Vw Tdi

[Texas Diesel]

I'm looking at a VW TDI Jetta. Comments? Polish made engine and German 5 speed. Anything to avoid? Any problems? ALL *OWNER* comments appreciated. What kind of injection system does it have?

 

[av8r]

Love 'em

I have a '01 TDI 5-Speed with 60k on it. Its been a great car, and I plan to keep it for quite a while. Just put on a new timing belt a couple weeks ago which is not a bad job to do. I also had to clean the intake once. Now I have overridden the computer to eliminate EGR, so the intake situation will not re-occur. Car averages 45mpg, with a best of 52 and a worst of 39.



I also have a '86 VW na diesel with 300k on it now. Still running good. 45hp, 45mpg works good as a cheap commuter.

 

[Texas Diesel]

How did you over ride the EGR?



I disabled EVERY one of those suckers on my gassers by removing the vacuum line.

 

[mroodzant]

I have a 2000 TDI. All I can say is great car.

 

[AGrubbs]

I'v had a '99 A4 Jetta TDI since new, and I like it a lot. It handles better (sportyer) than any car I have had before.



The older engines are made in Germany, I am not sure about the new PD TDI's. The older TDI's with the VE pumps will last a long time if you tend to the maint like they suggest. One problem that has come up is the MAF sensor sometimes goes bad. I have had one go out on mine.



Timeing belt change out interval depends on the year and type of transmission and the belt. Auto transmissions originaly were 40k miles, and 60K miles for manuals. Later engines, with different belts, it was 80 and 100K miles. If buying used, check to see if the belt has been changed if the miles are such that it should have been done.



I am not sure on the new PD engines what the interval is.



I have a friend at work with a '00 Jetta automatic, who is over 150k miles on his car. At the 120K mile belt change he changed out the water pump, as it is run off the t'belt as a precaution. . Cheap insurance!



If the EGR is still intact on a used car, you might be looking at cleaning the intake, as they will tend to crud up rather badly. The oily CCV vapor and the EGR soot make a real mess in the intake manifold.



With EGR non- functional, there will be very little gunk in the intake, but you will most likely get a CEL on the dash board. There are ways around this (for educational purposes only! )



Lots of info available (probably info overload) about t-belts and how to, MAFS and just about anything else at

www.TDICLUB.COM



Drive ON!

 

[GerryDrake]

We've got about 6K on ours now, and the last tank was 44 mpg. Its got lots of zip and is fun to drive. I'd buy another one in a heartbeat, though this is obviously only based on 6 months and 6K...

 

[av8r]

Vag-com

How did you over ride the EGR?



I disabled EVERY one of those suckers on my gassers by removing the vacuum line.

I have a friend who is a VW tech. He has the VAG-COM software and patch cable. All it took was a few computer commands, and wala, no more EGR (and no check engine light :-laf ). He gave me a copy of the software, now all I need is the cable. According to him, they are readily available over the 'net. I haven't looked yet.



VAG-COM

 

[Texas Diesel]

Excellent! Disabling the EGR is the first thing to do as soon as I get it home.



Thanks for the info.

 

[CStewart]

I have 26000 miles on my 04 5 speed with no problems and 47 MPG from day one. Great car in my opinion.



Chris

 

[Todd G]

I have 12K on my '04 Jetta. The first tank I got 43mpg and it's up to 45mpg now with a wife that drives it like a race car. No problems at all. This car would beat my truck to 50mph.

 

[Big Mike]

Have 34000 on my 2004 Jetta, no problems, not back to the dealer even once!! Excellent car, you won't be dissappointed

 

[Rman]

I have a new beetle and can't stand it. Biggest piece of junk I've owned. Not to rain on everyone elses parade, but I've hated this car and it's design from day one. Checkout tdiclub.com, very knowledgeable bunch on the TDI engines. Love it or hate it I guess, but nothing has given me as many problems as this car. It's a 2001 NB, auto (part of the problem right there). BTW it's for sale and has been for a while with no interest, I'm frankly not surprised based on my experience with it. And VW dealers are horrible, I thought Dodge was rough... I could go on and on about this, sorry.

 

[SMorneau]

The only complaint I have with mine is interior rattles. Otherwise I smile and pat myself on the back everytime fuel prices increase. If prices hit $3. 00/gal in the future this car will literally pay for itself!

 

[Rescue Ram]

My first TDI was a 1998 Jetta. I bought it used in 1999 with 12k miles. I had some serious IP trouble around 50k. The stock pump bit the sand, and then the replacement went about 2k later. Under warranty, but a major hassle none the less. I never did the EGR mod, so I had to clean the intake about every 60k. The car was totaled in 2002 with nearly 120k.



I bought a 2001 Jetta TDI auto new. It just turned 33k today. Other than regular maintenance, the car has never returned to the shop. I don't like the automatic. It can't decide when to shift, and has generally poor shift quality. I suspect I will need to do the EGR cleaning when I do the timing belt @ 40k. I have recalls for the MAF and power window regulator, neither which have given me trouble.



If you don't mind a quirky car, you will be generally happy with the TDI. If you are looking for pure reliability without ever tinkering... I would stay away IMHO. Also, keep tabs on the timing belt. These are non-clearance engines; if the TB snaps, you are looking at a new head at minimum... around $2k. I second the comment about VW service. I have yet to be satisfied with their service; from a sales or repair standpoint.

 

[JHerr]

Stay away from the older 4-speed, automatic transmissions... I but don't know enough about the new automatics to make a judgement call.



My parents have a '00 Golf TDI automatic. Compared to the 5-speed TDIs that I owned, the automatic seems to sap all of the fun out of the engine. The transmission does not make use of the TDI torque and shifts down too quickly. In short, the automatic and the TDI do not seem to speak the same language, and it shows in the fuel mileage. Mileage in the automatic is at least 10 mpg less than I would get with my 5-speed Golf (35 mpg vs. 47 mpg).



I formally owned a '97 Jetta TDI and a '00 Golf TDI. Liked the '97 Jetta, but traded it on the '00 Golf due to the TDI's great, trade-in value. Loved the '00 until it was totalled. (A long story... so I won't bore you. )



My brother has a '96 Passat TDI with 160K. My sister & her husband have a '97 Passat TDI wagon with over 200K. Everybody that I know that owns VW TDIs (over six people) have had great success with them and have had no horror stories with the dealer or other service issues.



I'd still be driving a TDI today, if only VW would bring the all-wheel-drive TDIs to the States.