2010 model opinion

jswol

Active member
Joined
Oct 11, 2009
Location
california
TDI
2003 jetta
Looking to buy a 2010 manual jetta. I just wanted to get peoples opinions if this is a good year, problems, pros cons, etc? My 2003 took a dump at 325,000. I hate to see her go but it is time.
 

soot1

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2009
Location
Houston, TX
TDI
Currently none. Formerly: 2010 VW Jetta TDI 6M, 1993 Dodge Ram W250 Cummins 5M 4WD, 1990 VW Jetta Diesel 5M, 1986 VW Jetta Diesel 5M, 1980 VW Uabbit Diesel 4M. Currently driving 2018 Toyota 4Runner SR5 4WD.
I've owned one since October of 2009, and currently I have about 55,000 on the odometer. These are the issues I've experienced over the years:
1. When the car was about one month old, a CEL popped up on the dashboard. This turned out to be a defective oxygen sensor plus something with the software. Covered fully under warranty, dealer replaced the sensor and reprogrammed the software, problem never resurfaced.
2. About five years later, driver's door lock began acting up (wouldn't lock or open when operated by the key fob). This turned out to be the notorious carbon build-up on the commutator of the servo motor that operates the mechanism. I fixed that one myself, never bought a replacement door latch. It took me the whole day to take the door and the latch apart, fix it and put it back together. A good, easy weekend project.
3. At about the same time, the gas struts that open the trunk lid weakened to the point that they were no longer able to lift the lid and had to be replaced. This is a 5-minute job once you have the struts, plus about $50 for the struts.
4. Six months later, glow plug on cylinder #1 went out. Local AutoZone store read the code for me for free, I looked it up in the service manual, ordered the plug ($100) and replaced it when the part arrived. Once you have the part, this is a 5-minute job.
5. At about the same time, I began noticing that when the ambient temp drops to about 50 degrees, the small LCD display on the dashboard will not illuminate. It will spring back to life when the inside of the vehicle warms up.
6. Every once in a while, the large display on the center console fails to show the time when I start the car. Turning the radio on and off takes care of this issue.

Other known issues with this particular model:

7. Oil leak around the turbo hose that connects to the intercooler's hot side. Virtually every car has this problem and the best way to deal with it is to disconnect the hose every time you change engine oil, wipe it clean and reconnect it. You will notice oil spot mixed with road grime on the inside of the plastic cover that sits under the engine. It is best to ignore this issue between oil changes.
8. Build-up of oil/water "snot" in the rubber hose on the cool side of the intercooler. The fix is the same as above - ignore between oil changes, but when you change oil, remove the hose, wipe it clean and reassemble. In cold climates, this may cause significantly more serious problem, as the water may freeze. If it does, the intake manifold will be completely cut off from air supply and the engine will not start.
9. Hiccups and stuttering when engine enters DPF cleaning mode. This is quite annoying and noticeable, but there is nothing you can do about this, short of DPF delete + tune.

That's about all I have. Overall, fairly trouble-free vehicle, but I still plan to turn it in next September as it is fiscally the best step one can take.
 

2015vwgolfdiesel

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 1, 2016
Location
Oklahoma
TDI
2015 VW Golf S DSG Silver
Looking to buy a 2010 manual jetta. I just wanted to get peoples opinions if this is a good year, problems, pros cons, etc? My 2003 took a dump at 325,000. I hate to see her go but it is time.
... if you can stomach going to a gasser


As I was looking on the net, saw new 6M Jettas for $12,995-ish


Why buy used:confused:
 

AlcoC420

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Location
Southeast U.S.
TDI
.
Our '06 JSW 6M went ~ 110,000 Miles before we sold it back to VW and overall it was a fine car that we enjoyed. Transmission was fantastic throughout its entire life with us -- just perfect in every way. Like soot1, we had the Oxygen Sensor issue early on, but it was fixed and never appeared again. Our tailgate latch mechanism failed and was replaced. Never had a HPFP failure, but we used Stanadyne Lubricity additive for most of its life with us.

The only high dollar repair we narrowly dodged was a DPF replacement at ~80K Miles just prior to warranty expiration.
 

jswol

Active member
Joined
Oct 11, 2009
Location
california
TDI
2003 jetta
It would be a TDI for sure. I was hoping someone would chime in on how many miles they have on theirs in the 2 to 300,000 range. Besides a timing belt I had little to no issues with my 2003.
 

jetlagmech

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2009
Location
Toledo, WA
TDI
2010 jetta
My 2010..... I bought new Sep '09. 155,000 miles. so not even close to your requested 2-300,000 mile report. I am keeping mine. so like it enough to not sell back. price they offer I considered fair but not great.

list of repairs not routine maint.... radio, 2 door locks(1 replaced, 1 brush motor cleaned), 1 glow plug, 1 diferential pressure sensor G450, A/C compressor RCV valve, cracked DPF not fixed yet, Throttle valve had to pull and clean twice, have had intercooler ice issues twice until I drilled the tiny hole in the lowest point of intercooler pipe.

other stuff. installed dieselgeek bracket for p2015 code. no code but was close to wear limit to throw code. tracked every mile since new on fuelly, lifetime average 42 mpg. used opti-lube every tank since about 8,000 miles, have the 2 micron filter setup and serpentine belt protector plate installed.

any questions on above points, ask and I can elaborate.
 
Last edited:

AlcoC420

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 6, 2010
Location
Southeast U.S.
TDI
.
... A/C compressor RCV valve .... installed dieselgeek bracket for p2015 code ...
Ooops, I forgot that our '10 JSW had these too. I never got around to replacing the RCV because our A/C still worked most of the time, but I did install the DieselGeek bracket which provided the perfect fix.
 

BrBa

Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2017
Location
Las Vegas
TDI
2010 Jetta - so long friend!
Bought my 2010 new, and have done most of the maintenance myself which has been very easy. I stuck with the standard intervals in the owners manual for oil and filter changes, fuel filters, cabin and air filters. Other than tires and wiper blades, the only item I had to replace in my 111k miles of ownership was an rcv valve at 60k miles. The intermittent cooling seems to be rearing its head again so I was going to do another one at 120k miles if I were going to keep it. But, I bought something else and doing the buyback instead. It has really been a great car. I'll probably be kicking myself for giving it up in a few years but that's life.
 
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