Opinions - 2004 Passat w/ geared BSM+5spd vs 2001 Jetta, which to keep?

Looking for thoughts on which direction to go as I am at a decision point for my daily driver. Some of you may have faced a similar choice before, curious to hear what you did if so.

I currently have two fairly similar TDI sedans and only need one. Both are black on black, GLS trim with leather and sunroof, higher miles but very good overall condition. I drive around 90 miles a day round trip in a highway commute that includes a mountain pass, so comfort, safety, economy, reliability are what I care about most.

The first is my 2001 Jetta. ALH, 5-speed, 344k miles as of today. This is a trusted car that has served me well for years, bought it back in 2014 and it has been my daily driver most of the time since then. Runs perfectly, T4 injectors and stock tune, great mileage, interior and exterior have held up beautifully, still very much enjoy driving it. I did the timing belt at 315k along with whatever other upkeep it needed (LCAs, brakes, etc), it will need a set of tires before next summer, otherwise nothing.

The second is my 2004 Passat. BHW with geared BSM conversion, 5-speed GGB (same as FHN) trans swap, 300k. Third gear synchro is broken in the transmission and the clutch is too aggressive for my preference, but otherwise this car is also in excellent condition. Major problem areas have been dealt with, turbo, cam/lifters, geared BSM, motor mounts, tandem pump, front suspension and brakes are recent, new parts all over the engine and car, timing belt done 25k ago. Kerma tune, has more power than I need. I bought this car the way it is with the intention to use the fully sorted and tuned engine in an Audi swap project. But I'm considering going a different direction with the Audi and also have decided this Passat is too nice to take apart. It drives well, looks and feels good, and seems to have a lot of good life left. All it needs is a transmission and maybe a different clutch.

So now I have a decision to make. I didn't plan on owning the Passat for the long term but since I have had it and spent some time driving it (including back to MT from CO where I bought it), it has grown on me, particularly the interior size with a much more usable back seat, and the greater quietness and refinement vs the Jetta. The downside of the Passat is that it needs an immediate repair, and the running costs will be higher with a few less MPG and a more complex BHW engine and B5 chassis.

As for the Jetta, the upsides are that it needs nothing, is still in great shape, and is a known quantity -- always has run well and probably always will. Simpler, lower running costs, cheaper parts, and less fuel use. But, the interior size is more of a limitation now than it used to be, and the smoothness and silence of the Passat on the highway makes the Jetta feel more crude by comparison.

Opinions? Is the higher cost and effort to keep the Passat on the road worth the benefit in the driving experience and interior space? Or is the reduced interior space and refinement a better tradeoff for the reliability and low running cost of the Jetta?

I would say it depends on what your most common use is.

If you're looking at a "daily driver for just me and the occasional people in the back seat" - I would say Jetta wins, it's likely to have better parts availability than the Passat for quite awhile, it doesn't need a repair, and gets more miles for the same fuel. I suspect with some time & effort you could quiet the cabin down to match the Passat.

If you're looking for "family road trip" vehicle, the Passat may win out as there's not much that can be done make a Jetta rear seat bigger.

just my 2c.

Can't really go wrong with either imo. Just comes down to which one you like driving more. Extra space on the passat would probably sway me that direction if I were you.

^^^ I agree with that.
I bought a 2002 Jetta TDI wagon, 5 speed, new, and had it for 9 years. I bought a 2005 Passat TDI sedan, auto, new, and still drive it daily. I think overall, the 2005 Passat with a 5 speed and all the issues sorted out would be how I would go, due to the better road manners, better handling, newer vehicle with less miles.

Passat all the way. More room, rides better.

Thanks, I am leaning towards the Passat as well, good to hear the agreement. Though of course if I asked this in the Mk4 section maybe the answers would be different.

The rational decision on cost per mile is in favor of the Jetta given that the commute will be this car's primary use but I find the back seat now is needed often enough that the Passat's room would have value. The Jetta has been great to me but it feels like it may be time for a change anyway.

Next decision will be what trans and clutch to go with on the Passat. The ratio gap from 3rd to 4th in the current GGB feels too large to me. It looks like the DUK ratios are a little closer with only a slightly shorter overall ratio in top, that may be the direction to go. Seems there is still no agreed perfect recipe for the clutch but I will be looking at options with a DMF, smooth and quiet is the goal.

Thanks all for the replies. Below are photos of both cars to illustrate the decision.

I have both. I like both. The Passat does drive WAY better, especially on the highway. It should. It is bigger, it cost more, it is higher up the food chain. And its DNA is much more closely related to a $60k Audi than a $15k Golf.

However, being a minimalist, I choose to drive my Golf every day. It costs less to operate, and is mostly a little easier to maintain, although a lot of stuff on the Passats don't need attention like the Golfs and Jettas do.

But if I neglected my Passats' slushboxes to the point of failure, and converted them to the manuals they should have been born with in the first place, I have no doubt their fuel economy may get within spitting distance of the ALH, and I may lean towards driving one every day.

