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VW Passat Turbo Operation

awaretekawaretek Member Posts: 14
edited July 2014 in Volkswagen
Ok I am (was, maybe still am) about to buy a brand new VW Passat Lux 2.0T, my first VW. I am well aware, from reading Consumer Reports, and word of mouth for that matter, that VW has poor reliability ratings, and Passat in particular. Still, I like the Passat and was wiling to take a chance.

Now, reading on here, in such threads as about the 1.8T sludge problem and others also, I am reconsidering and would like advice.

I do very regularly change oil on schedule. But I have never saved receipts and may have (rarely and by a little) exceeded oil change intervals once in awhile. I am 55 and have never had a major engine problem of any kind with any car I have ever owned. Reliability is important to me.

My biggest question is this: I really hate the idea, as I see expressed on here by VW experts, that one should run the turbo engine for about 2 minutes after parking before turning off (cool down) and also after turning on before taking off (warm up). I am usually in hurry and 4 minutes every time I use the car is not something I want to do, especially for quick trips to the store etc. How important this? Does it affect the reliability of the car even if oil is changed per schedule? No other car I have ever owned required this.

Any advice appreciated. I hate never warmed up or cooled down a car in my 55 year life. But come to think of it, when I test drove the Passat, the dealer (sales man) suggested I wait to pull out to "let the engine warm up" .

I was ready to buy. This could , regretfully, change my mind. Please offer comments pro and/or con.

Ron

Comments

  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    Okay, first of all, skim through the posts in the following two discussion:

    pat, "Volkswagen Passat Sludge Issues" #1, 7 Mar 2006 2:11 pm
    pat, "Volkswagen Passat Oil Changes & Issues" #1, 13 Mar 2006 11:52 am

    Now that you have an appreciation for the scope of the sludging issue (or non-issue depending upon oil quality and oil change frequency), and know to use a 502.00 (or better yet a 503.01) oil, we can move on to the warm up and cool down issues.

    Warm-Up: There's no real need to warm up the car per-se, simply start it, snap your seatbelt in place, throw it in gear and drive away, conservatively. Once the engine is warmed up you can start flogging it.

    Cool-Down: More of an issue here. If you've been tooling along in your neighborhood for the last mile or so, don't worry about it, however, if you were booking along at 75 just moments before you came to a full stop in your garage, then yes, give the turbocharger a minute or so to spin down before shutting off the engine.

    If you cannot be bothered to mess with the turbo, then get one of the VR6 motors in the higher end Passat, they don't have a turbocharger and as such can be shut down as soon as you've come to a full stop. I had a VR6 in my previous Passat, and after nearly 100,000 miles of hard driving, that engine was still as robust as the day I drove it off the showroom floor.

    Best Regards,
    Shipo
  • awaretekawaretek Member Posts: 14
    Shipo,

    Thanks.

    I have read both threads.

    Does anyone have any good reliability results they can report with a 2.0T Passat? I am hoping it is much more reliable than a 1.8T.

    From Consumer Reports, the 2.0T Passat has one of the worst overall reliability ratings of any car sold in America, and not just for fuel line and engine problems, but also for electrical systems. Any anecdotal good reports would be appreciated by me, but also any bad results I guess if anyone has them.

    I am not interested in a V6, its either a Passat 2.0T or else an Acura for me.

    Ron

    PS, as for Cool Down: I use my car regularly to go to work (a short drive), to go to lunch, often with guests (business clients). When going to lunch with clients, I can't see myself saying "let's wait a few minutes to let the engine cool down" after I pull into my parking spot at a restaurant.

    Also, on Saturdays, I run errands around town. I make 5 to 7 stops in a couple of hours. I can't see myself warming down for a minute after each stop. Am I unreasonable?

    If I only have to warm down after high speed highway driving, I as you say Shipo, I guess that wouldn't be too bad. But I hope if I forget once in while it won't harm my engine?

    Do you have a Passat 2.0T, Shipo? Anyone else out there with one?
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    "Do you have a Passat 2.0T, Shipo?"

    Nope, not yet. That said, the A3 2.0T is on my short list. ;-)

    Another comment on the cool-down/spin down phase of shutting down a turbocharged engine. I owned two turbo cars back in the 1980s, both cars had water cooled turbine bearings (as does the 2.0T, I think) and I used Mobil 1 exclusively as my oil. I only rarely "cooled down" the engine, and only after giving those poor squirrels a good and thorough flogging. Even still, both turbochargers lasted over 100,000 miles with no problems.

    Best Regards,
    Shipo
  • awaretekawaretek Member Posts: 14
    I think the Passat 2.0T will really shine on the highway (expressway).

    However, on a day to day basis, most of my driving will be in town. I will be living in Culver City, right in the middle of the LA area, near LAX , Santa Monica etc. Thus, I will do lot of stop and go driving.

