Failed water pump, 200 miles past warranty

Lex Tdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Location
Lexington ky
TDI
2013 Passat
Sure sign me up for the lexus in the 20k-25k range.... If you were expecting lexus results for half the price that pretty much sums up your disappointment

These cars have never been made for people who dont drive a lot but they are amazing vehicles for people who drive 30-50 thousand miles a year. I would never pay for an extended warranty, they are joke, 10-15% of the money collected goes to payouts and the rest is profit for the company, how in the world is that a good deal? Most extended warranty are in the 2-3 thousand dollar range. Less than what you have spent. This has been repeated thousands of times on this website... skip the warranty and find a guru that has a great reputation on this site.
 

aja8888

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 25, 2007
Location
Texas..RETIRED 12/31/17
TDI
Out of TDI's
Sure sign me up for the lexus in the 20k-25k range.... If you were expecting lexus results for half the price that pretty much sums up your disappointment

These cars have never been made for people who dont drive a lot but they are amazing vehicles for people who drive 30-50 thousand miles a year. I would never pay for an extended warranty, they are joke, 10-15% of the money collected goes to payouts and the rest is profit for the company, how in the world is that a good deal? Most extended warranty are in the 2-3 thousand dollar range. Less than what you have spent. This has been repeated thousands of times on this website... skip the warranty and find a guru that has a great reputation on this site.
I have to agree...why pay up front for repairs you may never have. Plus, the car comes with a factory warranty anyway.
 

Deepwater6

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 20, 2014
Location
Houston, TX
TDI
2012 Passat SEL Premium
Just to let you know the current status of the water pump - got it replaced for $550.00 and used the same timing belt because the vehicle is being sold back to VW. Will miss the handling, ride and Fender stereo the most. This is my first and last VW. Hope nothing else breaks between now and the turn over date. All the best to all the VW owners......you are better off selling it back because the vehicle will be worth nothing after all the dust clears.
 

Lex Tdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 4, 2016
Location
Lexington ky
TDI
2013 Passat
All the best to all the VW owners......you are better off selling it back because the vehicle will be worth nothing after all the dust clears.
Unless you drive it till it dies which is the point i made, there are LOTS of people on this site who happily drive 10-20 year old cars that just keep driving, it doesnt matter if its worth anything or not. Oddly enough though, those 10-20 year cars have a lot more value than just about any other car of the same age out there....
 

eatpasta

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2011
Location
Santa Barbara, Ca
TDI
2012 Passat
holy crap this thread is still kicking!

I got my buy back paperwork notarized yesterday and sending it in today.

I absolutely LOVE the car but add in the dealership, the Diesel BS, the check engine light just came on again the other day....


I may be signing a different tune if they hadn't stopped making the Passat in a stick. It just feels like VW is changing directions.

I'm with the Honda people. I drove a 1990 Accord for more than a decade - zero issues. 250k on the clock when I handed it off to my sister... aaannnnnnd now its trashed...but still runs fine.

If I had to get a 4 door tomorrow, I would get the Mazda 6 - hands down.

I may come back to VW again sooner or later but not anytime soon.

Lookin at replacing it with a used Leaf. We have solar so 'free' fuel and you can get a 2013 for about $8k.

For the hell of it, I'm going to put a letter to the new owner in the manual, like a message in a bottle.

As a petrol-head I do actually love the car. It's just such a nice place to be and it was my wife and I's first endeavor together so it will always be special to me.

I will really miss that Diesel percussion and I can say almost for sure we will find another VW Diesel eventually
 
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Raabscuttle

Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2015
Location
California
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL
I love the VW. I love how it handles, how it drives. I love the diesel torque. I like the Fender stereo. I like the styling.


BUT I don't like the cost of repairs.
$1200 for water pump failure (also did timing belt a same time). This was 3rd party VW/Audi specialists. They mentioned that the water pumps on these cars are prone to failure around 80K miles (where mine hit).

$1200 for the AdBlue heater - crazy (I instead drove it with the check engine light for 45K miles since VW wouldn't help - and only got it fixed when the warranty extension came in fro VW)

and now about to turn it in (Feb 18th my official date) and the car throws up two more check engine codes (exhaust temp and mass air flow errors) AND sounds like it is not getting oil to the head until it warms up (yes, oil is full, but crankcase breather hose is showing oil blow-by - LOTS of it) and a new sound when it hits 2000RPM like a timing chain is rubbing (of course, it doesn't have a chain - just a belt) Of course, VW says I have to be able to drive the car in, so I have it parked for now because I don't want to toss another dime into it.

