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Volkswagen Passat 2005 and earlier

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Comments

  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    Call the dealer -- don't rely on "us" this could be serious, or it could be simple.

    Does the manual offer any suggestions?
  • onlysurferonlysurfer Member Posts: 96
    I have misplaced the manual, that's why this Saga...(Wish the glove box was large enough to hold the manual along with the registration papers!!)

    The dealer (who by the way serviced the car about two weeks back) said earlist he can see the car is on coming Tuesday and I should be "fine" driving the car with the check engine light on...
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    Doesn't your manual fit in the slot below the steering column?
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    Okay, I went out and looked under the hood of my 2003 1.8T.

    The container with the green cap behind the driver's side headlights is the power steering fluid. The ideogram is a steering wheel and a drop of liquid.

    A bit further behind the PS reservoir is the windshield washer fluid. It is an electric blue color with a picture of wipers on a windshield.

    A bit more to the center line of the car is the coolant tank. It, too, is a blue color, but more dull than the washer fluid.

    Close to the base of the windshield, you will find the brake fluid reservoir. It has a yellow cap.

    Hope this helps.
  • onlysurferonlysurfer Member Posts: 96
    Thanks very much. I think the drop of liquid on the steering wheel sign confused us, nevertheless we wanted to make sure it was power steering wheel. (I have added antifreeze in windshield washer once - in a different car though!)

    If anyone has manual handy then can you please check which type of fluid (make and/or type etc) I need to buy ?

    I'll have to check about the slot below steering wheel, can't wait to get to my car!!!

    Thanks very much for everyone's reply. This message board rocks.
  • dudleyrdudleyr Member Posts: 3,469
    Go to the dealer they will sell you the right type of fluid.
  • ericaerica Member Posts: 1
    I have the same car and my dash CD player is broken (after about 2 years of occasional use) and I've had numerous problems with my emissions system at about 60,000. I've had to replace valves and hoses, but stopped going to the dealer because the price was close to $1000 for the replacement. I'm thinking of driving something else too.
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    Fluids used to be oh so simple. Not any more. Call or go to the dealer on this one. We all want to help, but the wrong fluid could put you in a world of hurt.

    Get the VW fluid or the exact VW fluid replacement -- THE dealer, not us, are a better choice for you.

    Just pick up the phone and call them!
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    That's good advice for onlysurfer. too many manufacturers have very specific requirements for their fluids to screw around with this. Stop at the dealer and get what the car needs.
  • brozhnikbrozhnik Member Posts: 172
    I just bought my first replacement wipers for my 2003 Passat. $45 for the set. Ouch. I still have the old ones, and took them into my local O'Reilly's to see if I could buy some cheap blade refills. No, the guy concluded, you'll just have to buy the VW parts - there's no way you can get the refill in there.
    I recall that Mark and others have managed to pull this trick off (I just searched the archives and read them). Let me ask once more: how do you do this? Will any 22" refill work, regardless of brand? Thanks!
  • brozhnikbrozhnik Member Posts: 172
    I've been filling the Michelin X tires (that came with my 1.8T 2003) at 38 psi in front and 36 psi in back, as Mark once recommended (if I understood him right), and it seems to work fine. But I wonder why the manufacturer recommends something so different - 30 front, 39 in back, or if you have a full load and go fast, 33 in front and 42 in back. I basically don't know much about such things - how these numbers get decided on - so if anyone wants to explain all this to me (or tell me where to find an explanation) I'd be grateful. Thanks!
  • jrct9454jrct9454 Member Posts: 2,363
    ...comes in two forms.

    First, all the manufacturers are now paranoid about lawsuits after the Firestone debacle. This has taken the form from VW of suggesting cold pressures that are all out of whack considering the weight of the car and the tire sizes involved. It's silly, but there it is.

    Second, they are equally paranoid about the typical semi-skilled driver, who, in the absence of stability control, loses the car because the rear end gets loose. The easiest way for this to happen is with a big load in the back of the car, combined with wet or slippery conditions. Thus, even though the empty car carries something like 60% of the weight in front, and even though front-drive cars really want to understeer, the possibility of OVERSTEER is another lawsuit waiting to happen [only in the USA, of course]. Thus the recommendation for all the air in the rear tires, which only makes most cars more prone to understeer 99.9% of the time, in addition to ruining the ride.

