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I would have a chat with your Bride...Two kids, two parents...it would seem that you have the perfect ride...and a safer one too...
Passat 4-motion wagons are VERY desirable cars (especially for people tired of the fuel/handling of mini-vans) and command a good price. Unfortunately, the number of purchasers is smaller. If you can hold onto the car you will get a good price from someone who can't really afford the new ones.
But the ideal situation is to locate someone with a near-new minivan who will swap vehicles.
It will cost you a classified and some time, but could save $$$.
(but I agree with Chitown -- its the perfect car for 2 kids ... we had 2 kids and 2 dogs in our Passat wagon)
I'm considering purchasing a used 1999 Passat GLS 1.8T wagon w/ tiptronic transmission. Only 27K miles, and it was owned by a couple who both work sales at the dealership I'd be buying it from. Certified pre-owned (so 2 year/24K warranty + roadside assistance) and it's absolutely spotless. It has sunroof, upgraded 17" tires with nice alloys, leather steering wheel, cloth seats, no CD player.
Dealer is asking 15.9K, what would be a fair price to offer? Most of the posts I've read so far are about new Passats, anyone have experience buying used? Anything in particular about the 1999 that I should look out for? I love the way the car drives and looks (it's silver w/gray interior) and it's nice and roomy.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
"Anything in particular about the 1999 that I should look out for?"
You can check in Edmunds' Maintenance Guide to see what kind of issues (Recalls/TSBs) are listed on your 1999 GLS Passat.
Others here may have more to add. Good luck, and please keep us posted on your purchase. ;-)
Revka
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Hatchbacks & Wagons Boards
Quick question, may sound stupid to some, but to me not knowing too much about cars, it's a concern. My brakes on my '03 1.8T are very squeaky and when I brought it for my first oil change, they cleaned them (so they said), but they are still squeaky. I posted about this before, and have kind of learned to ignore it. I noticed today that on my hubcaps, all of them, there is dark marks, looks as if something could be leaking from the brakes. Would this be brake fluid? Doesn't seem to be normal to me. It's hard to get off, very gooey substance. Any suggestions?
Thanks!
Occasionally, when you're alone in the car and there's no traffic around, try simulating a panic stop from 50+ MPH. I had to do this every couple months on my wife's Passat, and again every time that it sat for more than 3 days unused (which was very rare). It normally cleared any squealling on the first pass!
Black, gooey deposits on hub-caps are usually tar from the road. I have white spots on my car ... apparently from freshly painted lines on the road. My VW is black. If anyone knows how to get that stuff off, I'd really appreciate a hint!
I have to push the engine to above 3k rpm in order to make a decent acceleration, especially on the first gear; when I drive at 80 mph constant speed, the engine also stays on or above 3k rpm. I guess it's normal considering the size of the engine. One thing I am not clear is whether the engine life expectancy can be considerably shortened if it often spins at 3k rpm or slightly higher speed.
I also feel that the engine kind of labors at that speed with significantly higher noise. Is that normal?
Thanks for your expertise in advance.
This same engine puts out 225 HP in the Audi TT, and 368 HP in Audi rally cars. Its one of the toughest engines in the world, and listed in Ward's "10 best engines" in production.
http://wardsauto.com/ar/auto_wards_best_engines_3/
(NOTE: VW/Audi is the only maker with 2 engines in the top 10!)
The only concern is that turbo-chargers cool the turbine bearings with the engine oil, and the high temperature is hard on the oil. So, as DudleyR pointed out, don't skimp on the quality of oil that you use.
If you want more power, you can upgrade the chip and exhaust system to get 245 HP from this company: http://www.tap1.com/Modifications_by_Model/VW_Passat_turbo/vw_pas- - sat_turbo.html
Even with the extra $$$, you'll still be within the price range of the VW V6, but (compared to a V6) your car will be lighter, better balanced, accelerate faster, and get better gas mileage.
A "chipped" Passat is probably the best sports/touring sedan/wagon bargain in America!
I take it yours is not a 4Motion, since that would be fair gas mileage. I have a 2k Passat wagon, GLS V6, that gets ~30 on the highway and 22-24 around town with light loads. We did a 3,000 mile vacation last summer with 4 people and a full load, including a roof bag, and averaged about 27 overall.
