Is a VW Jetta or Passat a good college student car???

[gt350mike]

We're about to replace our son's 97 Subaru that is on it's last leg and we are considering a 99-01 Jetta or a Passat (80k to 100K miles). We're going to stay with a 5-speed and a 4 cyl (1.8T or 2.0). It seems that people either love or hate their VW's.......I thought VW made a decent car and the 99-01's are going for about $4.5k to $5k (got to look for them at that price range) but after reading a few comments from people on edmunds.com, I'm not so sure of my "opinion". I'd like to hear ya'lls assessment of either the Jetta and/or Passat.

[MRM]

Very popular styles with peope that age. Nice looking, good ergonomics, but I don't think they are very reliable. In that price range I would be very careful.

My recomendation for a car in that price range for that purpose would be a Mazda Protege, I think it's called the Mazda 3 now. My wife and I bought one as our first new car in 1992. We searched and researched everything in the range of smaller reliable cars. The Protege was just as good as a Civic and thousands cheaper and much better than a Corolla. Not quite as quirky as a Subu, but we got the larger engine and it was plenty peppy and completely reliable. We sold it ten years later only because the family was getting too big for it.

Time has been very good to the reputation of the Mazda 3/Protege. I wouldn't hesitate to get one for my kids when they go to school. eck, my '92 will probably still be on the road. Maybe I can get it back.

[Zef]

Better go with Honda or Toyota...VW mean no reliability...!

[equality72521]

Stay away from MK4 (99.5-04) VWs. They had a lot of issues, to many to list. Unless you have very good documentation that all known issues are repaired I wouldn't touch one...again.

[notfarnow]

Originally posted by equality72521
Stay away from MK4 (99.5-04) VWs. They had a lot of issues, to many to list. Unless you have very good documentation that all known issues are repaired I wouldn't touch one...again.

MK3 (93-98) are a crapshoot as well.

VWs are great cars to drive, but not so great to own.

[gt350mike]

I guess it's fourth down and time to punt the VW idea......Thanks!

[onewhippedpuppy]

German cars are great to drive, not always so great to own. I've heard a lot of people say they would buy another Jetta, just so it was under warranty. I owned a '99 Audi A4 1.8t, which shares many components with the Jetta and Passat line. Just a few common issues off of the top of my head:

Electrical issues: power seats, displays, etc can go skitzo.
Suspension: pretty much every ball joint, link, tie rod, etc will be shot at 80k. Makes the car clunk and pop.
Turbo: turbos on the 1.8t like to die around 100k.
Sludge: somewhat common on the 1.8t
Timing belt: factory interval was optimistic on the 1.8t models, so many broke timing belts. It's an interference engine, so head rebuild at a minimum.

That's just a few things I can come up with. Great style and quality, but not ideal for a poor college student. Best bet: anything Japanese.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

What about the diesel TDI? Either that or the new one they've got coming out with the convertable top - seemed pretty nice (and economical) at the auto show last year. Certainly a heck of a lot more interesting than a Camry or Civic (both of which might as well be toasters or washing machines, IMHO).

[onewhippedpuppy]

I think the way to go with a VW is to buy it under warranty, then sell when the warranty expires. Agreed, it is far more interesting than the Camry/Accord/Civic/etc. Of course, the Japanese cars will run until the end of time with minimal maintenance, so there's always a trade-off.

[notfarnow]

Originally posted by Porsche-O-Phile
What about the diesel TDI? Either that or the new one they've got coming out with the convertable top - seemed pretty nice (and economical) at the auto show last year. Certainly a heck of a lot more interesting than a Camry or Civic (both of which might as well be toasters or washing machines, IMHO).

Define "interesting". A friend of mine got trapped in his '03 Passat diesel last month when a "door sensor" malfunctioned. He was in there with his two kids (3 & 6 yrs old) for almost an hour before they "tricked" the power locks into allowing them to escape. He's currently trying to sell the cursed thing at a disgusting loss.

I borrowed my dad's '04 Accord (5 speed) for a day last month. It was a fun car to drive and steady as a rock. I wish we could get them with the 2.2 diesel over here.

Also, the new Civic is actually a good looking car, instead of simply palatable (IMO). The new Jetta looks like it was left in the microwave 30 seconds too long.

[Sunroof]

The 1.8 both in the VW's and Audi' share serious sludge issues and if you consider the Passat with the 1.8 YOU MUST have the engine checked out! My son bought a 1999 Audi A4 with the 1.8 at a reputable Audi dealer in Atlanta. The car had 68K on it and he felt the extended warranty for $900 was a bit too pricey. Three months after buying it the engine oil light kept coming on. We took it back to the dealer and they said it has a sludging issue and the engine was toast!! Well short of bringing a megaphone into the showroom and letting customers know what a ***** dealership this was after they refused to do anything on this car it went to my Porsche/Audi mechanic.

