Best Model for the money

[LSDJ]

Hoping you fellow Passy owners can help me on this...
I've got about £3000 to spend on a new (second hand) Passat.
Driving is split between local runs (School, shops etc.) and at least one regular 130 mile round trip per week.
Will also be doing 500 mile round trips about 4 times a year.

I'd *like* either a V5 or V6 with leather interior. Don't mind either saloon or estate.

I used to run a V plate 1.8T Sport saloon and I loved it, although the bills for servicing from a decent independent garage were a little scary.

What, in the forum's, opinion is the best combination of model, engine and year? Are the MPG's on these two fairly comparable - am I kidding myself that the 2.3 V5 will guzzle less fuel than the V6?

Do servicing costs vary greatly between the two?

Are there more problems associated with one model over the other?

I appreciate there's a lot of food for thought there but if anyone can give me honest advice on this, its going to be you!

Cheers!

[jamoca]

For that money, 2001 Passat TDI PD 130.

I see you're looking for the V5 or V6, and the thought of a 4-cylinder diesel is *shock horror" but I think the power and torque of the 130 engine will amaze you.

If you find it lacks the something, get it remapped. It worked for me, see my sig below!

[JayB5UK]

Sorry mate but I'm biased towards Diesel's now due to the price of fuel.
Had a couple of 1.8T's myself and I didn't find servicing too much but I found spending £130 a month to do about 500 miles a joke.
Now I have a 130TDi and only fill it once a month for about £67 and get my 550 miles out of it. I *****-foot it a lot of the time, but do give it a good ragging sometimes and I average about 44mpg - Including runs into town a lot.
No matter what you get, ther more cylinders you have, the more fuel it will suck in. Plus the nicer sounding V5 / V6 probably encourage you to rev it more as they sound nice and don't start making decent power until they are spinning a bit quicker. Probably resulting in about 24-30mpg?
For £3k you could probably find a nicely spec'd SE 130 TDi on about an 02 plate.
I spent a bit more on a slightly older Sport to get the 6 speed box, leather & suede seats and all the other bits.
At the end of the day, the choice is yours mate.

[jamoca]

Agreed. all great points. If you really need the power then get a PD130 and have it remapped, I now average 55mpg (more on a run) - get 620 miles to a tank. There's plenty of power when you need it.

[ini]

If you are considering a PD130 Passat, why not go the extra step and go for its big brother, the Skoda Superb 130 TDI.

Many people are still put off by the badge, but you get a 'lot' of car for your money.

For 3k it is even possible to pick up a 2004 model.

+ These cars will not depreciate, i think they will only rise in value in the very near future.

[jamoca]

If you are considering a PD130 Passat, why not go the extra step and go for its big brother, the Skoda Superb 130 TDI.

Many people are still put off by the badge, but you get a 'lot' of car for your money.

For 3k it is even possible to pick up a 2004 model.

+ These cars will not depreciate, i think they will only rise in value in the very near future.

Good point, I didn't because I needed an Estate.

[FLIPKEY]

Try and get a pd130 sport , suspension is great and so is the 6 speed box.

dont get one with to many miles on tho or it will start to cost you £££££s

But a great car indeed

mine had winter pack which worked well and never ever let me down.

[dahri]

Dont Buy a Passat older then 2-3 years.....That's basically all they are worth...I got a used 00 passat 2 months ago and have spend 2k on it in 2 months....everything on it has gone one by one.....including the engine....crap and expensive car to maintain...only thing good about it is the way it looks...

[andy pen]

Dont Buy a Passat older then 2-3 years.....That's basically all they are worth...I got a used 00 passat 2 months ago and have spend 2k on it in 2 months....everything on it has gone one by one.....including the engine....crap and expensive car to maintain...only thing good about it is the way it looks...

Looks like you bought a really buggered one mine was nine when I got it and now over 180k miles and cost me not alot
yours must have been really badly looked after