That may be something worth checking out. Unless it's a 4Motion I would expect better than that.
/;^)
Thanks!
Krzys
Another extremely important factor is tire pressure. I don't know what tires you have, but with the OEM tires on my 2000 GLX (AT 4Motion wagon), I need to go way up there, for both handling and fuel consumption. I try to keep it at 36-36.5 psi. With that and synthetic oil, I get better than 28mpg highway driving.
I just drove to a mountain camp, 80% highway at 75-85mph, 20% urban/mountainous. 26.5mpg up, 27.5mpg downhill. YMMV.
- D.
And on a different subject, here's a little news about what we can expect in the 2004 VW Passat: VWs to Get New Diesel. Anyone else know much about this? ;-)
Revka
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Hatchbacks & Wagons Boards
I've gotten used to it and I usually fill up as soon as possible, but I don't sweat driving another 30 miles in town.
The theory seems to be that VW really doesn't want you to run the tank real low. You chance starving the fuel injectors (which they apparently don't like) and you risk the cat converter as well (by running a lean mixture?). Also, the fuel pump is in the fuel tank and the gasoline acts as coolant for it. Run it too low, the pump wears out more quickly. I think it's an expensive job.
I wish that tank was about 18 gallons, and the fuel light came on at 16 gallons consumed.
You'll probably just get used to it like the rest of us.
I just wanted to tell everyone about my great experience with my '03 GLS Wagon w/tip on my road trip. Just got home yesterday after logging about 3500 miles. My mileage has improved tremendously, I went from about 17-19 mpg to 30-31 mpg. I am very pleased with that. I also had some concerns before I left with all the hype about the coils, but (knock on wood), I'm happy to say I had no problems whatsoever. The car was an absolute joy to drive and plenty of storage room for all my "stuff".
Thanks for all of your responses before I left, you all really calmed my fears.
Jackie
I am strongly considering Passat Wagon for my family (in fact I’m in between Subaru and VW, know all there is to know about Subaru, but Passat is roomier and looks classy) I can handle any kind of ice/snow conditions with front wheel drive so awd is not necessary. We take frequent ski trips to VT from NYC, and this past winter I had a lot of fun driving in snow blizzards etc.
Therefore, question remains how prone VW underpinnings to the snow damage if you accidentally or purposely run over snow banks.
Anyone with the snow experience please share!
Thanks,
Serge
I've seen very few major VW problems posted.
Now if you had a Toyota Camry, you can read a discussion titled "Camry Problems" with over 1450 postings.
Plus, there is one specially dedicated to just "Camry Rattles" with over 230 postings.
Apparently, many Toyota dealers consider it "normal" for a car with under 10,000 miles to rattle behind the dash, at the base of the windshield, under the seats, and in the front doors. And some owners are told they should just be thankful that they have the priviledge of owning a Toyota!
They also note that Toyota owners are very hesitant to admit to problems with their cars, whereas you'll find VW owners making a big noise if they have a problem with their car.
In my opinion, VW has more problems with their dealers than with their cars (in terms of turning off customers). There are some excellent dealers, but still many don't grasp the concept of "customer service". just my $.02
After the summit, it was colder so the snow was dry and there was less of it. Its a beautiful wide highway with sweepers for corners. Running on the fresh snow we cruised between 120 and 140 kmph (75 to 90 MPH) on the deserted highway under the moonlight. There was no tire noise due to the soft snow ... it was eerie going that fast so silently! That was one of the driving highlights of my life.
My current VW New Beetle doesn't even go out in light snow. The clearance is so bad it makes a Passat look like an SUV in comparison.
But my '92 VW Transporter truck (Eurovan style, double-cab, 1-ton flat-deck) just LOVES the snow.
With 4500 pounds riding on tall, skinny All-terrain tires plus Front-wheel-drive its like a snow-cat. After a heavy snowfall a couple winters back I was out before the plows to drive my daughter's friend home. She came over for the afternoon but was stranded 2 days due to the snowfall.
I was blazing a trail through snow about 15" deep and passed a Jeep CJ 4WD barely making progress with its wide tires spinning. It worked its way into my ruts and followed our tracks into town. That was the only other vehicle on the road. It was a real hoot blasting through big snow-banks onto shopping mall parking lots and such!
There was no damage to the truck ... they're built like tanks.