Traded off the Corvette...

[patrick66]

...And picked up a wonderful road car. A 2014 VW Passat TDI SE sedan. Triple black and loaded! I got so tired of daily drivers over 150K miles (the Vette has 162K, but runs/drives like 70K!). My wife's Buick has 169K, and my Dakota has 214K. So, it was time to find a nice newer daily with far less miles.

New is out of the question for me, for many reasons. I'd been looking at metric Chargers and Challengers. The inexpensive ones were all V6 cars, or had well over 100K, and/or were way over-priced. And a Jeep??? So much for Mopar.

Last year, I rented a 2017 VW Jetta for a 10-day road trip to Colorado. Fantastic car! Held the road beautifully, drove great, and we got 46 mpg trip average...most speeds were 80+, or mountain driving.

So, I started looking at VW Passats, both gas and Diesel. Slightly larger, just as nimble and dependable, and won't break the bank. I bought one yesterday. A triple-black 2014 TDi with six-speed auto. Loaded with all the toys. Just 53K miles, too. And of course, the turbodiesel! A huge plus in my book. At the same time, I traded off my '95 LT1 Corvette and got what I needed to have. It was a fun car, but getting in/out of the car was proving to be painful...time tor it to have a new owner!

View attachment 322723

 

[Pete Kaczmarski]

Boy, you don't see many diesels let go with that low of miles...does it have a story? Two things with diesels, you cannot skimp with maintenance issues and having a knowledgeable repair place/mechanic.

 

[Big_John]

Of all the cars I've owned over the years, I miss my C4 corvette the most.

Good luck with the VW. Lot's of people really are loyal to the marque.

 

[65sporty]

I have a customer with a 06 Jetta TDI and he just loves it. We had to do some engine work, but that's a long story.
I wondered what vintage Vette you had, another customer just came in with a new to him 87 Vette convertible. It needed some minor repairs. Only 50,000 on it.
Enjoy your new to you VW.

 

[polara71]

I just couldn't , I have a deplorable image to maintain..
Good luck with the DD Patrick

 

[1978 NYB]

I just couldn't , I have a deplorable image to maintain..
Good luck with the DD Patrick

Are you still in Jersey?

 

[commando1]

I just couldn't , I have a deplorable image to maintain..
Good luck with the DD Patrick

I can't possibly imagine you in anything other what you are driving now.
The only thing missing is a dually rear axle.
I would kill to see you driving a Corvette, if only for a few minutes, to record the image on your face.

 

[detmatt]

My wife drives a 2010 Tiguan and absolutely loves it. Awd, turbo 4 cylinder, gas. It’s quite peppy and grips the road very well.
Congrats Patrick, I’d take the VW over the vette any day.

 

[300rag]

...

What Bob said.

 

[detmatt]

View attachment 322747
What Bob said.

Maybe bought some property???

 

[imperialman]

My daily driver is a 2018 Jetta with the 1.4? Gas turbo engine. Pleasantly surprised with it as it’s quite peppy and fun to drive. Another pleasant surprise with it is it’s gas mileage. It approaches 40mpg when driven gently. Its 5 speed manual transmission is also fun to run though the gears

 

[Fratzog]

Turbo diesels are proven technology so you should have something reliable. I had VW diesels back in the 80's but gave up on them for the reason mentioned above. Unable to find a competent mechanic not even at the dealership. Went with Chrysler and never looked back. I'm sure VW has now developed a much better product and service.

 

[patrick66]

Early Diesel Jettas & Passats with the manual trans are just about indestructible. The weak point on '07 and earlier cars is the automatic transmission. Later cars are considerably better overall cars, but lack the simplicity of service of the non-computer controlled cars.

A friend at work is a hardcore VW Diesel junkie. I've learned a bunch about the cars through him, so I feel confident in the purchase of the Passat. Seems that I keep a new daily about two years, and then move on...with the miles and overall condition, this might just stick around longer than that!

 

[1970FuryConv]

I just couldn't , I have a deplorable image to maintain..
Good luck with the DD Patrick

I too am a Deplorable. Won't buy any car without an American company name and a VIN 1st digit 1 (or otherwise made in USA)

What sucks is Fiat killed the 200/Dart. 200 was reasonably priced, made in USA, great driver, and not too low to the ground. I'd have bought a used 200.

 

[saforwardlook]

Apparently you have purchased one of the 2009 - 2015 VW diesels that had emission control defeat devices designed in from the factory (that little discrepancy cost them some $30 billion so far). I hope you were informed of this before you bought it (it sounds like you bought it from a dealer, so they probably know all about it). I don't know if your diesel has been "corrected" to comply with emission standards, but if not, that might be in part why you are so pleased with it. VW was stupid enough to design in controls in the computer controller that turned on the emission controls only when sensors detected that the car was being tested for emissions on a dynamometer (the official federal test procedure). On a testing dynamometer, the car drive wheels only turn the dynamometer rollers and the other set of wheels are stationary. So VW turned on the emission controls when it detected only the drive wheels turning on the car and not the other 2, and also detected no turning of the steering wheel. Very shrewd and very stupid to think they wouldn't be caught at some point.

If yours is recalled, you might not like your Passat so much, and the recall provisions laid out in the referenced article suggest the generation 2 models like yours may not be legal after 2019, but since it is a 2017 article, changes hopefully may have been made to the recall provisions.