    38/36 is overkill of another kind - better handling at the expense of ride quality - but each to his own.
  • bjbird2bjbird2 Member Posts: 647
    I replaced the VW aero blades with Anco NZ1R's. The Anco N21R's saved me $64! You just have to pull the old rubber out of the aero blade, and slide in the replacement, after you pull the replacement out of the Anco plastic holder. There is one end on the aero wiper where the plastic cap comes off. Slide the replacement on from the opposite end. The end where the cap came off has a little barb under the cap that holds the blade in place. Pry that up so that the blade will slide all the way flush to the end, and then push the barb back down and replace the plastic end cap. The drivers side wiper seems to be shorter, so you'll have to trim a little off that blade after it is installed. This sounds more complicated than it actually is, just be patient sliding the wiper on the aero wiper, you have to kind of work it past the center of the arm, and just keep pulling it on, over the barb at the end.
    Anco was one of the top rated wipers in Consumer reports.
  • onlysurferonlysurfer Member Posts: 96
    Took it to dealer, he said "don't worry about the low steering fluid" and "the check engine light is not related". He also said "don't worry about the check engine light" if it is not flashing. My service was "wait-while-they-fix" type but they were too busy or something so I had to take my car back after a wait of couple of hours or so and resched. the appointment. Will try to arrange a ride so that I can leave the car for Nth time. What a frustrating experience with VW!
  • pciskowskipciskowski Member Posts: 155
    I did this too. I had to lubricate the blade slightly to get it in. It took me about half an hour for both wipers.
  • brozhnikbrozhnik Member Posts: 172
    Thanks, bjbird2, for the wiper advice (and the money I'll be saving!). And thanks, jrct9454 for the tire info - clear and interesting. One followup question: you explained that the VW advice for PSI is overkill because the lawyers are afraid of oversteer; but you suggest that mark's preferred 38/36 is overkill of another kind to give good handling at the expense of ride quality. (I care about handling enough that I don't really mind, and I'm usually the only person in the car, but...) Clear though all this was, it left me wondering... what psi would you personally recommend (or use) for a recent 1.8T Passat? Thanks again.
  • jrct9454jrct9454 Member Posts: 2,363
    For this car, assuming the stock 195/65x15s, I'd probably run 32 psi all around. Anything up to 36 psi works, but you're hurting the ride to no particularly good purpose - my opinion, of course. Higher pressures, up to a point, mean better handling at the expense of ride quality - you make the choice. Really high pressures [40 psi and over] do no good at all, and actually cause the tire footprint to be diminished slightly.

    I've heard that the latest recommendations from VW have the rears inflated to 44 psi [someone with a late '04 or early '05 can say what the stickers call for] - this is patently absurd, if true.

    Our C240 weighs almost the same as a Passat, uses the same size tires [195/65x15s or 205/55x16s, depending on market and model], and MB recommends 28-32 in front, and 32-36 in the rear, depending on load. I start them at 34 psi all around after a tire rotation, and let them drift down [as they will over time] to 31-32 psi before taking any action. I DO CHECK THEM RELIGIOUSLY ONCE A WEEK. If you're the kind of person who wants to treat the car like an appliance, then more air is more safety, since that is the only way to insure they don't get too low.
  • garlandgarland Member Posts: 14
    I have a 2005 Passat Diesel Wagon. The tire pressure sticker says...36 front 44 rear period.Nothing about light loads or heavy loads.Dealer says its too high. VW says it is correct.??? Who do you believe.??
  • brozhnikbrozhnik Member Posts: 172
    Thanks jrct9454 - very interesting.

    Now, another topic: I'd like to buy seat covers for my velour seats. I found a place on the Web that sells them in the right color for... the 2002 Passat, but I've got a 2003. Anyone know if the seats changed in some significant way in 2003, or should the '02 seat covers work?

    And, more generally, anyone have any recommendations on where to get seat covers for a '03 Passat GL?

    Thanks.
  • jrct9454jrct9454 Member Posts: 2,363
    Yes, that illustrates my point precisely! 44 psi in the rear tires is just an absurd figure, dictated entirely by the worry of lawsuits. As you note, even the dealer thinks this is silly.

    Do whatever you feel is right. VW apparently thinks that they will keep the lawyers away with this sort of silliness - in fact, it made no difference in the Firestone suits, and it would make no difference in this case either. Phew...
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    Side impact airbags are located in the seats. I'd be very leery of seatcovers over those bags....

