March 2006 - 31K Miles - CV Boots replaced - $900.
August 2006 - 35K Miles - Coolant temp sensor went out - $155.00.
October 2006 - Heater Core went out - coolant leaked into front passenger floorboard - $1,400 - without a car for 6 days.
November 2006 - Cam Shaft Seal and Valve Cover Gasket bad. Engine is leaking oil. Replaced on both sides of engine cam shaft seal and valve cover gasket. 2 Days without a car.
9/14/07 - 46,500 miles - Pollen Filter Seal Recall - left motor mount hydraulic bracket is leaking and seeping out plus the serpentine belt which is the drive belt that runs the alternator is worn and starting to crack - $655.00.
2/14/08 - 50K servicing - Hood Latch Needed to be Replaced - $380.
6/26/08 - 53,057 Miles - heat shield recall. Right CV Outer Boot is torn and leaking grease. CV boots were just replaced in March of 2006 at 31K miles and should last 100K+ miles. Only got 22K miles off of the cv boot that was replaced in 2006. $372 for cv boot.
6/26/08 - also found Coolant Reservoir Bottle dirty and contaminated due to cap leaking coolant. They changed the reservoir and did a coolant system flush. Cost for CV boot and coolant flush $700. Just had 50K servicing done in February.
7/2/08 - 53,100K Miles - Stop light came on and said check coolant. Opened the hood and hardly any coolant in reservoir and they just did a coolant system flush a few days ago. As I was driving home, the sensor lights on the instrument panel blew out. Checked coolant when I got home and it was bubbling. I will be taking my car into the dealer again tomorrow morning. The saga continues...
I drive my car 7 miles to work and back, perform all of my servicing through the dealership as required, go in for oil change every 3K - 5K miles. You figure it out.
The only thing good about this top of the line 2002 GLX Passat is how it handles on the road and the stereo system. It is definitely a money pit and spends more time at the dealership being fixed than driven. This was my very first brand new car at $32,000+ and has been a lemon from the time it turned 30K miles. I have owned a Lexus, Toyota Camry and Honda and have never experienced any of the problems with any of those cars that I have experienced with this Volkswagen.
Can someone please explain to me what is going on???
Very good review. Good example of dealer prices for service to generate revenue.
1999 Passat GLS (4 cyl, 5 spd) -- generally trouble free for 60K miles, except for water leaking into the passenger compartment in heavy rain. Severely damaged in accident in 01, replaced with new 01 Passat.
2001 Passat GLS (4 Cyl, 5 Spd) -- I don't have a documented list of troubles, but they included:
Pollen filter seal-induced leak into the passenger compartment ($450 + no car for two days)
Glove box handle broken ($150).
Floor mat grommet broken, never fixed, would have to buy new set of rear mats.
Rear seat power outlet broken, never fixed.
A/c dashboard lights failed after flooding from pollen filter failure (never fixed)
Turn signal relay failure 125 miles after warranty expired (~$80) for part.
Oil pump failure @100,000 miles while on vacation ($1,500 + $1,500 for rental car)
One dead speaker in left passenger door (after 1 year, not warranted, never fixed)
Variety of vacuum seal and gasket failures/leaks.
Seals and gaskets @110,000 miles (would have been ~ $2,000) sold to CarMax instead.
Depreciation over 7 years: ~ $23,000
total repairs and maintenance: ~ $15,000.
The difference between the 99 and 01 Passat very noticeable after about 6 months. The 99 felt like a good German car, the 01 constantly had small plastic part failures, even the doors didn't feel as substantial (could have been changes to accommodate the side airbags, though.) Other de-featuring included a less versatile door-lock/trunk-lock system, steel wheel instead of alloy wheel for the spare, zip-lock bag instead of leather binder for the owner's manual.
Instead of developing a luxury sedan like the Phaeton for the US market, VW needed to focus on quality and customer relations.
As much as I loved driving the Passats, they're just not worth the nuisance and expense.
I don't see another VW in our future, at least not one rolling under its own power as a source of transportation.
Note: A Comments RSS Feed is available. New comments appear in the Members Area before the main site