30th Apr 2014, 09:53
OK: 16,000 km.
Cheap to run. Comfy on the highway. Still, flinty around town, but the street conditions don't help. Gutsy engine.
I like the car, but just not enough. Here's my beef:
Navigation.... A piece of CRAP!
Fender sound system... really, I don't even notice it's there. Could be a base unit or something from the Walmart Car Audio dept.
The nav system is so 2004. SLOW. INACCURATE. PRIMITIVE. If you are buying an upper level trim Passat just to get the navigation.. DON'T. Your Garmin is light years ahead. I have reverted back to my Garmin. Charging it right now! If you are buying an upper level trim for any other reason, go ahead... but you'll soon see what I mean.
Volkswagen, shame on you. You should offer to swap out these Nav systems for an integrated Garmin or TomTom unit. Anything. For free. This unit only tarnishes your reputation.
1st May 2014, 14:17
It's not just the VW unit. Around the world, it's found that portables are more than adequate, quicker, more flexible, and infinitely cheaper.
8th May 2014, 20:34
Yes, totally true. But the car looks cleaner and more upscale with a built in unit. There are some other systems that are just as good as Garmin. The Chrysler and Hyundai/Kia units to name a couple. And there are some cars with Garmin in the dash.
2nd Jun 2014, 20:08
OMG a Dodge Avenger? Really? It should not be called a car; luckily for Chrysler, Fiat will show them how to make cars.
16th Jun 2014, 17:05
As a VW owner, my experience is that when they are new, they seem great. You only have a few issues now and then, mostly electric, sensors replaced, etc... Since they are covered under warranty, no problems. But they seem to constantly persist, and VW doesn't seem to do much from that perspective. And I can say parts are rather expensive for sure. I would highly encourage extended warranty purchases, because as they age and the warranty expires, they are simply hard to keep on the road. There are many posts about VW reliability problems, whether you compare them to an Avenger or any other make. Simply put, terrible.
12th Aug 2014, 14:37
Had to replace all the Hankook tires yesterday after only 30,000 miles (215.55x17). Not that they are worn out. On the contrary, they appear to be only half worn. The issue is that they couldn't hold air. The tires had to be pumped up constantly. Sometimes they were just plain flat. Sometimes they were just off a lb or two. They had also become so noisy that it set my ears ringing to hear them on the highway. One more thing, I found that they tended to nibble at road grooves, causing the car to follow that line of the groove. Some people call that "tramlining". It required regular correction.
Well, there are cheap tires made every day. That VW would select these tires as OEM is difficult to understand. Did they do any kind of engineering or performance analysis? I'm sure they did. The bean counters probably made the decision.
I replaced them with Pirelli P7 All Season Plus. I noticed immediately a ride improvement and huge drop in noise. After 200 highway clicks I can reasonably say that they don't nibble either. Hopefully they can hold air.
Still, all new things usually perform well. I'll update this report as the tires wear.
13th Aug 2014, 02:28
I had a VW Golf GTI in the early 90's. I don't believe that it had any of the parts that were originally installed at the factory four years later. I became best friends with my VW dealer. Steering racks, heater core, wheel bearings, radio, water pump, steering pump, rear window (burned out de-icer), brake rotors, PW electric motors, seat track, gaskets... etc. But, I loved that car. When it ran it delivered everything that VW's marketing department promised.
The difference in quality between any model of car today is very minimal. Most of those gaps have been closed or shortened. But, we'll just have see how short VW has made that gap over the next few years.
3rd Nov 2014, 16:14
34,000 Kliks.
After almost three months I'm really happy with the Pirelli tires. They completely remake the car. It no longer has that "flinty" ride characteristic around town that I mentioned in earlier posts. If you're stuck with the Hankooks, get rid of them. They are just too hard for this car's chassis. Now that we're in November I'll be watching how well these "all weather" tires work in the snow and colder temperatures. Stay tuned.
26th Jun 2015, 04:44
50,000 Km.
Nothing new to report. Reliable, cheap to run. Since it is now well and truly worn in, I am seeing 52 MPG (Imperial) on the highway. Still sensitive to crosswinds. Have made peace with the Fender radio. Found how to get the subwoofer to work.
Nav is still junk. Dealers seem afraid of the electronics on the car. The dealer wouldn't even investigate installing a software/firmware update that is common knowledge on the web.
Body is still tight. Though a raccoon tried to change that one night last month. $5000 CDN damage.
Pirelli's are still worth the money. Quiet, and smoother than the original Hankooks. Tread wear looks good. Not that great in snow.
Not bad. Just not a car that I would rave about. Still, it's a cut above the Accords and Camrys.
8th Jun 2016, 05:50
75,000 Km.
Still, tight. Still better off with the Pirelli's. Still reliable. Generally very comfortable.
Changed dealers. Service not up to par at the dealer we purchased the car from.
Of course, the diesel scandal... I guess we'll all know what VW is going to do for us. Reports are that they are about to offer a refund with an option to have to have the car repaired instead. No details are available.
Though I'm not a hard liner, I just want my money back if that's what they are offering. But the news media report that in a California court last month they indicated that the cars would be valued at the September 2015 used car value (whatever that means). OK, I get it. They admit they did it, and they're hoping to get away with a little savings, here.
For me, I bought the car in 2013. I was lied to in 2013. I was defrauded in 2013. I was induced to purchase a car, by chicanery in 2013. If that was not true, and the car was sold in good faith, and then suddenly VW discovered an honest mistake in the design of the car which rendered it unfixable, then OK, 2015 date for valuation is OK. But, it didn't go down that way. I was defrauded in 2013. I want a full refund for a car I wouldn't have bought if they had told me the truth. Depreciation does not occur on a car you wouldn't have bought.
29th Dec 2013, 15:55
8000 km. Mostly Fall and Winter driving conditions.
Great engine. I only have to pump diesel about 3 times a month. Yippee! This is saving me $300+ a month.
Handles tight. Goes straight down the road, regardless of road conditions. But, a little more sensitive to crosswinds than I like, but still acceptable. Smooth ride on the highway. Good on most city roads. Seating is comfortable, but front seat space is only acceptable for 6ft 3in drivers.
I love the seat heaters. Best ones I've had since my 87 SAAB 900. The headlights are very good. Bright, with very good illumination of objects to the side. NVH is very good. Typical of this price range, but at the top of the class.
Trunk swallows up everything... really.
You know... it's the little things that make or break a car. And while there's a lot of good things about this car... and it is good, there's a few little irritants that keep it from being great.
Windshield wipers a big disappointment in sub zero (freezing) temperatures. Windshield defroster effectiveness similar to cars built 25 years ago. That system should be rethought by VW. Brakes squeal when cold and wet.
After 8000 clicks, would I recommend it over its direct competition? Yes.
On another note: Sirius/XM.: It came with a three month trial. Are we signing on for a year? NO. We just don't see the value. CBC is free and free of commercials.