Faults:

Design Flaw under battery compartment caused water leak in vehicle and submerged Chassis Control Module.

Fan Clutch failed, fan exploded sending plastic shards through radiator.

Timing belt failed.

3 of 4 control arms failed on drivers side of vehicle.

Oil Sludge issue (known issue) ruined oil pump even with regular oil changes and synthetic oil.

Car has had an intermittent starting problem that hasn't been able to be diagnosed.

General Comments:

The car looks nice, and drives very nicely when it's running.

Very expensive to fix.

Design flaws plague the vehicle and make it a chore to maintain.

Faults:

When I purchased my Passat from a private owner, there were only a couple of things that needed to be replaced on it.

I got a new armrest clip that wasn't there when I bought the car.

Replaced the side markers, previous ones were oxidized.

Got the rear windows tinted at 5%.

New rear tires.

Cabin air filter.

Purchased "Monster" floor mats with Passat on the front passenger floor mats.

Also got "Le-Bra" front cover.

General Comments:

After owning a Honda Accord, I feel like I am spoiled driving around in this car. I can really feel the difference in the steering wheel when compared to Japanese cars.

The car has a sunroof, leather seats, telescopic/tilt steering, height adjustable seats, driver and front passenger seat heaters, and I upgraded the stereo.

This car handles really well around town; it's firm, but still takes bumps and road impurities very well.

But like all German cars, this Passat handles really well on the freeway. With properly rated tires I'm sure it could do 130 mph. I have had it up to 115 mph and it felt very sturdy with minimal wind noise. Which is another nice feature about this car, it has better aerodynamics than a 1999 Chevrolet Corvette! This attribute to this cars excellent gas mileage. When traveling on the freeway at 75 mph, I can achieve 35-40 mpg; I know this through the on board computer that gives you instant feed back on fuel consumption, time, trip time, temperature, average mpg's, and there are two of these working at once. The first one resets itself every time the car is turned off and not driven for another half hour. With the other one constantly on.

Faults:

OK - Where to start? I've had this car for about four years and 50k miles. While it looks fantastic and is extremely comfortable, it is a nightmare. I bought the car from a private seller, I am the third owner. Other than normal wear and tear the car was in great condition. The problems started about a couple of months after buying it and have never stopped since. I have had to replace pretty much everything on this car and here's the list and costs associated with this:

- Sway bar links

(Total $60)

- Ignition control unit

- Upper engine gasket

(Total $1000)

- Lower front control arm om both sides

(Total $450)

- Lower back control arm on passenger side

($Total 150)

- Passenger side wheel bearing (3 TIMES!!!)

(Total $1000)

- Ignition coils

(Total $300)

- Timing Belt

(Total $400)

- Exhaust

(Total $300)

Total cost this far: $3,660 only in repairs, that's not including the expensive Syn oil or any other regular maintenance. Please also note that total cost includes parts + labor, but many of these things I've changed myself so I saved a lot on labor.

Known issues at this point are as follow:

Bad upper control arms on passenger side and lower back control arm on passenger side (Yes, the one I changed about 1.5 years ago!). I just bought the parts and will replace myself this weekend ($360) total. Engine pressure is low. There is an oil leak where I have oil in my turbo hose (I don't know whether this is normal or not, nor care at this point). I have to top the oil every 1000 miles. My check engine light keeps coming on and off and I'm afraid to have it checked. As long as the car drives I won't. The gasket I've replaced is starting to leak again and I have oil leaking in my spark-plugs chambers.

The only reason I'm replacing the arms is because I'm afraid of losing control of the vehicle, otherwise, I am done investing more money in this car.

General Comments:

It is comfortable, but has a noisy interior.