Back in the Passat World - 2014 Passat TDI SEL

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
After looking at some 2015 Passats I snagged a 2014 today. I talked the dealership into certifying it so I could get the CPO warranty, which also locked in their special rates on financing. I was looking hard at the 2015 models, and we previously owned a 2012 and 2015, so I knew of some of the differences first hand. I had not driven any post fix TDI though, and today was my first experience.

I do like the Jetta, but this move has a couple of reasons.
1: As much as I love a manual, my knees aren't what they used to be. I like the DSG so it seemed a logical move.
2: I like the added leg space of the Passat. The Jetta is my commuter but I carry a car seat in the back, and it fits much better in the larger car.
3: The last 3 VWs I've been searching for a white one, and just miss them. I've felt I've settled with the others, so now I have what I was looking for.

This one has 70k miles on it, with new tires. That is worth about $1k there by itself. I got it about $2k less than any of the '15s in my area. It had been sitting at Keffer VW since the end of February, and from the miles listed upon intake it doesn't seem it has been given much interest. One big plus for me is I can continue top side oil changes this engine. Downside, shorter emissions warranty.

Question for anyone who knows: What is the major differences between the 2012 and 2014 cars. I have the ErWin data for 2012 and 2015 Passats, and wondered if there were any big changes I might need to go download new data to capture. Thanks!

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=489476
 

Rico567

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jun 13, 2003
Location
Central IL
TDI
2013 Passat TDI SEL Premium (Turned in 7/7/18)
Doubt if you'd find much different 2012-2014. We have the '13 SEL Premium that will be turned in in a couple of months. This has been a nearly trouble-free car, and will have less than 80K on it, a great car for someone who wants a diesel.

NB: I have been asked several times why we're turning it in. To forestall any more such questions, my stock answer is that VW is paying us nearly what we bought it for new, and with over 70K on it.
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
Thanks Rico.

To each their own on what they do with their cars with this event. We sold back our '14 Sportwagon and '15 Passat TDI SEL. We came to that conclusion before the fix was approved. It allowed my wife to get a car she liked even more than her Passat, and for me it is the big orange truck that is either a hate or love color.

Now to contemplate modifications. I hope I don't come up with anything as expensive or extreme as I did for the Jetta. Not for a long time anyway. I do have my first mod planned for today once the car is here, and that is simply swapping out the headlight switch.
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
I noted in my picture thread that the car has arrived with a maintenance issue: DRL bulb is burnt out. I may have found another: oil last changed about 1k miles ago and is using Valvoline SYNPOWER MST C3 5w30. The specs say it is 505.01 complaint, but not 507.00. Guess it is time to place an order for an oil change kit and do it sooner than I thought.
 

Fixmy59bug

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2009
Location
Las Vegas, NV
TDI
2015 Passat TDI SE
I would take it back to the dealership and demand they put the right oil in.

Hopefully they’re not dumb enough to say “it’ll be fine”.

But if they do, you should school them and embarrass the hell out of them.

Tell them they have jeopardized your DPF and the warranty on it because 505.01 oil does not meet the ash level requirements which has been set forth by Vw engineers. Unless they know more than the Vw engineers... I’ll bet they don’t though.
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
It wasn't the dealership who did it though, it was the PO when they went to Valvoline. The specs for the oil do say it is for European diesels with DPFs, so that is why I'm sure everyone thought it was okay to put in there. I'm placing my order now for the oil, and believe that the short time period that it is in use shouldn't be that detrimental.

Here is a link to the oil used just in case anyone is curious. https://www.valvolineeurope.com/english/products/engine_oils/synpower/cid(9497)/synpower_mst_c3_5w-30
 
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jrm

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 24, 2013
Location
Oregon
TDI
2013 Passat SE with nav (totaled)
the oil debate is pretty heavy over on the eco diesel forums, Dodge required every dealer to drain the 507 oil out of every eco diesel on the lot and replace it with Shell T6 after loosing countless crankshafts, but no word on the unchanged emission system on those trucks :rolleyes:
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
the oil debate is pretty heavy over on the eco diesel forums, Dodge required every dealer to drain the 507 oil out of every eco diesel on the lot and replace it with Shell T6 after loosing countless crankshafts, but no word on the unchanged emission system on those trucks :rolleyes:

I said in a different post here about a week ago...........How many have had oil related failures been reported here due to the use of 507 spec oil in 2009+ TDI engines? None that I can tell. one of the contributors was comparing a PD as his example and here you are comparing a Dodge eco. This is not apples to apples and VW developed the spec for their common rails, not any other engines. Before anybody chimes in with it also has a VW 504 gasser spec. I have not followed anything about VW gassers and 504/507 failure.
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
It wasn't the dealership who did it though, it was the PO when they went to Valvoline. The specs for the oil do say it is for European diesels with DPFs, so that is why I'm sure everyone thought it was okay to put in there. I'm placing my order now for the oil, and believe that the short time period that it is in use shouldn't be that detrimental.

Here is a link to the oil used just in case anyone is curious. https://www.valvolineeurope.com/eng...oils/synpower/cid(9497)/synpower_mst_c3_5w-30

You can stop losing sleep at night thinking that oil in any way shortened the life of your engine. :)
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
Michael B,

I'm not really going to loose much sleep over this. I'm more worried the car will be hit or something. I tend to drive more and worry less. My point in posting about the oil is just to point out what can happen. At least I have a record of the oil change, nothing on the DSG at 40k (or any 40k record for that matter).

I'm contemplating different things like replacing the NAV, tunes, rain sensor, ventelated seat cushions... At least the tires are new Continentals with around 3k on them, and I don't have to perofm a Climatronic swap like I did on the Jetta. Also looking into how I want to monitor for regens.
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
Michael B,
My point in posting about the oil is just to point out what can happen.

