1996 Volkswagen Passat Reviews - Page 5 of 9

When I travel at speeds of 65 - 70 miles per hour, the steering feels unconfortably light. I tend to feel as though I'm not in control of the vehicle.

I am not sure what is actually causing this. The power steering, alignment?

This car has been good to me so far. I love the big boot. Enough space for my camping gear and my guitars.

We have had to replace 2 oxidation catalysts and a window regulator more recently. Apart from routine maintainence, this car is very dear to us and would not give it up for anything.

In general, VW's dealership body in the US is poor and is the Achilles Heel of the organization. VW has tremendous products, but the dealerships can make the ownership experience quite miserable. On the other hand, if this shortcoming could be addressed it would be a huge victory for VWoA.

The overall performance envelope, fuel economy (avg. 43mpg lifetime) and carrying capacity of this car are unlike any other. We are the original owners of this diesel and value it more with every passing day. We have done some minor upgrades to the car, but it largely remains as delivered by the manufacturer.

We hope the day comes soon when we can purchase a new diesel powered wagon larger than the current offering (Jetta TDI wagon) in America...'til then we'll just keep enjoying the 1000+ mile crusing range of this excellent car.

The driver's window regulator has failed twice.

A replacement Passat diesel has not been made available in North America since 1997.

Quite cheap to run, I habitually get 45+ mpg (US).

I wish I had not gotten the sunroof as I could use the extra inch or two of headroom.

I love this machine - it bridges the gap between high tech VW's and nice simple VW's.

Automatic transmission beginning to have problems (slipping, some fluid leaking). Very prevalent problem in this particular year and model.

Comfortable car that performs well for a sedan, but dealer service is extremely poor and costly and maintenance is expensive.

$60 oil changes due to design.

I replaced both drivers side door handles. The front passenger side window frequently gets stuck open. The front drivers side window is currently making a horrible clanking noise. The car gets very poor gas mileage. Left front bearings need replacing. The transmission is slipping and slamming into gear when cold. Dashboard instruments occasionally reset by themselves upon starting the car. Last year the car was stuck in third gear, therefore requiring the transmission computer to be replaced.

The car handles awesome and has amazing power.

The O2 Sensor Before the cat went out shortly after I purchased car, $280.00 installed.

Clear coat on paint flaked off entire roof and trunk, not repaired.

Passenger side door handle cracked.

Otherwise a very nice and reliable daily driver.

Driving without snow tires a bit sketchy.

The 96 Passat GLS is a fine car. The 2.0 liter gas engine is somewhat lacking in the area of performance, but it keeps up with traffic. You sometimes find yourself really pushing the 2.0 liter engine to get up and go when passing, accelerating etc,. Gas mileage is great if you drive it nicely. The lines of the car are nice and look rather sporty for a mid size sedan. I have used Amsoil synthetic oil in the car and the engine always ran very smoothly and did not consume a drop of oil even after long trips. The 2.0 is quite reliable if taken care of. The ride quality is nice, seat adjustments are cool, A/C blows ice cold. Cornering is satisfactory, but the stature of the car causes a bit of body roll. With Snow tires the car does quite well in the snow, I highly reccomend Blizzaks or Winterfire's for those of you in the snow belts.

I am a believer in VW's, I am in the process of purchasing a 98 Jetta gt and will continue to purchase VW's in the future.