    And, on the freeways in LA area, one can sit in "parking lots" for long times.

    Which raises a questioN: is there anything to worry about with the 2.0T engine in such deriving? Is A Turbo more susceptible to over heating when sitting in stalled traffic for long periods of time? I really would like to know.

    As you can probably tell, I really wan to buy the Passat. But it never occurred to me until I read this forum that a turbo (which I have neveu round) was quite different and requires different handling. Is a turbo especially susceptible to over heating stalled traffic, city driving stop and go etc?

    Ron

    Ron
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    Nope, the turbo won't be affected in the least when sitting in traffic.

    Best Regards,
    Shipo
  • awaretekawaretek Member Posts: 14
    Shipo,

    Thank you agin VERY MUCH for your kind and helpful advice.

    Questions:

    1. Is the turbo mechanism always operating when the engine is running? Or does it only kick in under heavy acceleration or rpm's?

    2. What does the VW owner's manual say about Cool Down issues, I wonder? It occurs to me that it would be best if I could see a Manual BEFORE I buy ;-)) Does the manual recommend a Cool Down period, and how long and under what conditions I wonder?

    3. How many modern cars use turbo chargers? I understand Diesels do but they are not as high torque, temperature and thus not subject to the Cool Down requirement? I older how many non Diesel models have turbos and I wonder about the relative reliability etc.?

    4. Do all Turbos require the same kind of extra care about maintenance as VW turbos?

    Thanks for your patience...

    Ron
  • shiposhipo Member Posts: 9,148
    1. Is the turbo mechanism always operating when the engine is running? Or does it only kick in under heavy acceleration or rpm's?

    Yes, if the engine is running, the turbine is turning, albeit slowly when the engine is idling.

    2. What does the VW owner's manual say about Cool Down issues, I wonder? It occurs to me that it would be best if I could see a Manual BEFORE I buy ) Does the manual recommend a Cool Down period, and how long and under what conditions I wonder?

    Don't know.

    3. How many modern cars use turbo chargers? I understand Diesels do but they are not as high torque, temperature and thus not subject to the Cool Down requirement? I older how many non Diesel models have turbos and I wonder about the relative reliability etc.?

    Lots of cars with gasoline engines use turbochargers starting from the new Chevy Cobalt SS up through the wonderful twin turbo I6 engine that BMW is putting in their 335i and 535i. The fact is that turbochargers are not a new invention, I've seen test results with them on aircraft engines going back to the 1920s and I'm sure that they're older than that. Said another way, there is little mystery surrounding the care and feeding of a turbo.

    As for your comment about diesels, ummm, if anything, they have higher torque than gasoline engines, in fact, MUCH higher. The real difference is what is referred to as the Turbo Inlet Temperature ([non-permissible content removed]), gasoline turbos do tend to run a bit hotter than diesel turbos because the exhaust is hotter coming out of a gas engine.

    4. Do all Turbos require the same kind of extra care about maintenance as VW turbos?

    Short answer; yes.

    Best Regards,
    Shipo
  • krzysskrzyss Member Posts: 849
    Subaru just changed oil change interval on all turbo charged cars (starting 2008 if I am not mistaken) from 7500 to 3750. So all turbo cars require more and/or better care.

    Krzys
  • emilystl04emilystl04 Member Posts: 4
    I have an 04 Passat Turbo. I was told by a VW dealer I should use a full synthetic instead of the semi I am now. They also told me if I were to switch from a semi to a full synthetic that they highly recommend me to do a flush, I think they said engine flush. They said to do this because the my car was prone to engine sludge. They told me it would cost me $400 for this flush! How important is it to have this flush done? I know there have been many complaints on here of the oil sludge problem, but do I really need to do this flush?
  • bronsonbbronsonb Member Posts: 170
    Hi - I'd review the forum here that covers oil sludging issues. It's at http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX/.f0aef02/369!make=Volkswagen&model=Passat&- ed_makeindex=.f0aef02.

    If you check your manual, it should show that the ONLY oil you REALLY want to use is a VW certified 5W-40 or better. I know there are several experts on this forum (altair being one who comes to mind who gives very sound advice) who will direct you to the official list from VW. I believe if the bottle says it's VW 502, then you're good to go. You definitely don't want to use anything "less" than that, like a partial synthetic.

    As for cleaning the engine, I did find a product online, Auto-Rx, that supposedly will take care of the cleaning for you, and I believe you can pick up the necessary product for $50 - $60 if you check their Web site. I've ordered some for my 1999 V6 Passat, which is sadly now experiencing other issues.

    Sludging can kill your engine, especially with a turbo. Full synthetic might cost more, but it's worth it.
  • emilystl04emilystl04 Member Posts: 4
  • krzysskrzyss Member Posts: 849
    must meet VW 502.00 and two most easily available oils are Mobil 1 0W40 and Castrol Syntec 0W30.

    Krzys
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