Passat B5.5 TDI Estate - what to look for when buying?

[VAGMAN2]

As above, looking to get a B5.5 estate in the new year, probably around the 90/100K mileage mark (as long as it has FSH!), and in the 1.9TDI (pref. the PD 130 engine).

I know about the water drain plugs issue, but is there anything else I need to be looking out for/common faults?

Thanks-in-advance.

[stig414]

Door cards can leak when seal goes on them. Water then ends up in car as oppose to floor outside

[yaman]

Overall condition
Evidence of accident damage
Test all electrics
Wheel kerbing
30 min test drive to make sure it gets up to temp and not over
Test clutch for slipping and vibration
Front suspension and steering for noise and sloppiness
Take oil-filler cap off at idle, to check for excess fumes
General feel, car should feel 'right tight & light' to drive

Regards
Jim

[rolfather]

Hi vagman,my wife has had one these passat's for five years now and its's been a fantastic car to own/drive.It's an 04 estate 130 bhp highline.When we bought it it had 99k on the clock with f.s.h, so don't let this put you off.There are a couple of things not mentioned that might be worth bearing in mind.Check to see if the climate control works fine,put it on full whack for a few mins and make sure that it works o.k with no ticking/clicking noises(unit will need attention if it does).Secondly the e.g.r valve can clog up with soot/tar like deposits which can cause problems.Hope this helps.

[VAGMAN2]

Thanks for the above.

I've also read the front suspension arms on the Passat are of a wishbone design that can also cause issues - is that true?

Are there any certain areas in which the B5.5 can also suffer from body corrosion?

[996jimbo]

Parts of the front suspension will fail to some extent sooner or later after 100k miles but it's not necessarily very expensive (and not unique to Passats). I've had no problems with corrosion whatsoever (unlike Mercedes).

Check the radiator bottom corners (especially offside). Check when the cam belt was done. My turbo was whistling at 70k miles and is slightly louder now at 170k - check oil changes and don't skimp on them.

Many service parts are relatively cheap eg tyres, brake pads & disks etc and the cars are generally fairly easy to work on.

[scotty33]

Sticking turbo vanes is quite common and can cause overboost = limp mode, try to give it a wide open throttle run up a steep hill in 3rd gear or higher, try to exceed 3000rpm, if it has this issue it should show itself under these conditions.
You know the drain plug problem causes central locking and electric window gremlins? It also can affect the brake servo and master cylinder too.
front suspension knocks can end up expensive if you want to stay with genuine parts, there are 8 track control arms forming the front suspension at £80-100? each from VW.
door mirror glass heating elements will fail if they are left on all the time

[Thon]

I am on my third 130TDI sport and have recently found another for a good friend, so here are my pointers: -

1. Aircon - make sure it chills and blower runs at a constant speed without constantly speeding up and slowing down.
2. Radiators seem to leak around 8-10 years and require quite a lot of work to replace - figure £300 for a complete replacement.
3. Rust can appear around front wheel arch - I think this can be quite expensive to eradicate but have not had to deal with it myself.
4. Tyres can wear quickly, especially with enthusiastic driving. Figure £70 per tyre.
5. Rear wiper spindle can seize and require replacement. Check it works properly. Rear washer pipes can leak onto the back door mechanism and cause failure.
6. Front suspension does wear but can be simply and reasonably cheaply replaced component by component.
7. Check coolant header tank for oil contamination.
8. Timing belt should always be replaced with the idler and water pump - getting to these components is simple when changing the belt and they do fail.
9. Service history essential!!

There are many more areas other people suggest you check for - these are simply the ones that have been apparent in my 3 vehicles. Overall I think they are excellent cars - very useable, versatile and reliable. Good Luck !!