2002 VW Passat 1.8T - sludge & reliability concern

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DrivinWest

DrivinWest

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May 19, 2009
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Erie, Colorado
Hey all,

I posted a few weeks back seeking recommendations for a used wagon. A 2002 Passat with the 1.8T was not one of the recommendations, but an aesthetically nice one with 104K on the clock has come up for sale locally and I'm going to take a look at it tomorrow.

Some quick research has led me to the conclusion that the 1.8T is really prone to sludge issues. Given the car is almost 10 years old and have 100K+, I have no idea what the prior maintenance history was like. Given that VW recommended a 502 00 synthetic spec with extra short OCIs, I'm concerned about this car's prior treatment.

What can I do to check for sludge on a car that I'm inspecting? Look under the oil fill cap? Dip stick? Are there any other issues I should look out for?

Am I stupid for even considering this vehicle?
grin.gif
 
Agree with chubbs, could have too many issues at this mileage without knowing previous maintenance records. Through experience from what I see at work, this car will be a money pit. I plead to you to look for something else. A majority of people who own vw, not all of them, but some do not care about maintenance. In their head "it's a vw, it will last forever" and do maintenance when they think about it, and/or when something breaks.
 
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DONT EVEN GET ME STARTED WITH PHANTOM WIRING ON VW's #@$@#$ F#@$@#

soo many random gremlins and wierd issues and we arent talking about on old cars... less than 10 years easily.


add in the 1.8T that needs good maintenance to have longevity and you are holding a bomb
 
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My buddy with has 04 Stage 2 GTI with 1.8t. With mileage close to 136k. He got it since 44k. It away had oil from Goodyear shop. Castrol Syntec or Valvoline Synpower 5w-30. Last time I checked his oil filler and it looked spotless. Car uses oil,but not a lot. Ocis were up to 7k, but mostly 4k-5k.
So check filler, any smoke on start up and between shifts.
His golf smokes a little between hard shifts, but just a puff. But he has custom exhaust with no cats.
 
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VWs dont have the best reliability records particularly not from that year. That car could be perfect, or it could have ZERO maintenance.. its hard to say.

Post up pics if you take a look? Its an ok car IF IT RUNS RIGHT but i think crazyoildude sums up how people that get a problem VW with no second car and/or no patience and/or no money nor desire to fix it feel.

Here. http://www.cars-that-suck.com/stories2007.html .. its all VW.

YMMV.
 
Check out the labor to replace the waterpump as the front end has to come off. Don't get close enough to it to check the oil!
 
Originally Posted By: 229
Check out the labor to replace the waterpump as the front end has to come off. Don't get close enough to it to check the oil!


A friend has one and locally the VW independent did the entire timing belt, tensioner, water pump replacement on their 04 Passat 4motion for $750.

The key to ownership with these cars is a great independent mechanic. That all being said they are risky.
 
Sludge is a problem if the correct oil hasn't been used . That said my 99 1.8T Passat has over 150,000 miles and has had synthetic oil since new and no signs of sludge . Any car with a lot of miles is really a result of how it was maintained . Toyotas , for all the hype about them , have had sludgers
too .
Unfortunately VW dealers are bad news - often not knowing what kind of oil to use so the only thing close to a guarantee is a complete service history that shows what kind of oil was used .
 
Ask for receipts on oil changes, what brand, the interval. If you don't get them to start bartering the price down if the car is great otherwise.

Any check engine lights is a sure sign someone didn't care about the car very well. If that is the case look else where. If the timing belt hasn't been changed or no proof it ever was look elsewhere.

Passat's can be great cars when proper maintenance is done. To really know for sure find an independent VW mechanic.
 
I wouldn't drive a VW if it was free, and all of the local mechanics say the same thing. Run away from that car!

My sister had a Jetta and in the year she owned it the car was a nightmare. Electrical, transmission, engine, you name it, it went wrong. The car only had 90k miles on it and was a 2001.

I'm not a Honda guy, but my buddy who runs his own shop says Hondas are all he will ever drive. They seem to run on minimal maintenance.
 
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Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Originally Posted By: 45ACP


Here. http://www.cars-that-suck.com/stories2007.html .. its all VW.

YMMV.


Funny thing is I pulled this site up and it had "Ad Choices" ads for VW of America and the local VW dealer
grin.gif
.

Whimsey
Originally Posted By: jeepman3071
I wouldn't drive a VW if it was free, and all of the local mechanics say the same thing. Run away from that car!