Still compared to my Mustang - it is a champ mechanically - just much, much more expensive. Now looking at a hybrid.
 

eatpasta

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2011
Location
Santa Barbara, Ca
TDI
2012 Passat
I love the VW. I love how it handles, how it drives. I love the diesel torque. I like the Fender stereo. I like the styling.


BUT I don't like the cost of repairs.
$1200 for water pump failure (also did timing belt a same time). This was 3rd party VW/Audi specialists. They mentioned that the water pumps on these cars are prone to failure around 80K miles (where mine hit).

$1200 for the AdBlue heater - crazy (I instead drove it with the check engine light for 45K miles since VW wouldn't help - and only got it fixed when the warranty extension came in fro VW)

and now about to turn it in (Feb 18th my official date) and the car throws up two more check engine codes (exhaust temp and mass air flow errors) AND sounds like it is not getting oil to the head until it warms up (yes, oil is full, but crankcase breather hose is showing oil blow-by - LOTS of it) and a new sound when it hits 2000RPM like a timing chain is rubbing (of course, it doesn't have a chain - just a belt) Of course, VW says I have to be able to drive the car in, so I have it parked for now because I don't want to toss another dime into it.
.
our car just threw the adblue heater code as well!! what the hell!

I was bummed about the buyback until now. I'm feeling like we're getting a ride from a sinking ship.
We are taking the kid to Disneyland for the first time on Thursday so this weekend will be the cars' last hurrah with us in the form of a short road trip (won't even need to fuel up! I will miss that...) but then it will go back in mid march

my favorite part of all this is that our local dealership isnt participating in the buyback so we have to drive 45 mins away to drop it off.

we test drove a Leaf and I really liked it - wife didnt like it.

Back on the hunt. Mazda 6, here we come
 

tdi54

Veteran Member
Joined
Dec 19, 2010
Location
California
TDI
1981 Rabbit Diesel(sold), 2009 Jetta TDI MT(sold)2010 Jetta TDI MT, 2015 Jetta TDI SEL, DSG, 99 Ford F 350 PSD Dually, 2016 BMW X5 xDrive35d, 2016 535d
it's interesting too many water pump failures on Passat's. Mine is a Jetta 2010 TDI and has over 170K with original water pump.It drives/pulls strong. My recent trip to Mammoth lake via highway 395-- 700 miles in total-- I averaged mid forties/gal with speeds excess of 70 mph. Not many vehicles in the current market can beat TDI's highway fuel efficiency.
But I also understand with VW it's really hit and miss.
 

eatpasta

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2011
Location
Santa Barbara, Ca
TDI
2012 Passat
it's interesting too many water pump failures on Passat's. Mine is a Jetta 2010 TDI and has over 170K with original water pump.It drives/pulls strong. My recent trip to Mammoth lake via highway 395-- 700 miles in total-- I averaged mid forties/gal with speeds excess of 70 mph. Not many vehicles in the current market can beat TDI's highway fuel efficiency.
I did a 'one tank challenge' on our 2012 (video is up on youtube if you get bored). We went from Santa Barbara up to Monterey up Highway 1, around Monterrey for three days and back on 101.
solid 45 mpg with three/four adults and luggage, and barely 2/3 of a tank

Astonishing.
 
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Rico567

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Location
Central IL
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium (Turned in 7/7/18)
My water pump started to leak at about 85K miles, it is leaking bad enough at 87K miles that it takes about 40 miles to go from full to when the low coolant warning light comes on. I have already bought a replacement car and the Passat is going to be parked until the buyback happens. With a 40 mile range with the leak, it is going to be fun getting it to the dealer, nearest one is 70 miles away and I am not spending the money to fix it before then.
If I had this problem, I'd just pull out our AAA card on buyback day and have them tow it. Our membership provides for 100 miles free on tows. If you got the thousand dollars worth of credit cards, I'm sure you realize that 3 years of roadside assistance came with that. That'll get you towed free to the nearest dealer, just set up your buyback there.
 

Rico567

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Location
Central IL
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium (Turned in 7/7/18)
it's interesting too many water pump failures on Passat's. <snip>
"One swallow does not make a summer." And a few reports of failed water pumps doesn't mean that thousands of Passats are suddenly failing. Internet forums like these attract the bad news like a road kill does maggots. The vast majority of people who are doing just fine are never heard from.
 

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
"One swallow does not make a summer." And a few reports of failed water pumps doesn't mean that thousands of Passats are suddenly failing. Internet forums like these attract the bad news like a road kill does maggots. The vast majority of people who are doing just fine are never heard from.
While I completely agree that internet forums tend to be skewed toward people who have problems, quite a few people who have experienced water pump failures in NMS Passats are regular, active members of this forum. This would indicate to me that this is more than an internet phenomenon of concentrated failure reports.
 
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