Those older B5 / B5.5 Passats are getting extremely cheap. We just purchased a 2001 B5.5 (thats the facelift of the B5) for 3.5k. Sedan, V5 (no cambelt), in excellent condition with service history. Finding it really good on fuel too - a lot of mixed online reviews about fuel economy but its probably the way you drive the thing. ABS, ESP, airbags for africa. A lot of bang for buck. However, if something like the transmission packs a sad, its worthless. I like VW's, a lot of people dont though.
tamarillo,
Jun 12, 7:55pm
Look out for Audi A4 of same year, same car underneath, same mechanicals etc. I've heard good things about the 1.8 turbo model, that it is less problematic than the small v6, that's from Audi dr. Heating issues seem to crop up often with them and can be nightmare, silly but do check Heater and air work and don't believe brush off about it just needing a small fix. Maybe. Coolant must be correct colour, type, and clean. If Jazz is around he'll provide more info.
whqqsh,
Jun 12, 8:05pm
We had a small water leak in the wifes V6 Golf so into Qualitats where we got them to do all the usual cooling things these have issues with at this age, surprisingly it wasn't as bad as we thought considering the big box of old bits sitting beside it & we know it's all good from now on. I think a lot of Euro fright & cost comes from taking these cars down to the corner garage & paying costs of 3 or four middlemen to get parts
tamarillo,
Jun 12, 8:11pm
Oh yes you're right. A euro mechanic is needed. The Passat and Audi A4 just seem to crop up with heating issues and if heater core fails it's a big job. So learnt to simply check they work!
gman35,
Jun 12, 8:17pm
They may have just "fixed" it with parts from that old box of bits ! (the bits from your car were already in the rubbish bin on the other side). Sorry just being cheeky.
budgel,
Jun 12, 9:45pm
My brother bought a 2001 Passat 4motion and reckons it is the best value for money vehicle he has ever bought. At the price he paid he could (reluctantly) walk away from it if anything major went wrong.
tamarillo,
Jun 13, 8:10am
Any car of this age is hit and miss. Chose wisely and carefully and enjoy the car! These cars are well built and engineered.
blacksand1,
Jun 21, 11:17am
2001 4motion SW - Beware of oil leaks on the V6, leaks onto exhaust and stinks but costs a small fortune to fix. Cloth upholstery on ours is pretty crappy, cloth on door linings come adrift, also have had major problems with water getting in - floods rear footwells - still cant locate how its getting in. (no sunroof so not that). otherwise a generally nice drive but wouldn't purchase that model again.
Since the public registrations are closed, you must have an invite from a current member to be able to register and post in this thread.
Have an account? Login here.