Here is the poop on the infamous 1.8.

The oil pickup tube is too small from the pan and with the turbo and cat. converter too close to the engine with excessive heat, the oil will "coke" and block the pickup tube thus reducing needed lubrication. Audi put a band-aid on the problem by placing a heat shield between the cat. converter and engine block. If you researched the "black death" issues with Toyota and Audi/VW regarding sludging, its frightening. A thread ran on this board last year on this issue and it was alarming how many VW/Audi owners were victim of this problem. Its fairly prevalent.

My P mechanic, replaced the oil tube (it was shot) and cleaned out the oil ports and everything is okay for now. He must use Mobil 1 synthetic and the Audi filter. After contacting the Audi headquarters they refused to provide any financial assistance on the repair, but did acknowledge the problem with the engine.

I know their are thousands of Audi's and VW's on the road that have not been vicitms of this engineering "oversight" and many praise the 1.8 as a great engine; however, if you do decide to buy a 1.8 powered Passat please check the maintenance records for this problem and have the engine thoroughly checked out. If the engine checks out, I recommend you use Mobil 1 synthectic oil.

Bob

[Moneyguy1]

I have a '93 Pisant that I have owned for 7 years. At least $2,000 a year in necessary repairs, defined as things I would or could not do. My wife (now deceased) had to carry a cell phone when she drove the damn thing so she could call for help when it conked out. Anyone want a car for a real low price? ONly 93k miles on the VR6!!

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Easy solution - get rid of the cat.

[carambola]

i love both of my new VWs. 01 jetta has the VR6 and i did the JBWeld trick as a preemptive strike and have not had a problem(knock on wood) and the wife drives the touareg so far so good. i'd stay away from the VR6 and 1.8T at this stage in the game, some punk kid has probably been beating the snot out of it. that leaves you with the 2.slow and the TDI. i'd get the TDI.

[gt350mike]

I’m a diesel guy at heart; owned 83 Jetta diesel in college; 50 mpg, but slow as @#%!, 86 BMW 524tdi (I had to perfect the sling shot passing method with the VW and BMW diesel), and I currently have an 05 F-250 with the 6.0 PS. What can I say....I love the smell of diesel in the morning!
What I found really interesting are the prices of a Jetta diesel; they are typically $2.5k more than a comparable Jetta. If my son's car got 30mpg, I will be happy but I'm not going to pay a huge premium on a used car just to get an additional 14 mpg; it might save him about $400 a year on his fuel bill). Before I get flamed for paying a premium on my F-250, I bought the diesel because of resale (and it's fun to drive with over 560 ft lbs of torque)!!!
I am extremely glad I asked the question on the VW....I know there are people that have experienced success with them, but I'm surprised to hear about all of the others who have not been so lucky. For the amount of money I'm willing to spend, it looks like Jr. will end up with something Japanese and more on the compact end of the spectrum. Thanks again for all of your comments!

[Rot 911]

"Interesting" cars make for a good weekend car or for someone with enough money to play with them. For a student get a "dependable" car.

[bob tilton]

Happy owner of a base model 2001 Jetta with approx 100K miles. Absolutely no problems or unexpected repairs. The wife prefers this car over the G35.

[Ronbo]

My wife drives our '01 Passat with the 1.8T and 5-speed. We've owned it since new and it recently turned 93K miles. Only 2 issues since new: Had a bad coil pack, which was part of a recall, and the Homelink transmitter stopped working a couple of years ago. Other than that it's been routine maintenance. I guess we've been lucky.

[84porsche]

VWs are great cars if maintained and looked out for. I have an 03 Jetta with 36k on the clock and things I have had issues with were the plastic pieces on the center armrest the wiper motor and the ac expansion valve. But every car will have their issues, nothing is perfect. I had a 97 SAAB 900 while going to college and now the Jetta and both pretty reliable cars.

You really have nothing to lose. Just find a local VW mechanic and make friends with him and get him a AAA card and you should be good. For 5k, you really aren't going to lose much as far as value. Car is also alot safer in my opinion than a Corolla. The Corolla engine will last forever but everything else will fall off the damn car, every plastic piece and seal will just break away while the VW likely stays pretty solid.

99-01 Jettas - make sure the rear window clips have been replaced, problems with the windows falling, was also common on the Audis. 02-03 they corrected the problem.

[Oracle]

Neither.. get your a Toyota/Honda and will make him a favour.
VW is not reliable and much less a 1.8T