Faults:

Mostly cooling problems, radiator fell to bits, car over heated and the head gasket blew at the end of my ownership. Cosmetically there was surprisingly little rust even when I was finished with it at 13 years old.

During my time with the car it never gave any other problems than normal wear and tear and I kept it serviced.

General Comments:

One of my first family estate cars, and what good memories. Bought very cheap at nine years old with average mileage it would go on to serve me well for a good few years, this was a good purchase and overall economical car. 1981 model - first of the update shape of the Passat introduced in the late 70s.

1.6 GL is a pretty middle of the road model, average performance and economy for its time. Not bad to drive but nothing special. The car took us all up and down the UK on many holidays.

Being an estate it had plenty of space and felt very safe and comfortable for a 1980s car.

Overall at the age and mileage it finally gave up at, this was very good going for an older car at the time. Since owned many more VW's and always found them reliable.