VW TDI Settlement - buying a TDI now

stickguy

impressive deal. A base R line MSRP is $24,795.

congrats.

kyfdx

R-line is similar to an Accord Sport trim. Big wheels and some options. Between the S and SE trim.

stickguy

makes sense. Problem with that is, I don't want the 19" wheels, and I do want the goodies the sport accord and R line don't have!

Really interested to see the new Accord that should be coming out in the fall. Among a bunch of other things.

corvette

Dang, that is a back-to-back punch for henryn (his T&C was the last purchase I had logged before the Passat).

How many miles were on the 2015 F-150 and how bad was the depreciation over about two years of ownership?

henryn

The 2015 F150 had about 6,200 miles. The MSRP was $41,790, and I got $5k in incentives, and $5k in discounts, so I paid right at $31.7. With $24k even on the trade in, it depreciated $7.7k over 16 months, so about $481 per month. Ouch.

And I agree about the 19" wheels. The standard Passat SE has 17 inch wheels, and I just did a quick comparison using tiresize.com. The 19" wheels and tires do 764 revs/mile, and the 17 inch wheels and tires do 767 revs/mile. Now I need to find someone who wants to trade (and, of course, pay me a difference).

The diameters are 26.4 inches versus 26.3 inches, should not be a problem.

henryn

The R-Line has Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay, so no need for navigation. SiriusXM, a necessity. Backup camera. A turbocharged 4 cylinder engine, so more low end torque. It's only slightly faster than a 4 cylinder Accord, Camry, or Altima, but the low end torque makes it feel more responsive.

And, best of all, I fit, I'm comfortable driving it, and it is very easy to park in parking garages.

And oh, yeah, no sunroof, so I'm not rubbing my hair on the roof!

Back in 2008, my wife (now ex) bought a 2008 Passat, a fairly base model with the 2.0T. No backup camera, no CarPlay (didn't exist then), no sunroof, no SiriusXM. A fairly base model, and it cost about $22k, which we thought was a good deal.

Now, 9 years later, this car cost me nearly $2k less, and has a lot more features. Except for being slower. Who says cars haven't gotten better?

corvette

henryn said:

The MSRP was $41,790, and I got $5k in incentives, and $5k in discounts, so I paid right at $31.7.

That seems like a really good deal for a Supercrew. I think I would prefer a crew cab if I got one, but pricing on extended cabs is more to my liking.

henryn said:

Except for being slower. Who says cars haven't gotten better?

Given the improvement in engines since 2008, it's probably not much slower. I had a 2012-ish Passat with the 2.5 liter inline 5 as a loaner, and the inline 5 engine was the only weak point. It was otherwise a great driving car, so I'm sure the new 1.8T is ideal.

stickguy

Henry, offset that depreciation by the big discount on the Passat. You did fine. Sometimes a buy doesn't work, and you just move on.

and yeah, good chance you can find some 17s to slap on, and sell off the 19s. So looking for a trade (post on a VW fanboy site) seems like a good plan.

Unlike you, I want the moonroof. Power seat too (not sure if the R line has one or not). And BLIS. add those things, and good to go!

henryn

Yes, 8 way power drivers seat. Another necessity for me. BLIS is "blind spot", yes? The R-Line doesn't have that. You have to step up to the SE with Technology, which would have cost me about $4,200 more.

stickguy

I like it. Not sure $4,200 worth though. For the deal, I could deal with it!

really does sound a lot like the way Honda equipped the Accord Sport. I did come close to buying one of them.

Michaell

henryn said:

The R-Line has Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay, so no need for navigation. SiriusXM, a necessity. Backup camera. A turbocharged 4 cylinder engine, so more low end torque. It's only slightly faster than a 4 cylinder Accord, Camry, or Altima, but the low end torque makes it feel more responsive.

And, best of all, I fit, I'm comfortable driving it, and it is very easy to park in parking garages.

And oh, yeah, no sunroof, so I'm not rubbing my hair on the roof!

Back in 2008, my wife (now ex) bought a 2008 Passat, a fairly base model with the 2.0T. No backup camera, no CarPlay (didn't exist then), no sunroof, no SiriusXM. A fairly base model, and it cost about $22k, which we thought was a good deal.

Now, 9 years later, this car cost me nearly $2k less, and has a lot more features. Except for being slower. Who says cars haven't gotten better?

More than that in savings ... $22K in 2008 is almost $25K in today's money.

breld

@henryn - congrats on the Passat purchase! Definitely a good choice considering how much you liked the one you turned in.