The Golf/Jetta is a little more "fun" to drive in a spirited manner on twisty roads, though, which I do often, so there is that.

Tough decision, and one I could not make (which is why I end up with so many cars ... like choosing which child is best).

I'd keep the Jetta. Easier to work on, parts are less expensive, and as the cars age this matters. Even though a manual Passat may get close, the FE in the Jetta will still be better. Rear seat room is a negative. I've lived with that (rather my kids have) for as long as I've owned my Wagon But it's good enough if front seat passengers cooperate. And it's outweighed, in my opinion, by the car's lower operating costs.

I've driven my Wagon on a lot of road trips, and it is loud. But otherwise it's relaxing to drive: steering and ride are great. I tend to wear earplugs on long drives. Still, it's my car of choice. After being around VWs for most of my life, I think the MKIV platform may be among VW's best work.

Ive owned a bone stock 03 Jetta Wagon 5-speed TDI and a bone stock, 5-speed converted, 05 Passat TDI Sedan. I vote for the Passat, for power alone!

The BHW's power is certainly addicting. Mine has RC1, so I am spoiled, but it makes my mildly modded ALH cars seem downright poochy. Not that it matters in the real world, but the 100-120 MPH pull in the BHW is pretty impressive, you don't need to look at the speedometer to know you are accelerating. Considering it is only a 2.0L 4cyl, and still uses less fuel than a Smart car, I'd say that is pretty sweet.

My ALH isn't exactly stock, so I'm used to that.

Honestly, I won't leave the B5.5 TDI platform now that I've owned one!

I would keep both if I could. I agree the Mk4 platform is a good product and I have been very pleased with this particular car. That is one of my reservations about letting it go: I searched for some time before I bought it and know I would have a hard time finding one as nice if I wanted another. My experience with it has lived up to what these ALH cars can be as rigs that are both good to drive and to own, a hard combination to find in a vehicle. The short wheelbase and lighter weight do make it the better choice for tight roads, especially with the little boost in power the car is a pleasure there.

However, the reality for me now is almost all of the miles I put on are interstate driving with the cruise often set at 80 or more. The Passat is more relaxed in those conditions. I have more opportunity at this point to appreciate calm highway manners than back road behavior, for better or worse. The mileage difference seems to be less significant at high speeds also.

I'm still deliberating, fortunate to not have to make a snap decision. Thanks again for the thoughts, glad to hear any others.

Keep them both, can't have too many TDI's. They're both paid for so upkeep shouldn't be too bad as long as rust doesn't get them.

Like most in the thread, have owned both - current DD is my 05 passat wagon, BSM delete, FRF 6 speed, original cam at 500k km.

I have teenagers, and trying to cram them into the back seat of the Jetta would have been downright cruel.

As above, the Passat is just a more refined car with more room.

In similar driving, my Jetta sedan got 50mpg in my drive cycle. The passat gets 40-42, but has to haul more weight around.

Windex said:

I have teenagers, and trying to cram them into the back seat of the Jetta would have been downright cruel.

Click to expand...

That's the issue. 95% of the time it's just me in the car, but the other 5% of the time is problematic, usually an airport run or long distance trip. So far I have figured it's either worth tolerating if the trip is not too long, or taken my crewcab work truck and sucked up the fuel bill if space is really an issue. The Passat is appealing because it would become an option in situations when the Jetta is not, while still offering most of the qualities, mileage, etc that make the Jetta work well for daily use plus the greater highway comfort.

The challenge is wondering if it will be possible to keep the Passat on the road for 2000 miles a month without it feeling like a never-ending war with the car, which it was (at enormous expense) for the PO of the Passat I have, and which it is not at all for the ALH Jetta, the reason I went that direction and avoided the B5.5 cars in the first place when I got it years ago. I want to spend the little bit of wrench time I get working on other projects, not my daily commuter, and even nearing 350,000 miles the Jetta still asks for almost no attention outside of careful regular care.

But I think I'm talking myself into the idea that the Passat's PO already did the heavy lifting of working the bugs out on this car and I can get the upsides of it without as many of the downsides as they sometimes seem to have.

I have 2 daily drivers. Summer time = 89 Vanagon , Fall/Winter/Spring = Passat B5 Wagon. As long as I can keep a B5 in decent shape, I'll keep driving one. Took my TDI off the road for rust and replaced it when the W8 Wagon. AWD and IRS is even better! One day when the engine or trans croak it will get the TDI that I've saved.

Figured worth a followup since folks were generous with their replies here. Went back and forth a few times but finally decided to stick with the Jetta. It's a known quantity and does its job well, easy and cheap to keep on the road, and I have enough other projects that I need to take the simple route on this even though I'm tempted to do otherwise.

Ad is up in the For Sale section if you folks know someone who might want the Passat. Going to be sad to see it go but worse to see it sit here, so hopefully someone can use and enjoy it.

Appreciate your thoughts and perhaps I'll have a chance to be back again someday. Working on finding a V6 TDI for my Allroad project which is just a B5 in disguise. Build thread in the Conversions section coming when/if I ever get going on it. Thanks again.