how do you weigh when to call it quits on a car?

[Excelsior]

I'd fix it. Halik is right about doing only what is necessary considering the mileage of the vehicle. The nice thing about the Passats and the 1.8T is the large aftermarket for them (like Halik said). Would you rather put in $xx and get another solid 80K out of it (which could be easily be four years) or try to spend a much larger amount on another car? One will cost much less....

 

[rasczak]

alot of vw enthusiasts are pointing me to www.ecstuning.com for all of my parts. Anyone here have good or bad experiences with this company?

 

[halik]

alot of vw enthusiasts are pointing me to www.ecstuning.com for all of my parts. Anyone here have good or bad experiences with this company?

Decent, but they carry the same stuff you can get cheaper elsewhere.
People recommend them, because they sponsor all the forums.

 

[PricklyPete]

alot of vw enthusiasts are pointing me to www.ecstuning.com for all of my parts. Anyone here have good or bad experiences with this company?

I have heard reasonably good things about them on both Audi and BMW forums...but I have not used them personally. They seem to stock a respectable collection of parts, but I don't know how they compare price wise to other VW specific shops or somewhere like rockauto.

I did see at least one thread where a rep for the company recommended the wrong part (BMW forum)...but that's not the end of the world...everyone misreads posts on forums all the time.

 

[speedy2]

There are a few things I consider when I want to get a new car.

1. Is current car going to cost more to fix than it's worth.

2. What is the frequency of repairs? Within this is, how often have I been inconvenienced because of break downs? This can almost be given a cash value.

3. How much would a new car cost per month compared to current car?

Example - New car might have higher payment. But, have a warranty, get better gas mileage, be worth more, hold value more, etc.

This is wear I was when my '98 Grand Cherokee gave me problems.

I paid $3,000 for the thing. Within 1 year I had replaced a radiator, clutch fan, driver door(cost of door, repaint, install). Even still, it had A/C condensation still leaking inside after countless fixes. Uncomfortable, noisy, poor gas mileage.

Buying the GTP was a no brainer. More reliable. low payment. comfy. Came with a warranty. And fast to boot. Not to mention, the dealer gave me $3,000 for the jeep.

 

[PhoKingGuy]

ECS is good for VW stuff, but they do run on the expensive side for things. I like 1stvwparts.com or the ebay store for raydelvw, thats where I usually get stuff from.

 

[Excelsior]

www.blauparts.com/ and http://www.germanautoparts.com/ are both good too.

 

[Jumpem]

When I've had it three years and the 100k mile warranty is about to expire.

 

[kornphlake]

I'm not trying to kick sand in anybody's face but it seems like a lot of guys who love VWs are telling you to fix it because they love VWs, If it were their car they'd fix it even if it meant loosing money. I personally would repair the vehicle then sell it soon after while it's still worth something. Other forums (and occasionally this one) don't consider a late model VW with high-ish mileage a vehicle with a low cost of ownership. I'd expect this to be the first of many repairs, especially as the maintenance has obviously been neglected.

 

[Spicedaddy]

Broken timing belt at a stop sign? I really doubt there was any damage done to the valves.

Just pick up a t-belt and put it on yourself. GermanAutoParts is excellent...

 

[Fenixgoon]

ECS is good for VW stuff, but they do run on the expensive side for things. I like 1stvwparts.com or the ebay store for raydelvw, thats where I usually get stuff from.

fcpgroton also has some good stuff. and worldimpex as well.

 

[Painman]

FCP Groton is pretty decent for Euro car parts too, I've deal with them a couple of times. Part of their appeal to me, though, is that they're in CT so anything I order there before 2 pm eastern arrives UPS ground here in MA the next day. For free if the order is over $150.

If anyone decides to give 'em a try, use the code ellison1 or vortex1 at checkout for 10 percent off.

Edit: Heh, didn't see Fenix's post... well, that's +2 for FCP.

 

[Excelsior]

I'm not trying to kick sand in anybody's face but it seems like a lot of guys who love VWs are telling you to fix it because they love VWs, If it were their car they'd fix it even if it meant loosing money. I personally would repair the vehicle then sell it soon after while it's still worth something. Other forums (and occasionally this one) don't consider a late model VW with high-ish mileage a vehicle with a low cost of ownership. I'd expect this to be the first of many repairs, especially as the maintenance has obviously been neglected.

