, not oil. You don't even need to smell it to realize it wasn't oil.

There are way too many people out there who are WAY too stupid with regards to their vehicles. I would have never believed how bad it really is unless I worked at Jiffy Lube. Some of these folks are so dense that I don't think they should have driver's licences. Seriously.

vocus

I know when I first started driving and something leaked out of the front of the car, I never thought that it was AC condensation. I never saw it before, and all I knew that something was leaking out of the car. It looked clear though, so I thought it was ok. I asked someone I knew about it though, I didn't take the car in.

newcar31

I suppose I should tell you what happened with that lady. No matter how many times I tried to explain to her what the liquid was dripping from her car she refused to leave the store until her car was "fixed". She was convinced that we screwed something up and were trying to cover it up with my "story" about A/C condensation. We were closing down in about 10 minutes and I wanted her OUT of the store. I went downstairs and stuffed a drain plug in the condensation drain tube. Problem fixed. I wish I could have saw her face when she took her car in because there was water in her interior. Needless to say, she never returned.

fish8

Speed68: I agree with your assessment of Jiffy lube, but there is NO EXCUSE for anyone thinking they have an oil leak when they simply have water condensation dropplets on the ground. There is no excuse for that kind of ignorance. OIl and water look nothing alike.

newcar31

"Moreover, let's not forget, working at Jiffy Lube is not exactly a rocket science, so calling somebody stupid while being employed by the above company is not fair."

It paid for my school. I couldn't find any other place that would employ me part time, let me pick my hours, and pay me $14 an hour. I learned so much by working there. I can do most common maintanence on just about any vehicle. How many people can say that? Not many. I will never be screwed or oversold by a mechanic either. I don't think it was that stupid to work there....

"that was not a nice thing to do. you're a meanie."

I might have been a meanie, but she wouldn't leave AND she was very insulting. If she has a problem with Jiffy Lube, she didn't have to go there. I had about 2 weeks left before I quit and started a new job, so I really didn't care either. I had always wanted to do something like that to a jack [non-permissible content removed] customer and she deserved it.

vocus

That was messed up about stuffing the condensation hose into the car. I wouldn't have done that, but that would be annoying when she is calling you a liar and stuff like that, and you are telling her the truth.

A couple of friends of mine went to Jiffy Lube with their cars. In one of them, they messed up the AC compressor somehow, and it never worked again. In another friend's car, they sent it out without any transmission fluid. And yet another, the oil filter was loose and the oil leaked out of it. One more, the oil cap was left off and the oil spewed all over the engine.

These are 4 different cases, 4 different locations. I would rather drive the car without an oil change than take it to Jiffy Lube.

vocus

This supposedly affects 1999.5-2001 (all MKIV) Jettas, but here it is anyway. It came from VWVortex.com.

http://mach.mach-nine.com/gti/vwtechcontent/vwpdf/v970101.pdf

newcar31

No argument with you there. I wouldn't go to Jiffy Lube either. I've heard all the stories and I've SEEN all of the stories. Don't believe for a second that dealerships are any better either. There are good dealerships and bad dealerships, just like Jiffy Lube. Good thing I know how to do everything they do with regards to maintenance.

anonymous02

I posted this in the Jetta problems area, but now have a question (as opposed to a complaint).

"Just got back from getting tires.

The guy pulled me aside and said the bearings and rear bushings were shot, and the bearings were the worst he had ever seen in his life. He said to take the car right home, and park it until able to get this addressed."

Who has done rear bearings on a Jetta? Are they difficult to do? What about axle beam bushing? Anyone have problems with these? It sounds like our whole rear end is shot, and needs to be rebuilt. I really hate going to the dealership, so am interested in what's involved. Alternatively, anyone know a good VW mechanic in the Worcester (MA) area?

justin

i am not mechanically inclined at all, but i changed the rear bearings on my old Tercel once. easy. i had a repair manual. of course, it had drum breaks, and no ABS. probably more difficult on a Jetta.

anonymous02

The Jetta has drums and no ABS.

I am not sure if that helps or hurts, to tell you the truth. I think I'd rather deal with disks, and think the ABS is a wash.

justin

disc brakes are far easier than drums. again, from my Tercel experience.

the bearings cost less than $5 back them just a little metal ring about the size of a Snapple cap, with little metal balls. nothing fancy.

8u6hfd

there are cases where it requires the entire hub to be replaced. The MKII JEtta, don't know.

anonymous02

I have a 1996. Is that a II or a III?

chmeeee

A 1996 is a third generation car.

8u6hfd

I meant MKIII