Test drove Passat TDI DSG. Initial impressions

Cons.
- Steering wheel is certainly off. Its towards right. So your right hand is closer to it than your left hand. It was very weird to drive and I'm not sure if I can manage with this on long drive.
- Above 80mph car started vibrating/shaking a lot.
- On down ramps to freeway it felt that it is engaging ABS. It was halting and moving from start till end of ramp.
- Big turning radius.
- Not as sporty as Jetta in handling.
- Doors are not as heavy as Jetta.

Pros.
Big
Better suspension

Did anyone else observed same on their cars or it was an exception.

-Bulletguy

I think yours must have been an exception. I have driven quite a few of these cars and never experienced any of your symptoms. I think the turning radius is actually quite impressive for a car as big as this one but it isn't quite as tight as the Jetta.

I've never noticed the steering wheel being off. Even after reading about it, I went out and measured and cannot prove that mine is off and it certainly doesn't feel off

No vibrating or shaking in mine...but I'm almost never doing 80.

No weird feeling on the ABS

Turning radius seems fine, at least as good as my 2002 VW Passat.

Haven't driven a Jetta for comparison, Jetta has always been too small for me.

My wife has a cast iron foot, and I have been in ours at 90+ - smooth as silk, as is the DSG.

And I'm still trying to figure out when a car as small as a Passat suddenly became big . . . it isn't! For big, try a Crown Vic or older truly full size GM. The Passat is a midsize at best . . .

- Tim

Doesn't sound like mine at all, or those of several friends.

bulletguy said:

Cons.
- Steering wheel is certainly off. Its towards right. So your right hand is closer to it than your left hand. It was very weird to drive and I'm not sure if I can manage with this on long drive.

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What do you mean your right hand is closer to the steering wheel than your left hand? Aren't both hands on the wheel?

If you're talking about where your arm rests in relation to the steering wheel, you'll notice that this is caused by a large gap between the driver's door and the seat for passenger safety in a side impact crash.

- Above 80mph car started vibrating/shaking a lot.

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That is definitely an issue that is unique to the vehicle that you drove and it needs corrective action.

- On down ramps to freeway it felt that it is engaging ABS. It was halting and moving from start till end of ramp.

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If you ride the brake, the transmission will automatically downshift to provide more engine braking. If you continue to ride the brake, it will continue to downshift. If you don't like this behavior, let off the brake pedal when the desired amount of engine braking has been applied and it will stay that way until you slow down enough or press the accelerator.

- Big turning radius.

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I haven't noticed it being any worse than other vehicles of its size.

- Not as sporty as Jetta in handling.

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Obviously. It's a bigger car than a Jetta and designed to be more supple and comfortable on long trips.

- Doors are not as heavy as Jetta.

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That's a bad thing?

Pros.
Big
Better suspension
Did anyone else observed same on their cars or it was an exception.
-Bulletguy

Click to expand...

Yes, it is big.

I'm a bit confused though, because you complain about the suspension in your "cons" list, but you praise it in the "pros" list.

tadawson said:

... I have been in ours at 90 - smooth as silk, as is the DSG.

And I'm still trying to figure out when a car as small as a Passat suddenly became big . . . it isn't! For big, try a Crown Vic or older truly full size GM. The Passat is a midsize at best . . .

- Tim

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Ditto.

I've had several gasser passat over the past few months for rental cars and have to say that I like them for a bigger car, compared to my JSW or Golf. I find the turning radius pretty good and better than some of the Chevys I've driven. Can't make any other comments since the trannies and engines are so different.

tadawson said:

And I'm still trying to figure out when a car as small as a Passat suddenly became big . . . it isn't! For big, try a Crown Vic or older truly full size GM. The Passat is a midsize at best . . .

- Tim

Click to expand...

The Passat isn't small. It's not giant either, but it's bigger than things like Accords, Camry's, Jetta's, Fusion's, Cruze's, Impalas, etc. It's way bigger than my older 2002 VW Passat GLX. And with as much room as the car has inside i'm always amazed by how much crap I can put in the trunk.

Yeah, someone will always come up with some absurdly small clown car, but then again, so what? That doesn't magically make a Passat bigger . . .

- Tim

-Steering wheel is certainly off. Its towards right. So your right hand is closer to it than your left hand. It was very weird to drive and I'm not sure if I can manage with this on long drive. Yes, mine is as well but I never notice it as I only drive with one hand
- Above 80mph car started vibrating/shaking a lot. Nope, mine is smooth and solid well north of 100MPH
- On down ramps to freeway it felt that it is engaging ABS. It was halting and moving from start till end of ramp. Yes, the brakes seem to almost apply themselves as you slow down below 10mph- even in neutral it does this- by far the strangest non-linier brake feel I have ever experienced ...its not a problem once you get used to it and back off on the pedal as you slow.
- Big turning radius. no, compared to other mid sized its fine- this coming from a guy who drives a crew cab long bed truck
- Not as sporty as Jetta in handling. true
- Doors are not as heavy as Jetta. ?

Interesting. I have owned two mk5 Jetta and my mother constantly complains about how heavy the doors are on this car. Vibration above 80 has to be specific to that car....could be a number of things...but mine is smooth.

My take on the OP is: somebody really doesn't want this car. Our Passat has exhibited none of these symptoms, nor have I read about anyone else on this forum experiencing this particular collection of issues.
I recommend trying the Ford Fusion Hybrid or the Honda Accord Hybrid. Those would be what we almost certainly would have ended up with if we hadn't purchased the Passat. If you can get past losing half your trunk space because of battery pack, they're very good cars.