That $481/month depreciation on the truck isn't bad at all. In fact, I'd say it's pretty good. Basically you got to have a short term lease on a $40k truck for $481 a month with nothing down.

I've done worse. Many times.

henryn

Thanks for the encouraging words, @breld. I hadn't thought of it that way, but it does make a certain amount of sense. I think I'm going to enjoy this new Passat. And ... I'm considering a "tune". Which would require 93 octane, but would definitely increase the "fun" quotient!

We shall see. I think the first thing is to get rid of these 19 inch wheels. I can definitely feel the difference on these rough city streets. Good looking wheels, but ...

A tune should also change the shift parameters, make it downshift quicker, keep the turbo spooled up a little better, in general not only make the car faster but more responsive. I don't run "flat out" 0 to 60 or quarter mile very often, but "more responsive" is definitely something I will notice and appreciate.

28firefighter

henryn said:

Thanks for the encouraging words, @breld. I hadn't thought of it that way, but it does make a certain amount of sense. I think I'm going to enjoy this new Passat. And ... I'm considering a "tune". Which would require 93 octane, but would definitely increase the "fun" quotient!

We shall see. I think the first thing is to get rid of these 19 inch wheels. I can definitely feel the difference on these rough city streets. Good looking wheels, but ...

A tune should also change the shift parameters, make it downshift quicker, keep the turbo spooled up a little better, in general not only make the car faster but more responsive. I don't run "flat out" 0 to 60 or quarter mile very often, but "more responsive" is definitely something I will notice and appreciate.

Word of caution on the tunes - VW has a nasty habit these days of refusing warranty claims if it sees you have a tune. They can see the number of times the computer has been flashed and there are remnants leftover even if you go back to "stock".

I only know this because I was very close to pulling the trigger on one until I read some of the horror stories of things going wrong unrelated to the tune and VW refusing warranty service.

andres3

henryn said:

Thanks for the encouraging words, @breld. I hadn't thought of it that way, but it does make a certain amount of sense. I think I'm going to enjoy this new Passat. And ... I'm considering a "tune". Which would require 93 octane, but would definitely increase the "fun" quotient!

We shall see. I think the first thing is to get rid of these 19 inch wheels. I can definitely feel the difference on these rough city streets. Good looking wheels, but ...

A tune should also change the shift parameters, make it downshift quicker, keep the turbo spooled up a little better, in general not only make the car faster but more responsive. I don't run "flat out" 0 to 60 or quarter mile very often, but "more responsive" is definitely something I will notice and appreciate.

I know it's not a DSG transmission, but have you tried S-mode on it? It really does change the whole character of the cars from VAG. In fact, the TDI recall letter I received today about the emissions modifications says that part of the modications approved by the EPA for keeping the TDI's going legally requires they neuter the S-mode on the auto-transmission TDI's. Ouch! Though they claim it doesn't affect performance; somehow I think they are being optimistic about that.

andres3

corvette said:

henryn said:

The MSRP was $41,790, and I got $5k in incentives, and $5k in discounts, so I paid right at $31.7.

That seems like a really good deal for a Supercrew. I think I would prefer a crew cab if I got one, but pricing on extended cabs is more to my liking.

henryn said:

Except for being slower. Who says cars haven't gotten better?

Given the improvement in engines since 2008, it's probably not much slower. I had a 2012-ish Passat with the 2.5 liter inline 5 as a loaner, and the inline 5 engine was the only weak point. It was otherwise a great driving car, so I'm sure the new 1.8T is ideal.

The 2.0T from '08 was underrated at 200 HP and 207 lb/ft. of torque from 1,800 - 5,000 RPM. The 1.8T doesn't match it; I'd take the '08 2.0T over the current 1.8T. Still, I'd definitely take the 1.8T over Subaru's 2.5 all other things being equal. I think my wife is 75% leaning towards the Outback, which is too expensive without getting the 2.5, which will also lower insurance and fuel costs, so there are benefits.

qbrozen

Money is in the bank!

mjfloyd1

@henryn. 

For a tune, you might consider APR+,  it is a less powerful tune than what APR usually sells but it comes with a drivetrain warranty. You would end up with a TD1 code which would void your factory VW warranty but this includes an aftermarket warranty that covers your drivetrain. No idea how much it costs since it was just announced. 

http://www.goaprplus.com/

Strange. It doesn't list the Passat even though it has the same 1.8T motor as in some of the golfs listed. 

henryn

Okay, this is the car I bought. A full 20% off MSRP, which is pretty good I think.