    On the air pressure thing, I'm running 32 psi all around, but I'm actually thinking of going up to 34.
  • taft4taft4 Member Posts: 57
    With fingers crossed, because of poor reliability reports on VW products, I purchased a 04 Passat (GLX - V6 - sedan - AT) in April after reading the CR reports on cars. Except for the reprogramming of the transmission because of its downshifting clunk, the car has been great.

    Last week my brother and I traveled the "blue highways" (secondary paved roads) through the Great Plains (IA, NE, SD, ND, MN) over a distance of 2720 miles and averaged 27.1 MPG. We rarely drove expressways (400 miles in total).

    As I was driving these roads I thought of some of you auto aficionados who contribute to this board as we encountered straight and smooth places where we did not see another car for at least 30 miles. We could have easily driven 100 MPH in those wide open spaces, but that is not something we would be comfortable in doing so we kept at our usual 65 MPH pace.

    The driveability of the Passat made the trip not only easy, but also very pleasant. I now have 6500 miles on the car and have experienced no other problems then the one mentioned above. Hopefully that will continue to be the case.
  • rregesterregeste Member Posts: 6
    I don't know if this has been addressed previously but the oil sludge issue is probably due to the oil overheating and I will explain.

    I have a V6 and thought that having to put in a quart after 2500 miles was excessive and called the dealer service dept. and they told me that was "normal". Called again later not identifying my problem and asked what the one quart oil consumption should be and he said, "as little at 1000 miles", then asked which motor I had. Turns out the 1.8 can use up to a quart every 1000 miles. Since then I have talked to other owners and have found that they checked their oil at the 5K mark and it did not even register on the stick. The dealer attributes this to the motor design calling it a "loose bore motor" which would provide more upper lubrication giving longer engine life. I suspect that any dealer that is presented with an engine problem due to low motor oil would point to the owners manual that tells you to regularily check the oil level.

    If the oil level is low enough it will cook and probably produce sludge. You should be able to run your oil above the recommended oil change withhout producing sludge as long as it has not overheated.

    I suspect that there are a lot of owners out there that are not aware of this problem and have taken thier car in for maint without checking the oil level inbetween. I find it upsetting that I was not made aware of this before I drove the car off of the lot.

    Anyone else heard of this?
  • ctiguyctiguy Member Posts: 4
    There have been a number of theories posted under Oil Changes/Fiascos. I am no expert on the properties of various oils in various engine types. What I can say is my 2003 1.8T consumes very little if any oil between changes. I usually change oil between 5k-8K kilometers or 3K-5k miles give or take. Was using regular 5w30 but have switched to full synthetic (and dealer now insists - although they pretend this is some kind of new requirement!) I do notice that when I get the oil changed at the Dealer they tend to fill it about .5" past the highest mark on the dipstick. Maybe thats 'cause the oil pan if full of sludge! Doubt it though only 15k miles and with the oil change interval I follow I seriously doubt no matter what oil I used it would cause a problem. But better be safe and to protect the warranty only synthetic every 5k from now on. And check the oil every 3 fill ups or so...The manual does state 5w40 synthetic and check the oil every fill up (a bit extreme)...
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    I got a chuckle from your comment about the dealer still over-filling during an oil change.

    Does that .5" put the oil past the top curve on the dip stick? It shouldn't be.

    Are they using the new larger oil filter? If they used 4 quarts, I think it would just bring it to the top of the cross hatch on the stick.
  • rregesterregeste Member Posts: 6
    I would still like to find out if anyone has heard of the VW engine being a "loose bore engine". Filling past the high mark will only produce more consumption till the level goes down. Caused by alot more oil trashing around by the crankshaft. Shouldn't be filled past the high mark.
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    All I can say is that, in most instances, when I read a story about engine oil consumption in a VW, the engine usually turns out to be the 2.8 V6.