My sister had a Jetta and in the year she owned it the car was a nightmare. Electrical, transmission, engine, you name it, it went wrong. The car only had 90k miles on it and was a 2001.

I'm not a Honda guy, but my buddy who runs his own shop says Hondas are all he will ever drive. They seem to run on minimal maintenance.


The ones up to and including MY 2002 and previous (Jetta, Passat) seem to be REALLY bad a la Ford Focus, know someone with a 2002 FoFo same deal. The 2003 and up on the VW.. may have improved..

The thing is they are good cars when they run but some people say 2006 and up is most reliable. And others say "run away as fast as you can" thats valid too
21.gif


Id take chance on it if the price was right. Thats just me.

FWIW: Know someone with a 1997 Jetta, gave zero issues and was a sharp little ride (and yes they are small.)
21.gif
BUT he also worked on that car, so.. yeah.
 
I had a 2002 1.8T Passat for nine years. I loved the car from a performance and aesthetic aspect, but it started to self-destruct at about 70,000 miles. There were too many issues to go into and I will never buy a VW again.

Interestingly, there were no problems with the engine. It was meticulously maintained with VW spec oil / filter at 5,000 mile intervals. I suspect that 150,000+ miles were easily obtainable on that engine.
 
Thanks to all for the advice! I saw the car in the metal and the exterior looked great. I popped the hood, removed the oil filler cap, and shined a light in the hole. Boy oh boy... it was sludgy, but even worse, the foil seal from a bottle of oil was just sitting by the cams.

No thank you!
 
Originally Posted By: DrivinWest
Thanks to all for the advice! I saw the car in the metal and the exterior looked great. I popped the hood, removed the oil filler cap, and shined a light in the hole. Boy oh boy... it was sludgy, but even worse, the foil seal from a bottle of oil was just sitting by the cams.

No thank you!


Best piece of advice I can give about VW is that if the car was properly maintained it is definitely worth a look, if it was not don't even think about buying it.

The problem with VW is that most people in the US can afford to buy the car but when the warranty is up they can't or don't want to afford the maintenance, (which contrary to popular myth is not outrageously complicated or expensive if you find a decent independent mechanic)

Usually you find two types of VWs available for used sales, those that the owner love the car and took perfect care of it and those that bought the car and NEVER took care of it. Amazingly the split is usually about 40/60 with most being negligent. although you'd think it would be worse.
 
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Originally Posted By: 91344George
Originally Posted By: DrivinWest
Thanks to all for the advice! I saw the car in the metal and the exterior looked great. I popped the hood, removed the oil filler cap, and shined a light in the hole. Boy oh boy... it was sludgy, but even worse, the foil seal from a bottle of oil was just sitting by the cams.

No thank you!


Best piece of advice I can give about VW is that if the car was properly maintained it is definitely worth a look, if it was not don't even think about buying it.

The problem with VW is that most people in the US can afford to buy the car but when the warranty is up they can't or don't want to afford the maintenance, (which contrary to popular myth is not outrageously complicated or expensive if you find a decent independent mechanic)

Usually you find two types of VWs available for used sales, those that the owner love the car and took perfect care of it and those that bought the car and NEVER took care of it. Amazingly the split is usually about 40/60 with most being negligent. although you'd think it would be worse.


Big gigantic +1!!!!

I would look at a ~2003-2006 VW, with the best values being on the 2003. I always let a car run, for a good long time - and i would tell the dealer "I am interested so if there is a problem with letting it run for a half hour or more, that means i cant evaluate the car and i may not want to buy from you." (I always buy cars not from dealer. I give a visual and if the car runs i would say this as well, unless they told me it had a problem.) Drive with no radio (you will be amazed how many lemon cars are bought because the radio masked a noise! Or car bought at night) and put it through the paces. Evaluate, see what the seller wants, and see if you can work out a number. Check how the cap looks, it can tell you about gaskets.. and then enjoy the car. Or pass.

VW is a good car, "IF." That is entirely true. And the ones that are not upkept? .. even with those, YMMV. The ones that somebody says "I put $3000 into this POS" may have further problems, or not! A competent mechanic can help immensely.

Also, never take your new or used VW to a dealer.
smile.gif


Great post 91344George!
 
If the price is right I'd have no problems buying the car.

Most of the fear in this thread is coming from hearsay, not direct experience.

I'd probably drop the oil pan and clean it out and replace the pickup screen. That will solve any sludge problem.

Replacing the TB is not nearly as much of a problem as people are saying.
 
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