Comparing to the Accord Sport, the Accord does not have satellite radio nor smartphone integration (Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay). So for the Accord, I would have been forced to go with the EX, and once I did that I would want the V6, which means I would have to go with the EX-L. The Passat R-Line was "good enough" for me, and about $6,500 less than the best price I could find on an Accord EX-L V6.

henryn

According to this (on Edmunds review), I do have "blind spot". I think I'm going to need to read the manual.

The R-Line adds 19-inch alloy wheels, heated side mirrors, a leather-wrapped steering wheel (with shift paddles), an eight-way power driver seat (with four-way power lumbar adjustment), heated front seats, imitation-leather upholstery, a 6.3-inch touchscreen, HD and satellite radio, VW's Car-Net smartphone integration (includes Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and MirrorLink), blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and unique R-Line styling elements.

mjfloyd1

Nice buys on the X1 and Passat R!

stickguy

So that Passat really is only missing a moonroof to make it perfect for me!

kyfdx

henryn said:

According to this (on Edmunds review), I do have "blind spot". I think I'm going to need to read the manual.

The R-Line adds 19-inch alloy wheels, heated side mirrors, a leather-wrapped steering wheel (with shift paddles), an eight-way power driver seat (with four-way power lumbar adjustment), heated front seats, imitation-leather upholstery, a 6.3-inch touchscreen, HD and satellite radio, VW's Car-Net smartphone integration (includes Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and MirrorLink), blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and unique R-Line styling elements.

Congrats on the new Passat!

My friend just leased a 2017 SE/Tech in late October. He loves it! (same color)

28firefighter

henryn said:

Okay, this is the car I bought. A full 20% off MSRP, which is pretty good I think.

Comparing to the Accord Sport, the Accord does not have satellite radio nor smartphone integration (Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay). So for the Accord, I would have been forced to go with the EX, and once I did that I would want the V6, which means I would have to go with the EX-L. The Passat R-Line was "good enough" for me, and about $6,500 less than the best price I could find on an Accord EX-L V6.

Beautiful color! Wow!

Also, if you have BLIS, you'll see an image of two cars on each of your outside mirrors that will illuminate (when you activate it in the car's menus) if you try and merge with a vehicle in your blind spot.

stickguy

I really want CarPlay.

28firefighter

stickguy said:

I really want CarPlay.

You really do, it makes a huge difference.

28firefighter

mjfloyd1 said:

Nice buys on the X1 and Passat R!

Thanks!

stickguy

I'm interested in having the real time nav. May not use much else.

28firefighter

stickguy said:

I'm interested in having the real time nav. May not use much else.

Personally, I like being able to interact directly with Pandora and Spotify. The Nav is as functional as Apple Maps, which...meh.

henryn

kyfdx said:

Congrats on the new Passat!

My friend just leased a 2017 SE/Tech in late October. He loves it! (same color)

Thanks! I test drove an SE with Technology Package before deciding on the R-Line. It was nice, but didn't seem to me like it was worth the extra $4,200. If that $4,200 would have gotten a bigger / better engine, well... But what you get are sunroof, LED lights, and Navigation.

To each his own!

henryn

mjfloyd1 said:

Nice buys on the X1 and Passat R!

Thanks!

andres3

henryn said:

Okay, this is the car I bought. A full 20% off MSRP, which is pretty good I think.

Comparing to the Accord Sport, the Accord does not have satellite radio nor smartphone integration (Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay). So for the Accord, I would have been forced to go with the EX, and once I did that I would want the V6, which means I would have to go with the EX-L. The Passat R-Line was "good enough" for me, and about $6,500 less than the best price I could find on an Accord EX-L V6.

Are you sure you could beat the 4-cylinder Accord in a drag race?

Having been a Honda fan in the past, I know their engines tend to shine from 5K RPM to the red line and above, and I'm guessing during your test drive you didn't venture into that territory? The Honda 4-cylinder is pretty fast for a naturally aspirated 4-banger, especially considering it is hampered by CVT (albeit a seemingly good one).

andres3

henryn said:

kyfdx said:

Congrats on the new Passat!

My friend just leased a 2017 SE/Tech in late October. He loves it! (same color)

Thanks! I test drove an SE with Technology Package before deciding on the R-Line. It was nice, but didn't seem to me like it was worth the extra $4,200. If that $4,200 would have gotten a bigger / better engine, well... But what you get are sunroof, LED lights, and Navigation.