    I've got 20k miles on my '03 with no noticeable oil consumption between oil changes. For the record, I'm changing oil on average at about 4,250 miles, and have used Valvoline Synpower 5w-40 from the first oil change. I usually check the oil level every other fuel fill.
  • rregesterregeste Member Posts: 6
    As far as I know, the major difference between regular and synthetic is that synthetic can withstand higher temperatures before it starts breaking down. That is why you can go about twice as long between oil changes with synthetic. Ever heard of a bypass oil filter? Instead of changing your oil, you send it in for chemical analysis to determine if it needs changing. One guy got 50K out of his oil using a bypass oil filter before changing it on just the shear fear factor.
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    Just a reminder - you should have received a letter from VWoA citing the need to maintain an OCI of 5,000 miles and must use oil meeting VW spec 502.00. VW's 1.8T is tough on oil (small oil sump pan plus hot turbo) - personally, I would never consider extending the oil change interval on it, especially if you want to maintain the sludge warranty that VW has recently issued.
  • rregesterregeste Member Posts: 6
    The 50K was on a diesel.
  • rregesterregeste Member Posts: 6
    03 GLX manual, black on black with tinted windows. Most leg room I have ever had in a car.

    Although I have had problems with it, most of them have been my fault. Me bad! 10K I hit a boulder turning around. Right front lower corner. Took it to the body shop and it turned out to be $5.5K in damages since they had to use all new parts. Overnight after taking it in to the body shop and in my garage the windshield cracked and was considered another incident which did not reach my deductible, rats (nick on the edge). The accident damaged the A/C system so the dealer needed to replace a high pressure line. I don't think they put oil back in because after about 2 days, the bottom literally blew out of the A/C compressor. 2 weeks later I had a new compressor.

    At 20K a guy hit me in a parking lot on my right rear wheel bending it in at the top by 2 degrees. That necessitated an axle replacement, a little body work, and a refurbishment of the wheel.

    I am coming up on 30K and have become afraid to drive it. LOL

    Tried to sell it, even at a great price, but no one wants an 03 that has a history so I am keeping it but that is OK since I like it. Getting spoiled with the heated seats.

    I have a bubble on the dash and I think it is where they tech leaned on it to replace the windshield. I am not so sure I want the dash replaced and have problems introduced. Had to have the VW steering wheel emblem replaced after a tech scratched it fixing an electronic problem in the dash right after delivery.

    The shift boot is deteriorating and I will have to take it in to the dealer for a look.

    Left the battery cover off and shut the hood on it and broke it. New part.

    All in all I like the car but do not like the oil consumption and the time it takes to get parts (has been 2 weeks most of the time). The dealers service (Speedway Volkswagen in Indianapolis) has been great, no complaints there. They have always provided a loaner car for warranty work and have always been very helpfull.

    Have previously had a Cabriolet and a TDI Jetta manual xmission. Both to small for me but loved the 50mpg in the TDI on the highway.
  • wagoneer2wagoneer2 Member Posts: 8
    My rear ashtray got jammed and when I finally managed to pull it out, a small pastic piece (about 3/4 inch long) fell out. I can tell that it did not break off. If I put the ashtray back in without the little plastic piece, it will not stay shut. Does anyone know how the plastic piece attaches so that the ashtray stays shut?
  • naveenavee Member Posts: 3
    Hi,
    we just bought a new passat wagon, I ran carfax on it and found that the car already has a service record. The record does not have much detail, it only says the service is done on engine and vehicle, is this normal? Thanks
  • mrjettemrjette Member Posts: 122
    I just got an '05 Passat TDi. The rear floor mats have holes for the oval anchors (not round anchors like my '02 Jetta), but no floor pegs on which to place them.

    Were they missed on this car, or has VW stopped putting the pegs in the back seat (the front pegs are fine and do a great job of holding the mats in place).
      
    Thanks!
  • tmuellertmueller Member Posts: 1
    I had the same thing happen on my new 2004 Passat. The dealer ordered the carpet holders and installed them for me in about five minutes (no charge). It's worth asking for.
  • tcsubwoofertcsubwoofer Member Posts: 25
    I just traded in my 2003 Jetta TDI Auto Wagon for a 2004 GLS Passat 1.8T Wagon with Leather. I know this is a sedan section, but my comments don't pertain to the van section of the car - and this forum has more action.

    I was so proud of my 2003 Jetta TDI, but I just needed more room and wanted more luxury. I love the feel and performance of my new 04 Passat. I got a great year end closeout deal. Like many, I have come to realize that Volkswagons can be a huge money pit for repairs.

    Get this - When I bought my first 2003 Jetta TDI, within a week a rock hit the front windshield and created a circular crack. Within a week with my new 2004 Passat, the same thing happened.

