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Does anyone here own a Passat?

Fabienne

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My parents drove one for years when I was growing up in France. Very comfortable and reliable, hardly ever was in the shop. I do remember it was a tad difficult, at times, to find parts, especially in remote areas of France (if there is such a thing).
 

dkzzzz

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Originally Posted by johnapril
Are some VWs made elsewhere than Germany? If so, how can this be easily determined?

Thanks.


First letter or digit of a VIN number idnicates where car was assembled.
A lot of US-market VWs are made in Mexico.
I would advise, storngly against these cars for a family sedan due to their questionable reliability.
The best bet would be to look at Consumer Guide or JDPower books in you local library.

If you are looking for the best return on investment it would not be VW cars.
 

lawyerdad

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Originally Posted by Condor
I got my wife last fall when we got married a
Passat sedan V6, fully loaded but not the 4WD version.
(2000 model, 79k miles)
Heated leather seats that are as hot as heating pads, nice
radio, electronic temperature control, etc etc. I put XM
radio in it for her.

She loves it. I like it myself, it is a bit large for me to drive.
It has that good german car touring and firm feel but
its not overly firm like she thinks my BMW is.

It came needing: a front end alignment (10k miles later no problem),
and had a small coolant leak. The dealer paid for the coolant leak fix.

Being used, in the next couple of months, we have to get two tires,
brakes, and a timing belt. I'll do the brakes myself.
I expect the timing belt will be fairly expensive. I have the service manual.
It's like working on a watch.

I'm not sure which model you have. I have read that the V6 made in
Germany ones are more robust (that is the one we have).

I have not yet been able to determine if it is more expensive than
any other modern car that has lots of nice features.


+1 on the heated seats. When I got the car, I thought of it as kind of a silly thing. It's become one of my favorite things about the car. Not that it gets all that cold in LA, but it's still really nice to take the edge off on a chilly day. When it's "cold" out, my wife often will insist we take my car for just that reason.
Plus, the heating pad analogy is a good one. I have kind of a gimpy back, and it especially bothers me on those occasions when I forget I'm old and lame and go try to play hoops or softball or something. I stagger back to my car, crank up the seat heater, and it really helps. The same is true if by back stiffens up a bit on a long drive.
 

johnapril

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Originally Posted by dkzzzz
First letter or digit of a VIN number idnicates where car was assembled.
A lot of US-market VWs are made in Mexico.


Thanks, man!
 

Condor

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Be aware I just found out its like $1000 to change
the timing belt.
bounce2.gif
 

Eric Stoner

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I drive the 1.8T - estate body - and like it alot. Its covered over 130k miles and still very smooth. Cam belt was changed at 100k (£300) and i've just had it looked at during the last service and they said it was fine for another 20k at least. The turbo can outgun a lot of other cars but isn't too harsh like a sports car.

Would recommend.
smile.gif
 

velobran

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Originally Posted by johnapril
Thanks, man!

Last I recall
Golf/GTI = Germany and Brazil
Jetta/New Beetle = Mexico
Passat = Germany
Eos ... I don't know. My access to Edmund's manufacturer data says "4ITCG"? Who knows what that means.
 

tom288

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I havent read everyones replies, so this may be redundant. I had a 99 and it was good for a 1st car, but there are some things I didn't like. If you get the 4cyl youll eventually have to get new turbos, its slow, and doesnt particularly handle well. Plus Ill never get a FWD car again.
 

LanAltec

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My exgirlfriend had a passat and she loved it. It was pretty nice, from what I remember.
 

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