Guide to the Volkswagen Emissions Recall

Personally, I will continue to buy American designed and produced automobiles. This is just one of the reasons. My personal past experience is that the so called "Big Three" were much less likely to do this stuff than all the other manufacturers.

Also, I would not buy a new diesel passenger vehicle since the emission controls today are pretty complicated and present owners with a multitude of problems and expense as the miles accumulate. Gasoline emission controls are much less complicated and far less expensive to maintain and probably cost less to own/operate over a fairly long ownership interval.

 

[70bigblockdodge]

That's a auto shift with a torque converter. Much like a auto shift in a big truck.
It's the way I understood it when we were looking at one a couple of years ago, should have bought that car, but wife wanted a SUV.
My father in law just retired his 2005 golf with a TDI, 297,000k it still runs, but has lost some pep. Those Passats and CC are nice inside.
One thing to always remember with any turbo car is cool down. You have to idle them a min or two before you shut them off. Hard on bearings and seals and when coked oil builds up it just worsens the problem. Then the seals leak and oil will drive the dpf system crazy. No warm up/high load is just as bad in a compression ignition engine.

 

[patrick66]

I'm quite happy with the deal. The car runs beautifully, and I was well aware of the controversy beforehand. The recall period has expired, in any case, so it really doesn't weigh in. BTW, the first VIN digit is "1"...US-built. And the 2014 Passat Diesel is considered a Gen 1 per the VW corporate website, not a Gen 2.

I've owned several turbo-diesel and gas cars and trucks over the past 22 years. Very familiar with the cool-down procedure, which is particularly critical when exiting from high speeds off a freeway to a gas station, for example. One minute idle for every hour at highway speeds is the rule of thumb I've always used.

Apparently you have purchased one of the 2009 - 2015 VW diesels that had emission control defeat devices designed in from the factory (that little discrepancy cost them some $30 billion so far). I hope you were informed of this before you bought it (it sounds like you bought it from a dealer, so they probably know all about it). I don't know if your diesel has been "corrected" to comply with emission standards, but if not, that might be in part why you are so pleased with it. VW was stupid enough to design in controls in the computer controller that turned on the emission controls only when sensors detected that the car was being tested for emissions on a dynamometer (the official federal test procedure). On a testing dynamometer, the car drive wheels only turn the dynamometer rollers and the other set of wheels are stationary. So VW turned on the emission controls when it detected only the drive wheels turning on the car and not the other 2, and also detected no turning of the steering wheel. Very shrewd and very stupid to think they wouldn't be caught at some point.

If yours is recalled, you might not like your Passat so much, and the recall provisions laid out in the referenced article suggest the generation 2 models like yours may not be legal after 2019, but since it is a 2017 article, changes hopefully may have been made to the recall provisions.

Guide to the Volkswagen Emissions Recall

Personally, I will continue to buy American designed and produced automobiles. This is just one of the reasons. My personal past experience is that the so called "Big Three" were much less likely to do this stuff than all the other manufacturers.

Also, I would not buy a new diesel passenger vehicle since the emission controls today are pretty complicated and present owners with a multitude of problems and expense as the miles accumulate. Gasoline emission controls are much less complicated and far less expensive to maintain and probably cost less to own/operate over a fairly long ownership interval.

That's a auto shift with a torque converter. Much like a auto shift in a big truck.
It's the way I understood it when we were looking at one a couple of years ago, should have bought that car, but wife wanted a SUV.
My father in law just retired his 2005 golf with a TDI, 297,000k it still runs, but has lost some pep. Those Passats and CC are nice inside.
One thing to always remember with any turbo car is cool down. You have to idle them a min or two before you shut them off. Hard on bearings and seals and when coked oil builds up it just worsens the problem. Then the seals leak and oil will drive the dpf system crazy. No warm up/high load is just as bad in a compression ignition engine.

 

[MarPar]

Congrats Patrick!! V-dubs are fun little cars and very dependable.

 

[marko]

my daily driver is a chattanooga built 2015 passat tdi, it has been a great car so far with no issues.
and VW paid me 7 grand cdn$ for being sneaky about the emissions "scandal" heheh.
i was given the option of trading it in on a new vw, or to keep the car as long as i allowed the emissions cheat software replaced.
i bought my car when it was several months old and had 9k kms on so i wasnt eligible for a buy back.
which i wouldnt have done.
i bought mine while the "scandal" was breaking, it didnt bother me, i had a 2009 jetta tdi which i traded in on the passat
( i needed more space to get my elderly parents in and out of the back seat - the passat is huge in the back even with the front seats back).
even after the emissions "fix", overall i average 37+s USmpg and on road trips it will average about 48 mpg, sometimes over 50 mpg.
i now have about 38k miles on it.
VW is now allowed to sell "fixed" tdis in canada, so there are some 2016 tdis available.
i absolutely would buy another if something were happen to mine

 

[70bigblockdodge]

1000+ miles on a tank of fuel, you can't not like that. Just the peace of mind of not having to wait at the gas pumps every 250-350 mile for Joe D...head to order his breakfast burrito while his car, that he paid at the pump for fuel, sits there blocking the pumps, because he is too ignorant to get the f:#+ out of the way.