    Also, with my Jetta TDI the rear alignment was off because of a bent axle. They said I hit something hard (a pothole) which caused the axle to bend. I couldn't think of anything I had every hit hard with the car because I would baby it - it must have been some past pothole or railroad track. The car always slightly steered to the right which was forever annoying. I was so much enjoying the pure alignment of my new 2004 passat until last weekend when I was turning right onto a road and hit the curb with my right rear tire. I was not going fast at all and I was really angry at myself for bumping the rear tire (not to mention the new rim scratch on my mag)! I swear its pulling to the right now. If my dealer says the axle is bent then Volkswagen must be using the most pathetic durability mechanical parts in its car. Hitting a few potholes or bumping a curb, sure that might whack a tire out of alignment, but a darn axle?! I cant imagine this having happened in my old Subaru. I'm probably being paranoid because the fix is really expensive. To make matters worse, on my way home today as I was thinking about my alignment woes I saw 2 Passats broken down on the side of the road within 2 miles of each other. Woe to me! This made me worry about my purchase again. Yet I love the feel of the Passat and the "look" I get for the price.

    Either way, I think it is uncanny that I've experienced the same annoying road hazard problems with the Volkswagen. When people ask me what I think of VW, I say its a great sedan for its price that seems much more expensive, but that it doesn't seem "tough" and repairs are imminent. My Jetta was in the shop a lot due to road hazards and breakdowns.

    Face it, we buy volkswagen because it is a cool car with style and finesse - and we suck it up for the repairs to come. I've lost some enjoyment on my new ride at only 800 miles on the odometer!
  • jrosasmcjrosasmc Member Posts: 1,711
    Are there any significant changes to the Passat for 2005, and if so, are they in the drivetrain, trim levels or other things? I hope they have kept the excellent 2.8 V-6 as well.

    Also, what is the earliest date in which the U.S. will get the fully redesigned '06 Passat? (I feel VW's been putting off this one)
  • jrct9454jrct9454 Member Posts: 2,363
    Changes for the '05s are not significant - wheels and colors.

    First appearance of the '06s [the next-gen car] could be any time from July to December '05, depending on whom you are willing to believe. My personal wager would be later rather than sooner - VW's track record in our market is pretty awful for new product launches in anything like a timely fashion. On the other hand, the dealers are screaming in the ears of VWOA and Wolfsburg to get on with it, already...
  • seahorseseahorse Member Posts: 4
    I just purchased a VW Passat with leather/heated seats and was wondering how warm/hot you think they are. I drove to work this morning and turned the heat(seat) to the highest level, and it seems like it didn't get very warm (during 50 min. drive). So I'm not sure if it's just me or if it's the car. Thanks
  • calipassatcalipassat Member Posts: 1
    I bought my car new in June 2001. Since June 2004, I have had to replace a headlight wiring harness (headlight wire was burning), a fuse in the main wiring harness (car died while driving) and now a micro switch on the clutch pedal (periodic no-crank issues). Please chime in if you've had a similar string of electrical issues - 33,000 miles, Manual Transmission.
  • taft4taft4 Member Posts: 57
    I just received my December issue of CR in which they tested six "Wagons and Car-Based SUVs. (Toyota Highlander, Subaru Outback, Mazda 6, Volvo XC70, Mitsubishi Endeavor, and Dodge Magnum). In comparing them with others they have previously tested they rated the Passat 4 the best all-around wagon.

    They also had previously tested the GLX 4Motion which has a poor reliability rating.

    I have a 04 GLX V6 sedan which has the best rating, tied with the Accord, for a family sedan so some VW products are showing up very well.
  • altair4altair4 Member Posts: 1,469
    seahorse,

    You had the seat heater on the #5 setting for 50 minutes and it didn't feel very warm? Soemthing's wrong.

    I've got the leather seats, too, and after 50 minutes, the inside of my car would smell like frying bacon! Generally, I use "5" for maybe 10 minutes on a really cold morning, then switch down to 4 or 3 for another 10 minutes, and then switch it off since the car is thoroughly warm using the HVAC system.

    What model year is your Passat? Brand new, or used?
  • onlysurferonlysurfer Member Posts: 96
    same here, "5" for about 10 minutes, then "2" for about 20 minutes and then off (but my commute is usually over by then). Something must be wrong...
  • mrjettemrjette Member Posts: 122
    Here is an update on the rear floor mat-pegs. No one at the dealer seemed to know what happened to them. Should they have been installed for delivery or are the pegs no longer in the '05 model? Sales was no help... service knew nothing about it... so I shuffled off to the parts counter to see if they could help. They found a part number for the pegs and placed the order for me. Service said they would install them once they arrived.

