Looking on CL, a lot of early 2000s VW wagons and Volvo wagons in my area for around 3k. People appear to take good care of the VWs, stating recent repairs, receipts, etc.
Roll the dice with a VW?
Looking on CL, a lot of early 2000s VW wagons and Volvo wagons in my area for around 3k. People appear to take good care of the VWs, stating recent repairs, receipts, etc.
Roll the dice with a VW?
In reply to CyberEric :
I'm currently on the back end of rolling the dice on a brand new VW, which despite being religiously maintained, has developed a #3 misfire, a failed wastegate actuator solenoid, and a dying KESSY antenna in short order at 75k. This is after multiple prior negative experiences with used VW/Audi products; I told myself that this was my last shot with VAG and that if a brand new one gave me problems I'd learn my lesson once and for all. Well, let's just say I've learned my lesson...
I had a single cam 5speed 2004 Forester. I'm generally anti-subi but mine was great. We put 150k on it and did absolutley nothing other than standard service items of water pump, plugs and timing belt. The interior room was great. 6 foot tall me could sleep in the back somewhat comfortably. I could fit multiple surfboards up to 8'6" inside. Moved to and from college a few times. Being a subaru it never got above 32mpg highway and averaged 28ish highway or 26ish in town. Controls were very pleasant and felt connected to the car(unlike the Mazda 3 my mom replaced it with). In general it was a great daily for the 10 years we owned it.
In reply to pointofdeparture :
Thanks for the reminder. I guess that's why my stomach turns whenever I smell the crayons.
Not a wagon, but I have a 5-speed 850. It's a good car to drive, but the years (and some abuse/neglect) have taken a toll on the plastics. The console is on the workbench right now, as I try to rebuild the armrest/cubbyhole door hinge arrangement.
pointofdeparture said:In reply to CyberEric :
I'm currently on the back end of rolling the dice on a brand new VW, which despite being religiously maintained, has developed a #3 misfire, a failed wastegate actuator solenoid, and a dying KESSY antenna in short order at 75k. This is after multiple prior negative experiences with used VW/Audi products; I told myself that this was my last shot with VAG and that if a brand new one gave me problems I'd learn my lesson once and for all. Well, let's just say I've learned my lesson...
Yep, turbo model. When your local VW guru tells you he won't even sell turbo Jettas, Tiguans, etc on his car lot you know they suck. He loves the diesels and 2.5's though.
Lowered 5 speed honda CRV?
In reply to pointofdeparture :
It's not brand new if it has 75k miles on it. Stuff wears out. My Lexus GX470 literally fell apart at 112k miles. Toyota reliability where stuff never needs to be replaced? Not so much. What burned me out on that SUv is everything wore out at once. My point being, you're unhappy because you have 3 small things wrong with your car with 75k miles on it. That's an unreasonable expectation.
In reply to docwyte :
VW's response to the failed wastegate actuator is to replace the entire turbo. Out of my own pocket. At 75k. Because they do not sell the actuator separately.
It's unreasonable that I'm pissed about that?
I've also never had another vehicle randomly kill coils and electrical modules quite like a VW product. This car has been regularly serviced beyond the factory recommendations; 5k oil changes, plugs at 50k, etc.
And now I'm at the point of thousands of dollars in service at the dealer, at 75k, to keep the car working correctly. I feel like it's pretty reasonable to be pissed about that.
There is an aftermarket kit to install an Audi Mahle wastegate actuator; I intend to go that route, slap some new coils on, and be rid of it. I regret selling my Fit for this thing.
If it was just a coil, I'd be like "okay, whatever." But being told my car needs a turbo replacement at 75k because of a $100 solenoid has me pretty hot under the collar.
In reply to pointofdeparture :
I would be pissed
I'm not familiar with any OEM that sells the wastegate actuator as a separate part.
In reply to Saron81 :
Funny enough Audi does, for a different turbo. Part number 06L145612K.
It's apparently close enough that the aftermarket has come up with an adapter kit to retrofit it to VWs like mine where it's not available separately.
In reply to pointofdeparture :
I understand you're upset. However the car has 75k miles on it, I've seen turbos blow up completely at mileage less than that. All sorts of OEM's want you to replace entire assemblies for thousands of dollars vs replacing one part. Rebuilding an ECU can happen for a few hundred dollars but the dealer will only sell you a new one for a few thousand dollars. Your wastegate issue is solved via the aftermarket in the same way.
If the car isn't under warranty, don't take it to the dealer. A VW Indy shop should be able to keep it going for many years for a reasonable amount of money. If you want to get rid of it, your call. I was in the same place with my GX470, I was sick of working on it and didn't want to also replace the steering rack on it. If I had, within one year and 10k miles it would've cost me $10k, with me doing almost all the work myself, to keep it on the road. That's almost what the truck was worth. That's my Toyota experience and not what I expected at all. None of my VW/Audi's have every cost me that much in one year with only 112k on the clock.
