VW TDI.. are they good?

[AstroGuardian]

What? You guys obliged to put urea in diesels?

 

[desy]

Yes Euro spec diesel used to be cleaner than NA then the newer emission laws came in and now it requires cleaner fuel and combustion

 

[Instan00dles]

I just picked up a VW Golf wagon with the 2.5L, the premium for the tdi, maintenance (DSG fluid changes and timings belts) and other potential problems were not worth the better gas milage. Unless you get a manual or do all your car maintenance yourself the cost of timing belts and DSG fuild changes wipe away your savings. On top of that there is the potential for a hpfp failure, if you live in a cold climate your intercooled will ice up and hydrolock your engine and there are issues with the exhaust flap and regen cycle. I could have ended up with a TDI without those problems but I didnt want to risk it, if you can get your hands on a older tdi with low miles I would go for it. I had a 96' jetta turdo diesel and put 500k km's on it before te body rotted out and my dad has a 01' tdi with 600k km's on it still going strong.

 

[ViviTheMage]

Maybe I am dumb, but this doesn't scare me off. If it has a 5 gallon tank, it'll go 10k-15k between fill ups. A little bit of eye rolling if the dealer charges $40 for it when I could do it myself for half that. But then I would remember that we could push 50 mpg highway on cruise mode.

Plus I have had to replace 2 EGR valves on wife's jetta. If this avoids that cost/hassle, then totally worth it.

I did get a chuckle out of those folks suggesting you could pee in the old ones. Is that true? Too funny.

Just another piece to go wrong, not something that'd make me not get a 2015 either, haha.

 

[TheAdvocate]

I just picked up a VW Golf wagon with the 2.5L, the premium for the tdi, maintenance (DSG fluid changes and timings belts) and other potential problems were not worth the better gas milage. Unless you get a manual or do all your car maintenance yourself the cost of timing belts and DSG fuild changes wipe away your savings. On top of that there is the potential for a hpfp failure, if you live in a cold climate your intercooled will ice up and hydrolock your engine and there are issues with the exhaust flap and regen cycle. I could have ended up with a TDI without those problems but I didnt want to risk it, if you can get your hands on a older tdi with low miles I would go for it. I had a 96' jetta turdo diesel and put 500k km's on it before te body rotted out and my dad has a 01' tdi with 600k km's on it still going strong.

I loathe, I mean LOATHE, the 2.5L engine. It is an abomination. Sorry, that would be an absolute dealbreaker for me.

Also my wife's 2000 tdi jetta is a manual, but otherwise fully optioned GLS, right down to the Monsoon branded sound system with the 5 disc changer that could do suffle mode across all 5 discs. Seems so antiquated now, but that was a pricey option back then.

Anyway, she would never drive any car, but especially a TDI, unless it was a manual. Which is why we were so excited for the 2015 Golf Sportwagen. As far as we have been able to tell you could not buy a manual TDI JSW with a sunroof. They just did not make them. Early reports are that it will be an available option for the GSW (6 speed).

Oh and we live in a warm climate, so all those cold weather concerns are also not an issue.

 

[MDE]

My recommendation is to skip the Jetta and get a Passat TDI with leather. You'll likely have a few more thousand in, but the back seat of a Passat is legit. Plenty of legroom and the styling of the car is a little nicer.

It's on my list of serious cars to consider for my next purchase....specifically for legroom and features.

The back seat in a Jetta is no joke. I'm 6'4" and can sit behind the driver's seat in mine comfortably. That's without adjusting it from my driving position.

We had -15F temperatures here last winter and I had no issues at all besides taking forever to warm up.

 

[NetWareHead]

The back seat in a Jetta is no joke. I'm 6'4" and can sit behind the driver's seat in mine comfortably. That's without adjusting it from my driving position.

We had -15F temperatures here last winter and I had no issues at all besides taking forever to warm up.

Live in NH and drive a 2009 VW TDI. Last winter was one of the worst winters I ever remember and the car never had issues with starting. One morning I went skiing and drove up to northern maine. Car started without a hitch in -20 degree morning and without a block heater. All of my other buddies who drive diesel pickups and tow trucks etc... were amazed. They had to leave their trucks plugged in overnight.

 

[skyking]

we were quite pleased with how fast our ALH TDI beetles warm up. Granted, we only saw lows in the 20's but they were making heat in about 5 minutes.
My P-pumped dodge truck, not so much. I could drive it a half hour with the cooling fans off and not quite get to the thermostat level. the 950 pound engine could disperse more heat and absorb it than there was to spare.

 

[HitAnyKey]

I loathe, I mean LOATHE, the 2.5L engine. It is an abomination. Sorry, that would be an absolute dealbreaker for me.

Whats wrong with it?

 

[TheAdvocate]

Whats wrong with it?

Noisy, sluggish, unresponsive, poor fuel economy.... reliability, and wonky 5 cyl setup.

It sounds and drives like the engineers showed up for design day, said "meh", and made sure the beancounters were kept happy.

I don't think I am alone in my dislike for it. It was so panned that VW dumped it from their entire lineup. It has been replaced by a 1.8 turbo across the board. Much better engine.

 

[ChronoReverse]

They used to have a lot of advantages but if I were in the market for a new Volkswagen, I'd be looking at the TSI instead. You'll get the same low-end torque, more horsepower, the ability to use regular gas while still having a lower price-tag.

I can't help but feel that diesels have lost their advantages recently.