Looking to purchase a new Passat

[Crm]

Hi, I'm a newbie to VWWatercooled and have enjoyed reading through lots of really interesting and insightful postings.

My wife and I are in the process of making a decision about replacing our Mazda 6 with another medium sized car and are focusing on the Passat 118TSI (3C MY13.5). Last weekend we went for a test drive and found it ticked most of the boxes of what we are looking for. Our main worry has been reliability (with Mazda over 10 years we have not had one single issue - just don't want a new one because they have become too large). Today I spoke with a VW service manager who said they have corrected the DSG 7-speed clutch problem and that should not be an issue with this latest model although there is of course a 5-year warranty on it. Does anyone have any comments on this or any other issues that we need to consider before purchasing. I guess before signing up we like to know what may be some of the possible risks and weigh these up against the clear positives with the Passat. We have not considered at this stage the TDI because of the extra cost - and we usually travel less than 15K per year.

The other question is what do people see as a reasonable price to pay for this car? On the Volkswagen website it is listed for $43,616.50 recommended drive away price. Normally I would ask for up to a 15% reduction.

My apologies to anyone who has seen a similar posting on Whirlpool from us.

[passat08]

I have a 08 passat wagon tsi that I love but am in process of thinking selling due to kids older looking smaller car. But loved t the car nice smooth car to drive all

[Hillbilly]

Hi, I'm a newbie to VWWatercooled and have enjoyed reading through lots of really interesting and insightful postings.

My wife and I are in the process of making a decision about replacing our Mazda 6 with another medium sized car and are focusing on the Passat 118TSI (3C MY13.5). Last weekend we went for a test drive and found it ticked most of the boxes of what we are looking for. Our main worry has been reliability (with Mazda over 10 years we have not had one single issue - just don't want a new one because they have become too large). Today I spoke with a VW service manager who said they have corrected the DSG 7-speed clutch problem and that should not be an issue with this latest model although there is of course a 5-year warranty on it. Does anyone have any comments on this or any other issues that we need to consider before purchasing. I guess before signing up we like to know what may be some of the possible risks and weigh these up against the clear positives with the Passat. We have not considered at this stage the TDI because of the extra cost - and we usually travel less than 15K per year.

The other question is what do people see as a reasonable price to pay for this car? On the Volkswagen website it is listed for $43,616.50 recommended drive away price. Normally I would ask for up to a 15% reduction.

My apologies to anyone who has seen a similar posting on Whirlpool from us.

If you have a family and do a reasonable mileage why not consider a TDI Wagon.

Lovely car to drive Lots of options and very economical.

Coincidentally was at Mazda today and thought exactly that about the 6 Has gone on steroids a bit since last model.

At least the Passat probably wont go on fire like the 6 ROFL

I wouldnt trust a stealers explanation about the 7 spd DSG either The TDI has the 6 spd wet clutch box which is far better than the 7spd dry clutch model

Price My TDI Wagon with $15,500 of extras ( see below) was well north of $58,000 but new model has more for less

[Crm]

If you have a family and do a reasonable mileage why not consider a TDI Wagon.

Lovely car to drive Lots of options and very economical.

Coincidentally was at Mazda today and thought exactly that about the 6 Has gone on steroids a bit since last model.

At least the Passat probably wont go on fire like the 6 ROFL

I wouldnt trust a stealers explanation about the 7 spd DSG either The TDI has the 6 spd wet clutch box which is far better than the 7spd dry clutch model

Price My TDI Wagon with $15,500 of extras ( see below) was well north of $58,000 but new model has more for less

Thanks for the feedback - just the two of us so not looking for a wagon. Still unsure about petrol or diesel - see the TDI as definitely the better car but is it worth $5K extra?

Any more thoughts on this from Passat owners or people in the know - eg is the TSI clutch really fixed now?
Also what would you see as a reasonable percentage reduction in negotiations for the petrol or diesel model?

[Amalgam]

I believe that the extra $5K is worth it as I bought the TDI and our car travels 12K per year.

My justifications are:
1/ Better grade leather interior
2/ 95 RON PULP and diesel cost the same at the pump
3/ Diesel provides better real world fuel economy without trying too hard.
4/ Proven 6 spd DSG. Like Hillbilly I wouldn't trust the stealer.
5/ Potentially, diesel engine last longer compared with petrol
6/ If you keep your cars for 10 years, the amortized cost is minimal.
7/ Better resale value.

[Crm]

I believe that the extra $5K is worth it as I bought the TDI and our car travels 12K per year.

My justifications are:
1/ Better grade leather interior
2/ 95 RON PULP and diesel cost the same at the pump
3/ Diesel provides better real world fuel economy without trying too hard.
4/ Proven 6 spd DSG. Like Hillbilly I wouldn't trust the stealer.
5/ Potentially, diesel engine last longer compared with petrol
6/ If you keep your cars for 10 years, the amortized cost is minimal.
7/ Better resale value.

Thanks Amalgam that great feedback! Can I ask what year is your TDI and have you had any issues with it?

[Amalgam]

Thanks Amalgam that great feedback! Can I ask what year is your TDI and have you had any issues with it?

Glad to help.

Our Passat is MY12.5 June 2012 with 10500km and no problems at all.

[Hillbilly]

Mine is a MY11 bought June 2011 done 11,000km only problem has been a rattle in L/R door which I have sorted myself.

With two of us and a couple of Suitcases we went from Brisbane to Coffs Harbour at max legal speeds and return and got 5.7 L per 100km

Our Polo got 5.1 for the same journey but was pushing a bit harder in places.

Distance is a bit over 900km return if you arent familiar with the area with bits of everything on the way.

Dont bother about the 12 way seats Not worth the money The rest is pretty good

Adaptive cruise is the Bees knees IMHO Set it and forget it.

Personally I think the wagon looks better than the car but thats just me Certainly more versatile for almost the same money.

Not many Passats our colour but have seen a couple of cars and prefer the wagon.

[wind]

Adaptive cruise is the Bees knees IMHO Set it and forget it.

Personally I think the wagon looks better than the car but thats just me Certainly more versatile for almost the same money.

Fully agree with Hillbilly re adaptive cruise control. It is great + it is also a speed limiter (i.e. will slow car down to the speed you have set).

Also +1 for the wagon. To me it looks much much better than the sedan (one of the best looking wagons around? . . . possible topic for another thread) and then you add wagon versatility to the mix and it is hard to beat.


I am getting close to 30k km on my Passat Wagon (got it end of Jun '12) and it has been trouble free . . . only now starting to notice a slight rattle starting to come to my attention (have't figured out where it is coming from as it is intermittent at this stage). If you can stretch the budget a bit, I would recommend you consider the Sports Pack (better wheels/tyres, amazing seats - comfort and support, handling and roadholding moves up a notch or three - freaks my wife out being able to go almost 2x the speed around the same corner as her car can barely manage and feel better doing it!).

[Crm]

Thank you everyone for your helpful replies. Just updating that today we purchased a new Passat TDI 130kW sedan. Looking forward to getting delivery in due course.

Two early questions after another test drive today:
1) how do you find the stop / start system?
2) how do you find the coast function?

Around town do you have them both activated all the time?

Thanks