To each his own!

Amazing to me that their are people that'll pay $4,200 for a sunroof and Navigation. They wouldn't charge it if it didn't work. LED lights are nice, I can't tell when my headlights are on in cars without them now that I've been spoiled by them in the TTS. I'd prefer 18" wheels on my mid-size "sport" sedans.

For the TTS 19" is perfect.

henryn

andres3 said:

henryn said:

Okay, this is the car I bought. A full 20% off MSRP, which is pretty good I think.

Comparing to the Accord Sport, the Accord does not have satellite radio nor smartphone integration (Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay). So for the Accord, I would have been forced to go with the EX, and once I did that I would want the V6, which means I would have to go with the EX-L. The Passat R-Line was "good enough" for me, and about $6,500 less than the best price I could find on an Accord EX-L V6.

Are you sure you could beat the 4-cylinder Accord in a drag race?

Having been a Honda fan in the past, I know their engines tend to shine from 5K RPM to the red line and above, and I'm guessing during your test drive you didn't venture into that territory? The Honda 4-cylinder is pretty fast for a naturally aspirated 4-banger, especially considering it is hampered by CVT (albeit a seemingly good one).

I don't know and don't really care. The reviews I've read give a slightly faster 0-60 time for the Passat 1.8T over the Accord 4 cylinder, but that is not my point. I spend very little time with my foot flat on the floor for an extended period of time. What I do need is to be able to accelerate quickly, for merging with freeway traffic, speeding up to get out of a knot of traffic so I can change lanes and hit my exit, and pass on a 2 lane Farm to Market road.

Having driven both the 4 cylinder Accord, and the Passat 1.8T, I can state definitively that my butt-o-meter thinks the Passat responds better and more quickly.

28firefighter

I think the only useful feature of that $4200 upgrade to the SE would be the LED lights. Ridiculous that that is what it takes to get them.

andres3

henryn said:

andres3 said:

henryn said:

Okay, this is the car I bought. A full 20% off MSRP, which is pretty good I think.

Comparing to the Accord Sport, the Accord does not have satellite radio nor smartphone integration (Android AutoPlay and Apple CarPlay). So for the Accord, I would have been forced to go with the EX, and once I did that I would want the V6, which means I would have to go with the EX-L. The Passat R-Line was "good enough" for me, and about $6,500 less than the best price I could find on an Accord EX-L V6.

Are you sure you could beat the 4-cylinder Accord in a drag race?

Having been a Honda fan in the past, I know their engines tend to shine from 5K RPM to the red line and above, and I'm guessing during your test drive you didn't venture into that territory? The Honda 4-cylinder is pretty fast for a naturally aspirated 4-banger, especially considering it is hampered by CVT (albeit a seemingly good one).

I don't know and don't really care. The reviews I've read give a slightly faster 0-60 time for the Passat 1.8T over the Accord 4 cylinder, but that is not my point. I spend very little time with my foot flat on the floor for an extended period of time. What I do need is to be able to accelerate quickly, for merging with freeway traffic, speeding up to get out of a knot of traffic so I can change lanes and hit my exit, and pass on a 2 lane Farm to Market road.

Having driven both the 4 cylinder Accord, and the Passat 1.8T, I can state definitively that my butt-o-meter thinks the Passat responds better and more quickly.

Can't argue with that! I'm a big fan of turbocharged engines, or supercharged engines. Haven't driven the Volvo's that use both at the same time; interesting concept.

Good to hear it sounds like VW did a good job on the 6-speed auto vs. Honda's CVT (probably has something to do with your butt-o-meter readings.

stickguy

The R line has the LED lights optional if that is all you want. $1,095 option.

kyfdx

28firefighter said:

I think the only useful feature of that $4200 upgrade to the SE would be the LED lights. Ridiculous that that is what it takes to get them.

My friend's car was a lease.. didn't turn out to be that much more money.

Plus, he was coming from two straight CC stick-shift leases, and wanted the toys, since he was giving up the stick and the 2.0.

andres3

stickguy said:

The R line has the LED lights optional if that is all you want. $1,095 option.

As far as I know VW doesn't let you "order" a car, so good luck finding exactly what you want.

I found a Subaru dealer that will "order," the one more locally said they don't do orders; go figure.

stickguy

R line Passat has only 1 option, so should not be too hard, if you really want it.

xwesx

henryn said:

We shall see. I think the first thing is to get rid of these 19 inch wheels. I can definitely feel the difference on these rough city streets. Good looking wheels, but ...

