Are the VW Pasate W8 4Motions a good car?

beetle1234, Nov 1, 2:43am
2002 model,all the bells and whistles,under 200k,would like to buy one for me ma who has a wee corolla 1.3 but abit gutless to tow the trailer.What issue,s do I look for? Cheers AJ

tamarillo, Nov 1, 4:20am
13 years old and Lots to go wrong, and this from a euro defender!

gunhand, Nov 1, 4:23am
Congratulations, once you have admitted the problem to your self you are half way to recovery.

johotech, Nov 1, 4:32am
Keep the Corolla.

monaro17, Nov 1, 4:58am
Go for the 2.3 V5 model if you must. The w8 isn't a sought after model or one recognized for reliability.

tamarillo, Nov 1, 5:02am
Yeah I know, I tried to cure myself with the Toyota mkX but failed, again. Nothing beats the fix.

gunhand, Nov 1, 5:07am
Yes, yes you did, falling off the wagon is expected lol. 10 steps and all.

poppy62, Nov 1, 6:55am
Hey Gun, Tam is out of town. That's Mrs Tam having an aberration, wouldn't want to be in her shoes when her old fella gets back and reads the previous posts.

cagivachick1, Nov 1, 8:13am
a friend has a w8, its a dog

meow_mix, Nov 1, 10:56am
The Passat W8 is one Euro car that Thejazzpianoma would not recommend buying, and he loves his Euros. There are many horror stories with them. One poster a few years back had to fork out $10,000 for a replacement transmission. The camchain is on the back of the engine and is a real bitch to replace.

The W8 was really an experimental engine by VW which they have since dropped, probably a nice car when new, but no good at 13 years old. Not that the Passat was a completely bad car, you could buy one with the 1.8 turbo 4 cylinder engine and it could be reliable enough.

If you're looking for a sporty sedan then there are much better options. Subaru Legacy turbos are well sorted, or you could even look at an Aussie V8, but a Passat W8, sorry would strongly recommend against them.

tamarillo, Nov 1, 6:06pm
Bloody dog, I go out for a ride and look what happens.

skull, Nov 1, 6:31pm
So Mum wants to go from a 1.3 litre Corolla it an 8 cylinder VW Passat? Seems like quite a step to me and one that I would hesitate to take. As others have already said the W8 has not earned itself any reliability reputation. She would be better off with a Toyota Blade, 2.4 or 3.5 would easily tow a trailer. Even a 1.8 Corolla would be a noticeable step up.

trogedon, Nov 2, 2:26am
Trolling for a response.

beetle1234, Nov 2, 2:58am
Believe it or not Ma likes powerful cars,(not too shabby a driver for a granny).She had a great run out of her 93 5cyl gold badge Honda Vigor until it died of old age. She already has a big block 1600 1302s dubbie in the shed as a sunday car/summer car and I was wondering what the W8 was like. I really thank you guys for your imput and will steer clear of them.thanks. cheers AJ

fiatracer, Nov 3, 1:40am
they are really nice to drive, but yes the cam adjusters are a big problem. There is a 'cheat' that involves 'shocking' the solenoids to free them, and I've heard that it can work, but if it doesn't, the car's barely worth fixing.

gofer0007, Nov 7, 12:35am
Yer these are great engines and am ex VW/ Audi. I used Euro beats a new Japer any day as the quality and build of the Euro are better and that's fact. All cars can fail and due to high import duties and costs of part years ago NZ is scared or Euro cars. This makes the used ones now such bargains and have bought so many with stuffed auto trans and just imported to 3 at a time used boxes from Germany for $150-$200 each. Quick fix and make a good profit for a then decent runner again.

quickbuck, Nov 7, 4:17am
The fact that a real cheap HSV Clubsport of the same year is at least TWICE the market value says it all really.

vtecintegra, Nov 7, 5:11am
I guess if your requirements are thirsty and gutless the VW five cylinder makes sense. Otherwise not so much.

henderson_guy, Nov 7, 5:59am
Not the greatest sales pitch in the world.

franc123, Nov 7, 10:40am
Where DO you people get these strange delusions about the allegedly marvellous build quality of this VAG crap? Its a complete myth, the reason they are cheap used buys is because they simply are not viable propositions for the average motorist once they get into six figure mileage's or are over 10 years of age, and are beginning to recycle themselves as intended by their manufacturer . And your solution to what is clearly an inherent fail point with these autos is to not cure the fault but instead fit a questionable used one from overseas that may similarly lunch itself in the hands of an unsuspecting buyer? Charming.

ema1, Nov 13, 10:39am
Hoodwinked into the bargain and I'm firmly with franc123 on this one.