That makes even less financial sense. You're telling him to put the money into repairs only to try to sell a higher mileage VW which of your own opinion isn't a car with a low cost of ownership. Then he has to go buy another vehicle which will need maintenance eventually as well?

I like some VWs, but I don't love VWs. Even posters in this thread who aren't Vw fans said he should fix it.

 

[kornphlake]

That makes even less financial sense. You're telling him to put the money into repairs only to try to sell a higher mileage VW which of your own opinion isn't a car with a low cost of ownership. Then he has to go buy another vehicle which will need maintenance eventually as well?

I like some VWs, but I don't love VWs. Even posters in this thread who aren't Vw fans said he should fix it.

Hmm, putting 1500 into it to sell it for 3500 is certainly better than selling it for scrap value, or whatever he might be able to sell it for in parts.

I just don't think a passat is an incredibly reliable vehicle with 120k miles, assuming neglecting the timing belt indicates the rest of the maintenance has been neglected this vehicle's days are numbered. I'm not going to troll this thread with VW hate, it's up to the OP if he wants to keep the vehicle or not. Personally I wouldn't. My comments are nothing more than a contrasting opinion, I'm really pretty neutral as far as VWs are concerned. With the amount of information given on the OP's vehicle my opinion is that the vehicle isn't a very good candidate to be driven into the ground.

 

[KeithP]

It might be worth the money to have a good mechanic give the car a complete and thorough examination. Get an idea of the overall mechanical condition and make sure there is nothing else major that might require expensive repairs.

If the car checks out, other then the mentioned problems, then I would pay the $1700 and get it fixed.

-KeithP

 

[DivideBYZero]

I'm changing my advice from 'part out' to 'fix'.

 

[Excelsior]

Hmm, putting 1500 into it to sell it for 3500 is certainly better than selling it for scrap value, or whatever he might be able to sell it for in parts.

I just don't think a passat is an incredibly reliable vehicle with 120k miles, assuming neglecting the timing belt indicates the rest of the maintenance has been neglected this vehicle's days are numbered. I'm not going to troll this thread with VW hate, it's up to the OP if he wants to keep the vehicle or not. Personally I wouldn't. My comments are nothing more than a contrasting opinion, I'm really pretty neutral as far as VWs are concerned. With the amount of information given on the OP's vehicle my opinion is that the vehicle isn't a very good candidate to be driven into the ground.

I guess I figure as a owner of a Passat with 129K miles on it, I have a pretty good idea of whether it can be driven into the ground or not. And it can. The only reason it has had any problems is because the TB change was neglected. If that kind of maintenance specifically is kept up, there is no reason the Passat won't go past 200K just fine. There are folks on Passatworld with well over 200K.

And no, it isn't better because then he'll have to buy another vehicle to replace the Passat, which will cost him even more money. Hm, spend the money to fix it or spend a lot more to buy another car?

 

[alphatarget1]

Can you just buy an engine from the junkyard and put it in?

 

[rasczak]

alphatarget: I'm going to replace the belt, if there's compression issues, the fix the head. 90% of the time the pistons and lower half are fine. If I find there's damage to the pistons or the piston cylinders (?) I'll go the $1700 route and have that mechanic rebuild the engine.

 

[rasczak]

Ok, I am buying the parts from fcpgroton. any suggestions? Considering the age of the car, I figured it would be best to purchase the full tb/water pump kit. for $195. or would it be better for me to just get the TB done, check to see of there are any other major issues with the head first?

 

[CraigRT]

Ok, I am buying the parts from fcpgroton. any suggestions? Considering the age of the car, I figured it would be best to purchase the full tb/water pump kit. for $195. or would it be better for me to just get the TB done, check to see of there are any other major issues with the head first?

I would definitely get it checked. I remember when the timing belt broke on my old 88 LeBaron.. I stalled out, thought it was weird, and tried to start the car again. Good thing it was a clearance head, I cranked and cranked and cranked some more trying to get it to go (hey, i was far from home) assuming your wife tried to start the car again, there is most certainly damage to at least some of the valves...