Well, as you said there are many variables to the lifespan of your car. Yes, I suppose a VW CR oil related failure can happen but I don't think anybody should use T6 because that oil will prevent it from happening. (as I said no reported oil related failures in VW CR's that I know of do you) Your point was that Dodge was having issues not VW. (this type of info just creates paranoia) Was switching T6 the answer to crank failures? Or is it just a design flaw in the first place that no oil formula can fix?
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
You have mistaken me, sir.

Michael B,

Are you mixing the words of jrm and I up? jrm posted about oil and the Dodges, my post of "My point in posting about the oil is just to point out what can happen" is more about the fact that the wrong oil can go in, not about the effects of the oil.
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
Michael B,

Are you mixing the words of jrm and I up? jrm posted about oil and the Dodges, my post of "My point in posting about the oil is just to point out what can happen" is more about the fact that the wrong oil can go in, not about the effects of the oil.

Maybe I am but the message is the same. In a CR TDI just use 507 spec oil and forget about outsmarting VW. I also don't believe that the Valvoline oil that was installed in your car did any harm at all. There are some in this community that useT6 in a VW CR diesel with no reported ill effect.
 
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goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
Understood. It is my own peace of mind going back with 507.00 oil, nothing more, and compliance with warranty. T6 with no ill effects does sound interesting. I use T5 in the truck, used T6 in my B4 TDI from 312k to 394k. Last I heard that engine was still running. That was a different beast though.

In the end, I'm not trying to outsmart them. My background is electronics, not chemical engineering.
 

MichaelB

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 11, 2009
Location
SE Wisconsin
TDI
2014 Passat SE DSG
Understood. T6 with no ill effects does sound interesting.
I guess with all those still driving 2009+ TDI with the extended emissions warranty VW would be hard pressed to prove dpf failure due to non-spec oil. That is all the 507 spec was created to do with the low saps formula. And of course, the 30 weight is used to gain fuel economy vs a 40 weight.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
That oil is probably fine. But I would switch to a 507.00 oil if only to make sure you don't have any warranty issues in the future. Otherwise, there are plenty of oils out there that are DPF friendly that don't have VW's certification. I suspect they'd be fine in VWs.

And speaking of Dodge, my understanding was that Chrysler decided to use 5W30 in the VM Motori engine in the Ram Ecodiesel to see if they could improve the EPA FE numbers, even though VM recommended 5W40. When they started to see crank bearing failures, they switched to the 40 weight. Is that right?
 

06bluebeetletdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 30, 2012
Location
Middlesex, NC
TDI
'14 Passat TDI SEL and '13 Beetle TDI
Congratulations on the new ride! I love my '14 Passat TDI SEL. The modification is much simpler on the '14 as opposed to the '15, I'm quite happy with my decision.
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
The modification is much simpler on the '14 as opposed to the '15, I'm quite happy with my decision.
It is? All the '15 needs for Phase one is a reflash. And Phase II only adds a sensor and does a preventive hardware replacement. Couldn't be much simpler.
 

740GLE

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 19, 2009
Location
NH
TDI
2015 Passat SEL, 2017 Alltrack SE; BB 2010 Sedan Man; 2012 Passat,
phase 2 with high mileage (>40-70K) is major emissions component replacement to meet the end of the warranty. Easy to say lot harder to do than flashing an ECU of the Gen 2 cars.

Changing out a DPF/EGR stuffs isn't a small task for dealers that aren't on their A game, I'd be nervous anytime a dealer needs to drop the subframe possibly removing axles (call me cautious).
 

IndigoBlueWagon

TDIClub Enthusiast, Principal IDParts, Vendor , w/
Joined
Aug 16, 2004
Location
South of Boston
TDI
'97 Passat, '99.5 Golf, '02 Jetta Wagon, '15 GSW
What are the odds that a fixed '12-14 NMS will survive the warranty period without requiring a DPF replacement? I'm betting they're pretty low.
 

tdiatlast

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
TDI
2009 Sportwagen (boughtback); 2014 Passat TDI SEL (boughtback)
^^^These 2 posts (19 and 20) are exactly why I decided to bail and have VWoA buy back my VWs. There's just way too much retro-fitting that require decent tech skills, which as we know are frequently lacking at dealerships. I wish this weren't so, as I miss my VWs.
 

goodmonkey

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2006
Location
Anchorage, AK
TDI
2014 Passat TDI, 2011 Touareg TDI
What are the odds that a fixed '12-14 NMS will survive the warranty period without requiring a DPF replacement? I'm betting they're pretty low.
I don't know for certain. Once I figure out the relevent blocks in VCDS I'll start watching what ever I need to. Emissions warranty does only go out to 120k miles for the GenII engines, which is a bummer, but I still like my car. I imagine I'll only be putting 22k or so a year on it, maybe less if I move again before I change jobs. So I'm probably not going to be the best test subject. I did get to see my first regen status this morning with the VAG DPF app. Apparently it had been over 400km since the last one. I just used the free version to see how it worked with my bluetooth adapter, now I'm ready for the paid version.

tdiatlast said:
^^^These 2 posts (19 and 20) are exactly why I decided to bail and have VWoA buy back my VWs. There's just way too much retro-fitting that require decent tech skills, which as we know are frequently lacking at dealerships. I wish this weren't so, as I miss my VWs.
I have a love/hate relationship with VW, and it has been going strong since my first car. Everyone has their own reasons for doing what they did with VWs and TDIs even before the scandle. I don't want to fault anyone on which way they fall or the decisions they make. I'm not a gear head, but I do enjoy that I have some knowledge and skill to do what I've seen others do. It is what pushed me to make so many changes to my Mk5 Jetta that were beyond what many would do.

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=450852
 
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