    I went to parts to pick the pegs up. There was a very small box containing 4 pegs that had a screw-in base (like a self tapping screw). The parts guy plugs it into his computer and tells me, I kid you not, that they cost $122.00. He actually shook his head and said something was wrong. I replied with "they were supposed to be installed before pick-up", although know one knows for sure if that was the case (or they all played like they did not know). He said no problem and sent the bill to the sales department (I am still waiting for a phone call...).

    I asked about installation by service, and the parts guy told me it should do it myself (and probably avoid a $70.00/hour bill!). He said to line the mats up in their place and to poke a hold into the carpet with an awl or a nail. There is no base under the carpet for the screw; it simply threads into the carpet and underlying sound proofng material. It was very easy to do and took me all of 5 minutes.

    Here's my point: In the grand scheme, this is a minor cosmetic issue but to me an important one. Both the factory carpet mats and the rubber monster mats come with holes to be secured, and the pegs should be there to hold the mats in place (the pegs were there on my '02 Jetta). The pegs ARE NOT integrated into the carpet at the factory, but seem to be an item installed at the dealer (an examination of other '05's on the lot showed that none had rear mat-pegs). I don't know who missed the ball, but it had the potential to be a "dealer add-on or after sale purchase" (and a mighty expensive one at that!).

    If this little story helps someone else to avoid a charge, it was well worth my typing time!
  • pciskowskipciskowski Member Posts: 155
    $5 for some velcro at Wal-Mart fixed my mats. They aren't going anywhere now.
  • krzysskrzyss Member Posts: 849
    I have a nice table (2003 GLS with 195/65R15)

                   Half load Full load
                     F R F R
    up to 100mph 28 28 30 39
    above 100mph 30 28 33 42

    Question for the guy, who claims that above 40 is unreasonable:
    How much driving experience do you have with sustained speeds above 100 mph ?

    Krzys
  • jrct9454jrct9454 Member Posts: 2,363
    ...thousands of miles on EU limited access roads. Hard to do much these days, what with the speed limits in France and Switzerland, and that plus congestion in Germany. Still, the opportunity is there occasionally.

    At those speeds [SUSTAINED SPEEDS IN EXCESS OF 100 MPH], I think cold pressures of around 36 psi are quite sufficient for a Passat with 195/65x15s, assuming we're running H-rated tires or better, which is what should be the case.

    On the other hand, we're talking about this country; where can you manage this for more than a few minutes here and not get caught? I've done it a few times, most recently in the desert last month in our C-class with 205/55x16s set at 34 psi cold. Even with the radar detector on, I worry about Air Bears...but to each their own...
  • fitguyfitguy Member Posts: 220
    I had a 2000 GLS 1.8T w/Tiptronic that was great until it hit about 35,000 mi, then the problems began: mysterious blown fuses, faulty catalytic pump, faulty transmission module that left me stranded at a stripmall (car would not shift from park, had to towed on a flatbed, dealer took 5 days to fix it but gave me a nice Dodge Neon rental w/roll-up windows), then at about 55K the sludge problem surfaced,and I am religious about maintenance. Enough was enough and I traded it for an '03 Accord which I put 30K miles on without a single problem. I liked the driving dynamics of the Passat better, also had a slightly more comfortable seat but I would never by another VW product again. Some people seem to have good luck with them, but I think many more have poor experiences with reliability and that goes for Audi as well. The German drive is still better than the Japanese, but if you rely on a car like I do (sales rep, long distances, bad neighborhoods, etc) reliability becomes more important than driving dynamics. I now have a '04 Mazda 6S and it's a slick little ride as well, for short money.
  • senelsenel Member Posts: 5
    I have installed a Sirius satellite radio in my 2002 Pasat. (A Blaupunkt America SR04 Sirius Satellite Radio Tuner). The equipment broadcasts the satellite feed over an FM station. To improve reception I think I will need to add an Audiovox SIRSWB switchbox, which allows a direct feed. Anyhow, I assume I will have to remove the radio to reach the connection to the FM antenna.

    1) Has anyone ever done this? Any advice?
    2) How do you remove the radio in the Passat?
  • markcincinnatimarkcincinnati Member Posts: 5,343
    As I recall, you need a special tool to remove the radio -- the dealer has one and "should" allow you to use it on premesis.
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