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Problems with 99 VW Passat GLS - READ ONLY

527 messages,  Last post on Aug 08, 2000 at 11:56 PM

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What is this discussion about? Volkswagen Passat, Electrical, Fuel System, Transmission, Sedan

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#496 of 527 My 1999 Passat GLS by skurtzer1 Jul 12, 2000 (7:39 pm)
My 1999 Passat has been a pain in the a** since it turned 24,300 miles. First the car died, after getting it towed, they said the plugs were fouled and needed replacement. Plugs $12.50 each, plus big $$$ for labor Not bad, only 25% of the scheduled life. At 28,000 the brain failed and left me sitting in traffic. Another tow and a $1000 plus bill. Now, my Passat has been at the dealer 28 days as of today. The timing belt went at 37,000 miles and ripped the engine apart in the process. Again leaving me on a busy Philadelphia interstate stranded. (not a real good place to get stuck). They are repairing the engine, not giving me a new one like I should receive. Volkswagen of America has been very unsympathetic and is a victim of its own growing pains. The dealer can't handle the workload. It will never be like it should, I don't care how good the mechanic is, and it will give the next owner a life of problems. I'm getting rid of it as soon as I get it back. I would not suggest this car to anyone shelling out the $25K+ for this thing.
#497 of 527 You have got to be kidding by rickrover Jul 16, 2000 (2:27 am)
I have a hard time beleiving that post. A lot of unusual problems for one car. I belong to two websites devoted to the B5 Passat. Several hundred Passat owners report on every aspect of ownership, good and bad. Passats don't have problems with their computers, never heard of spark plugs fouling and never has anyone posted about a timing belt breaking, especially at only 37k. Either you drive the hell out of your car and don't maintain it or you are totally full of it (I strongly suspect the latter).
#498 of 527 Should I get one (Passat)??? by m9431 Jul 17, 2000 (12:29 am)
Earlier today I visited my local VW dealer after I saw saw an ad that they would consider "any reasonable offer on in-stock VWs." Thought I'd offer $21.7k for a 1.8T with lux. package. I'm driving a 93 Accord EX 5-spd which has given NO problems to date. I took one last look at an Accord EX V6 which, currently, I can have for $22.6k. Pros and cons to each vehicle but the Passat is so much fun to drive. Gees...after reading posts on problems, I'm leaning toward the Accord...and I thought I had my mind made up?! I wasn't expecting the Passat to be as reliable as an Accord, but after hearing of some 'horror stories,' I just dunno (again)....
#499 of 527 WHAT ARE THE PROBLEMS ? by glsammi Jul 17, 2000 (2:59 am)
WHAT ARE THE PROBLEMS WITH THE PASSAT??
#500 of 527 manishrb brake pedal adjust by 1611man Jul 17, 2000 (5:37 am)
I just read through all of your writing about your problem with the brake pedal on your new VW. One thing caught my attention - if you car has 4 wheel disc brakes - there is no adjustment to be made on 4 wheel disc brakes that would lower or raise your brake pedal. Follow me on this - as your discs wear, the distance between your pads and the rotors becomes greater and your pedal must travel down further to push the greater amount of brake fluid to move the pads farther. Right? So, if your brake pedal now travels further than it did when you took it in to the dealer. it sounds to me as if he CUT the rotors to remove the rust spots and didn't replace them as he stated. That would account for the greater pedal travel you are seeing.
#501 of 527 by Sporin Jul 17, 2000 (12:06 pm)
Spark plug fouling can be caused by overfilling the oil, causing "blow-by." This is something that dealer service "experts" have been doing fairly consistantly in the 1.8T despite multiple TSB's telling them not to. My manual says the timing belt change interval is 90k miles. If your's went at 37k then it would seem to be a defective part. First time I've heard of that particular thing happening. I have heard of a few isolated "bad ECU" complaints, but not many.
#502 of 527 by pat455 Jul 17, 2000 (5:45 pm)
m9431 - I suggest you do a Topic Search (on the left side of this page) for Passat and read up on the Passat topics in the Sedans conference. Keep in mind that this conference specifically focuses on maintenance and repair issues, so you won't find a very balanced viewpoint on the Passat in this conference. glsammi - You might want to do the same thing. Also, if you want to see what problems have been discussed here in this topic, use the "scroll up" or "jump to" features at the top of this page under the topic title to navigate through the previous postings. Pat Community Leader/Maintenance & Repair Conference
#503 of 527 Thanks for the advice... by m9431 Jul 19, 2000 (12:30 am)
...to further investigate Passat topics; I realize that, statistically, I'm going to hear more about problems especially on this post. Admittedly, my earlier note using the word "horror" was an overstatement. (Shame on me.) The Passat really is a fine machine--certainly a lot for the money and soooo much fun to drive. (Love that VW still provides a 5-spd manual tranny and may go to 6-spd). Yet I see less "issues" with the Accord. You can see that I'm torn between which to buy as each has pros and cons. Hmmm...if only Honda and VW worked together to produce a vehicle.....
#504 of 527 Air Bag light by cgerald Jul 19, 2000 (3:18 pm)
My airbag light is on in my 1999 VW Passat. The dealer has changed the "clock spring". Next they plan to change the airbag itself, which I've read doesn't fix the problem. Does anyone have a solution to the problem?
#505 of 527 m9431 by jfriedl Jul 22, 2000 (10:25 pm)
My wife and I bought a 1998 Accord when our 1996 Passat got totaled by a delivery van. We loved our Passat to death and "settled" for the Accord because nobody had anything on the lots (GM on strike, Passat just introduced & limited supply) as we were buying in between model years. There was an abundance of Accords though. Final summary, we both wish we leased instead of buying so we could get what we really want in less time. There is a nasty rattle in the trunk that was fixed once around 10,000 miles and has come back. They haven't been able to fix it since. It has come extremely close to overheating twice (not in hot weather) and the dealer has found nothing. It is boring to drive since Honda doesn't offer a sport package. It looks good but that's about all I can say nice about it. I can't yet figure out why it is touted as being so great with the issues we have had. I had less with my 1991 S-10 Blazer (now with 197,000 mile on it)! We are now in the market for me and it has been narrowed to the Passat and a BMW 3 series. While I don't like front wheel drive, I may wind up with the Passat solely for financial reasons. Of the cars I have test driven (limited to performance oriented sedans) the Passat has come out ahead of the non-BMW bread. If it provides an experience similar to that of our 1996 Passat, I don't think I will be too disappointed.

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