13th Nov 2005, 11:25

It seems some problems on a used car can be traced to a single incident that caused them. This case seems that it might have been a flood damaged car. It sounds like the adhesives, electrical, and other systems were effected by water damage. This isn't a fact, but merely an observation. Buying a used car can be great or horrible depending on the situation.

4th Jan 2006, 23:17

OK, True, every car manufacturer has theirs faults. But it is obvious that VW have more by far! I have had friends with Jettas and they are complete pieces of dung. It wouldn't b that bad if they weren't so damn expensive to fix, but they are and VW wins the battle of worst customer service fare and sqaure!

11th Mar 2006, 22:04

I agree, there is no argument on the fact that VWs are trouble and expensive to fix! Coil packs, windows falling in the doors, shattering sunroofs, failing 1.8T motors, failing transmissions, the list goes on and on!

28th May 2006, 14:57

I'm on my second Passat in 8 years, both bought used. I'm very happy with them. I feel their reliability is about average.

However, I think they look better than any other car in their price range. Why can't other car manufacturers design nicer cars? It gives VW a big advantage.

29th Aug 2006, 18:28

I owned a 2001 Passat until this past week. I have had no problems with my vehicle. I believe VW has a design error that they refuse to admit.

I took my car to the dealer because it began to "lurch" and the engine light came on. I was told, "due to a water drain being clogged, my transmission module was fried". The cost a mere $2,000.00, & that I must pay. The owner of the dealership told me he feels it is a design issue, as the water lines are under the rugs draining to electrical areas. Nowhere does it mention cleaning these in my manual. Also, no TSB was ever put out on this issue. He then said he would do what he could, but VW does not provide customers much satisfaction if their vehicle is out of warranty.

I have spoken to three other VW mechanics at different dealerships; they are seeing the same issues over and over again. There must be hundreds I have read about on-line since.

VW of America told me they would speak to my dealer first before giving me an answer as to whether it is covered or not. Today they lied to me and told me they talked to the dealership yesterday. They are closed on Mondays. When I asked how they talked to them, I was told we tried to call, they didn't call us back yesterday. I have since filed a complaint with http://www.nhtsa.gov/. Hopefully others will do the same.

The Passat is a beautiful riding car and very nice looking, but it will be my last VW. They have lost my family as customers, because of the way this has been handled. Their customer service is extremely poor.

I wish the dealer sold other makes, as I do feel he has tried to be 100% honest with me. If anyone reading this has a VW, please have your water drains checked before you need a very costly repair. It took years for the mechanics to figure out what the issue was, but now if you ask them to check your water drains, it may save you thousands of dollars.

31st Aug 2006, 12:01

It's a VW what do you expect. will say a really stylish car even by todays standards. but sadly endless problems with electrics and leaks and general things going wrong. still better than other manufactures who ask for more for cars of the same size or less.

19th Sep 2007, 14:59

I bought my 2001 Passat brand new after a careful review of the Consumer Reports. The only downside they reported was the quality of the interior. I wish that were the only problem I've had with it.

I work at home and only drive around town so I naively assumed this car would last a very long time. However, with only 64,000 miles on the car I've needed the following in addition to regular maintenance and new tires:

New alternator

New rear brakes

Replaced vacuum hoses

New Boots

Recalibration of the computer that turns on the indicator lights

New Motor Mounts - when I reacted to the need for these the Service Man replied "they are hydraulic and just wear out - yours just wore out earlier than most" He could not explain why that might be.

Oil Leak - covered by Power train warranty thank god

New reservoir hose for cooling system.

All this in addition to the interior just literally disintegrating. Also cosmetic, but equally annoying, the outside moldings falling off, having to replace headlamps, the inside of the headlamps frosting over, and a dozen other little reminders never to trust what you read, even in Consumer Reports.

Needless to say, I will never purchase a Volkswagen again.

27th Feb 2008, 08:26

Here is your lawsuit: http://www.volkswagen-classaction.com/

11th Jan 2011, 13:18

The 2001 Volkswagen Passat is a car that is completely consumed with problems. I bought mine used as well (from a dealer in PA). Ever since then, all I have done to this car is put money into it to fix it. It seems as though it routinely breaks down at least once every four months.

There is also a large amount of problems with it that don't affect its drivability, like the faulty electrical system (lights are always being blown out, door locks have a mind of their own, command center lights will go crazy), or the non-electrical problems (constant broken window tracks, which BTW are a special design, so they cost twice as much, the trunk or boot lid just decides that it doesn't want to latch, all of the vents are pieces of junk that don't open and close right, all of the cup holders are the same way, the interior trim doesn't want to stay on, etc..).

These cars are a joke and a nuisance to everyone who owns one. I have put a total of over $4,000 in repairs into this piece of crap.