2016 2.0 TDI Purchase

[fredeuce]

I am considering moving up to a 2016 2.0 TDI . It has about 60,000kms on it.

I am wondering if there are any issues that I should be concerned about in relation to problem areas and future maintenance costs.

Any tips or advice would be welcome.

[Lucas_R]

The 2.0TDI engine and gearbox in the Mk7 Golf is generally a very reliable drivetrain. Any issues you might have other than regular maintenance and wear and tear is likely to be with the suite of emissions devices that are on modern diesel engines (DPF, EGR, AdBlue etc) as well all the sensors that go with it.

If you do lots of highway kilometres and need a diesel, then go for it. But if you do short trips in the city and want a diesel for the "economy" then my advice would be to avoid a diesel, as doing lots of short trips is not good for a diesel and you will end up having issues with the previously mentioned emissions devices on the car (diesels need to get hot and run hot for a period of time to work at their best and this is when you get the good economy from the engine).

[DV52]

@fredeuce: Hi.

As I'm sure that we will both agree - the process of buying a used-car is fraught with risk and mostly these risks fall onto the buyer. When buying a used car, the balance in the negotiating power is invariably tilted towards the seller! This is because the seller has the better part of the information asymmetry in negotiation and because Caveat-emptor is substituted for commercial ethics in discussions!

It doesn't matter what the seller says about how well the car has been driven, or how routinely it was serviced by the previous owner - at best, such assertions are subjective if they are at-all honest, and at worse they are complete fabrications!!

So, for what it's worth - my strong suggestion is that before you make the decision to throw money at the seller, get a SCAN report for the car. Again, for emphasis -an recent SCAN report containing the car's VIN is mandatory to the buyer making an informed decision!

ALL modern cars have their own self diagnostic system that indicates the vehicle's health status. This MY16 Golf is no exception!!

If the seller is a used-car dealer, insist on seeing a copy of a diagnostic report (check the date and the VIN on the report). If a used-car dealer says that a SCAN can not be provided - be very concerned!!

Personally, I think that it's good for the SCAN to contain error messages because hard-evidence of faults (if they are NOT serious) often can be used to reduce the price!

If the seller is a private individual and you don't own a diagnostic device. check-out the forum's "pimping" facility to introduce colleagues that have such devices to those that need the service - see HERE. Using this facility (i.e. having a forum colleague accompany you) might come at a small cost - but it's likely to be a valuable investment in the decision making process!!

Don

[Hillbilly]

Lucas's advice is spot on. I had a Passat TDI and only used it if the run was going to be long enough to get the engine hot.

No 1k to the shops and back. Great for highway driving of an hour or so but didnt like short trips.

I used to drive buses that NEVER got cold and one had done 900,000km and engine had never been touched.

Why, because it never ever got cold, used to come in at 9pm and would still be warm when went out at 5 am.

Same with a car. Treat it right and it will treat you right

[fredeuce]

Thanks for the replies. Currently I have a 9N3 1.9 TDI that clocks up its kms mostly on the highway doing 110 for about 50 kms at a time. That little car is now well over 400k and still going strong. Simple little car that doesn't miss a beat. Ticks all of my boxes. The wife would like something a bit more up to date and being a diesel with the 6 speed DSG we have one of those transmissions in our other Polo.

So, we have made the decision to proceed with the purchase and now need to familiarize ourselves with the new features like the Ad blue etc.