I have a set of 18" wheels from the 2013 Passat. Shipping might be a killer, though. That's only a 1/2" extra sidewall, but, as you know, those 2013s had a very nice ride..... "Larger wheels are better" seems to be all the rage these days, though, so I imagine the 19" wheels are more valuable than any smaller stock size.

28firefighter

stickguy said:

R line Passat has only 1 option, so should not be too hard, if you really want it.

Interestingly, VW on certain models makes it pretty difficult to get the standalone lighting packages. I wouldn't be surprised if on the R-Line its an order-only option the way the Lighting/DAP on the Alltrack is.

kyfdx

Just remembered today to call my insurance agent to drop the Audi. (three weeks later).

henryn

I had to drop insurance, and add insurance. On two vehicles. And drop the EZ-Tag, and request 2 new tags. And transfer SiriuxXM subscriptions on 2 cars.

Right now, I'm waiting on the email from Chase to get my money (which I have already spent, but never mind that).

On Edit: almost forgot, I have to get window stickers from the parking garage for both new cars. One down, one to go on that one.

xwesx

@henryn: At least you're getting all that pesky stuff out of the way at once!

xwesx

kyfdx said:

Just remembered today to call my insurance agent to drop the Audi. (three weeks later).

At ~$240/mo that my company was charging me for the Passat, you can bet that it was only in full-coverage mode for the two days I needed it that way. I called early on Tuesday morning and dropped the car.

Funny enough, I received a letter in the mail that same day from my loan provider saying that they could not confirm I was carrying the required insurance. When I followed up on it, we did not entirely see eye to eye about the role of comprehensive insurance and the need for collision coverage when not using the vehicle. It was all moot, though, as the car was gone at that point.

As of now, still no action on the loan payment. I'm still hopeful that it will be paid by Friday.

andres3

xwesx said:

kyfdx said:

Just remembered today to call my insurance agent to drop the Audi. (three weeks later).

At ~$240/mo that my company was charging me for the Passat, you can bet that it was only in full-coverage mode for the two days I needed it that way. I called early on Tuesday morning and dropped the car.

Funny enough, I received a letter in the mail that same day from my loan provider saying that they could not confirm I was carrying the required insurance. When I followed up on it, we did not entirely see eye to eye about the role of comprehensive insurance and the need for collision coverage when not using the vehicle. It was all moot, though, as the car was gone at that point.

As of now, still no action on the loan payment. I'm still hopeful that it will be paid by Friday.

Funny, my mortgage loan bank and I didn't see eye to eye on what home insurance is supposed to be covering. I claimed since the purchase didn't close until the 13th of the month when I bought, that was the proper day for my home insurance policy to kick in.

Their claim was their loan contract language requires the home insurance the day the loan is funded (5th of month) don't ask me how that happened, but be careful what you sign! Anyway, the seller did delay the closing maybe a couple days, but not 8 days. Either way, what are you insuring if you don't own the home yet? My claim is there is no collateral to insure until the home closes. They don't care, they want the loan somehow insured the day they issue the funds; whether you buy a home or not. If the deal for the home went south at the last minute as it almost did, could I have taken the loan funds and moved to the Cayman Islands in hiding?

The argument was they went out and purchased retroactive home insurance for the "gap" days between when they funded the loan, and when my home purchase closed, and I didn't want to pay that out of my Escrow account. Arguing over very little money, but it was the PRINCIPLE of it all.

xwesx

Completely agreed, Andres: Principle!

It wasn't a big argument with them for me. They just said that they required full coverage "at all times," and I said, "it had full coverage at all times for all relevant conditions. Collision and liability coverage are not applicable while the vehicle is in storage, so it isn't reasonable to demand those under that circumstance." After a pause, the lady said that their policy did not have an exception clause, and I just told her it didn't need one. The terms require full coverage at all times, and the car was fully covered at all times, so that's what matters.

I then provided a copy of the insurance policy, and that was the end of it.

henryn

I just received the email from Chase, and gave them my bank account information. Things moving along as expected.

Michaell

Looking at my spreadsheet, I see almost $250K being distributed to the folks here.

How'd you like to be the person monitoring the account balance for VW? How much do you think they are paying out each day? $1M? More? I know that owners have until 2018 to make their decision, but I suspect many of them are getting out as quickly as they can, so they can move on to something else.