EvanB (Forum Supporter) said:pointofdeparture said:
In reply to Streetwiseguy :
Don't they have bothersome issues with the drive by wire throttle body or TCS or something from '99-up? I prefer the 850 from a styling perspective anyway but always got the impression that the V70s past the first model year had a whole new set of issues.
This seems to be the worst case situation with the ETM, $550 for a rebuilt one with contactless TPS.
https://xemodex.com/us/product/electronic-throttle-module-etm-for-volvo-vo-1020-36001821-10-20/
There are other ways to do it cheaper by replacing the TPS yourself or it could be a different problem. I used the flowchart on that site to diagnose mine and it turned out there was no power going to it. Ran a separate power wire to the connector and have no issues.
It wouldn't keep me away from a good deal on a 99-00 V70 but if I was looking again I might prefer an earlier one.
It is only the Magnetti Marelli units that are junk. '02ish they switched to Bosch, which just work until the plastic gears fail after 250-300k.
I'd look into a Passat, my preference being a B5. We have a 2001 that we bought new and have put 246k miles on it. It drives great and it's been very reliable with the only major repair being a rebuilt head when a lifter failed at 200k and wiped out the intake cam and bearings. Clutch lasted 200k; turbo, transmission, starter, alternator, AC, etc are all original and working great. Interior is in great shape and it has absolutely no rust
I've heard the horror stories and don't know why we didn't have them We also have a 2005 Audi A4 that is approaching 230k with no issues other than window regulators. It still has the original clutch
In reply to ColoradoBob :
That's been my experience as well. Put 100k trouble free miles on a '01.5 Passat, same on a '06 A4 Avant. Many of my VAG I put ~150k trouble free miles on...
One more time for the people in the back:
Early P3 V70/XC70. Or a P2. Honestly though, for 3k, I think we've come to the conclusion that there's nothing better than an 855.
Justjim75 said:https://annapolis.craigslist.org/cto/d/riva-1998-volvo-v90/7134316277.html
That needs a 302! Sadly, no budget or time for me. (Ask David Letterman if it needs a puffer
11110000 said:In reply to Streetwiseguy :
Don't they have bothersome issues with the drive by wire throttle body or TCS or something from '99-up? I prefer the 850 from a styling perspective anyway but always got the impression that the V70s past the first model year had a whole new set of issues.
An '04-'07 P2 V70 or XC70 is a solid bet. There are a few manual, FWD examples out there, but not many. Also, you can get the manual with the full-up T5 motor.
AFAIK Volvo never put a manual transmission behind the T5 model, just the nonturbo and 2.5t engines.
Need to be careful, T5 in Volvoland does not mean "turbo five", in the sense that the two are interchangeable. It can be a trim level, OR an engine output, OR a generic engine code suffix that just means "5th version of turbo engine" My S60R had a T6 engine (made between 275 and 325hp) and the engine code suffix was T4 because it wss the fourth 2.5l turbo engine.
The 850s seem to be of the era when plastics, paints and other materials went "green", and as a result many examples I see are looking pretty beat. The P2s seem to hold up better. You get a bigger, more refined car in the P2, but it won't feel as nimble as the 850.
I am continually impressed with the P2 interior quality. It is like exact opposite of BMW. At 230+k miles, the leather is still soft, the interior is squeak and rattle free. I did replace the A pillar trim because the fabric started to sag, but these are still available new for like $50.
In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :
You could get a manual P2 V70 T5 for like the first two model years, but they are very, very rare. There's one for sale on Swedespeed right now: https://forums.swedespeed.com/#/topics/621073
In reply to pointofdeparture :
So it is. Very interesting!
If you can find a 2.5 Jetta Wagon in your price range, that might be a way to go. Shame they stopped making those. Mrs DX had newer Jettas w/ the 2.5 and 2.0 and they were both good cars. A newer Golf w/the 2.0 would be something I'd drive.
What's this 855 people keep referring to? I thought it was a typo for 850 at first, but a quick search didn't tell me anything...
EDIT: Wagon? As in 240 coupe, 244 sedan, 245 wagon? Only Volvo didn't call the 850 those names?
(Jesse) Ransom said:What's this 855 people keep referring to? I thought it was a typo for 850 at first, but a quick search didn't tell me anything...
EDIT: Wagon? As in 240 coupe, 244 sedan, 245 wagon? Only Volvo didn't call the 850 those names?
That's it. People still called them 242/244/245 long after Volvo just called them all "240", so Volvo pervs kept the tradition with the later models.
If you really want your brain to hurt, consider things like EJ25DET. That's a Subaru engine (EJ25) with Internet-fanboy addition of "DOHC fuel injected turbo" Nissan-suffix code. (Actual engine codes would be EJ255 or EJ257)
(if you want FUN, see what happens if you say "13BTT" on rx7club. You will be laughed off the forum. Twin turbo engines were 13B-RE (Cosmo) and 13B-REW (FD), because of course they were completely different engines)
In reply to (Jesse) Ransom :
It was just laziness on my part. It was easier to type 855 than 850 wagon.
But also what Pete said. It's commonly used for the 2/7/9/8 series of cars to help with ambiguity.
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