I've driven a few of these, including a [gasser] rental on a 4+ hour each way drive, and found the car to be quite good, albeit pretty bland. Roomy and very nice to drive on long trips.

I have no idea what you are talking about regarding the steering wheel position. The suspension now is nearly identical to the Jetta, not sure what you are talking about there either.

Four NMS Passats for reference... Three SE's and one SEL Premium:

Steering Wheel? I fail to understand the problem.

Vibration at 80+ mph? Something is slightly out of balance. Get it fixed. And if you're in North America it might be best not to venture into the 80+ mph area all that much.

Problem accelerating? Either you're the problem or the car has a problem. The DSG is a different animal but not THAT different.

Turning radius? It is what it is. Don't like it? Get a Smart Car.

Sporty? Did the car somehow transform itself between the time you first saw it and now? The NMS was never meant to be a sports car.

Doors? I don't even have a comment, other than to be amazed by the criticism.

Suspension? Take a look underneath the car and you'll soon see why the NMS has a superior ride.

One of the things we all need to understand is that the vehicle we're complaining about is exactly the same vehicle we drove off the lot. If any of the little things we're now complaining about were an issue at the time of purchase, we wouldn't have made the deal.

I suspect the reason for most of our complaints here is the lack of other issues to complain about. In other words the more major aggravations we disliked about our previous vehicles. If this be the case, then we should be pretty happy overall.

Personal observations...

VW is VW. VW marches to the beat of a different drummer. Not bad or good.

DSG... It takes some getting used to as it "thinks" for itself. Once the DSG is understood, then it's a nice transmission. (I like the manual better.)

AdBlue filler... A minor pain that could easily have been made better if for no more than a fill indicator next to the cap. Probably not high tech enough for a German engineer.

Radio and Nav... The SEL has all the bells and whistles. Backup cam is somewhat slow to start and the rest of the features are just there. Nice enough, but a $100 Garmin is probably better, just not as showy.

The SE is actually better, except for a slight demerit compared to the Fender sound. Backup cam is a non-issue as I find that turning my neck to look rearward serves me quite nicely. And combined with the $100 Garmin mentioned above, the navigation feature is superior to the SEL.

Once again... None of our four cars morphed from dealer lot to our garage. I can pick on little things I didn't notice when we purchased the first NMS and they're the same things I can pick on with the following three. Given that we purchased three more after the first, either we like self-abuse or the complaints were so minor as not to be of importance.

There is already a lengthy thread on the subject of the steering wheel. Yes, the steering wheel is NOT centered with the seat. The OP's description that it's "closer to the RH" is an interesting way to put it, but a little confusing. He makes it sound as if it's canted toward the driver's body, which it isn't. It's simply off center to the right.

This discussion is amusing, and rather pathetic. But, being rather pathetic myself, I decided to look closer. I opened both front windows, and placed a long straight-edge through the windows, across the face of the steering wheel.

In fact, the steering wheel is canted AWAY from the right side of the driver's body. The right side of the wheel is CLOSER to the dash cluster, NOT CLOSER TO THE DRIVER'S RIGHT HAND, as the OP keeps stating.

This is an engineering/design thing, and it's constant throughout ALL NMS Passats, so it's not something that can be adjusted. The vast majority of NMS Passat owners, even the pathetic OCD ones like me, either didn't notice this compromise, and have easily adjusted to the very slight misalignment.

The angle of the steering wheel is less than the one on my Audi 5000... it doesn't bother me much. I just wish the column extended a bit further.

-J

Yeah...the 5000s were way off...caused unintended acceleration...

tadawson said:

Yeah, someone will always come up with some absurdly small clown car, but then again, so what? That doesn't magically make a Passat bigger . . .

- Tim

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I wouldn't call Camry's, Cruze's, Accords, Jettas absurdly small clown cars. I didn't say Chevy Spark, Mini Cooper, Smart Car, Mazda Miata

I don't think anybody claimed that the Passat was the largest full size car in existence. But for a midsize sedan, it's a pretty roomy car. Many of the cars in the size class of the Passat offer less space.

It sounds like you are talking about a different car than the one I have. My DSG SEL is rock solid at all speeds (haven't taken it over 90 yet). No torque steer, no misalignment in the steering geometry, great ride with the only exception to being a perfect ride at high speeds is the occurrence of slight wind noise above the forward doors at 70 mph plus. It also has the hugely endearing characteristic of being able to open all windows and sun roof and having basically no buffeting of wind in the cabin--can't say I've ever had a car that was able to do that.
After a year and one half of ownership, I still enjoy driving it every time I get behind the wheel, and I find that to be remarkable.
Go and test drive another vehicle or more than one and find the one that doesn't have the issues you described.

I no longer have my 2014 Passat TDI SE because I could not get comfortable in the seat, leading to back problems. When adjusting the seat repeatedly to try to find an acceptable position, I noticed the steering column offset (which I had been aware of before getting the car) as another slight contributor to discomfort on long drives, but nothing serious, just noticeable. If the seats had worked for me, the steering wheel offset would have been a non-issue.

The doors are definitely lighter than the A5 Jetta like my old 2006 TDI, but I don't know if that would have made any difference in durability over the long haul. I did notice the value engineering that resulted in much less robust hinges and door guides/stops, the Jetta was impressively overengineered in that respect. Passat's door fit and sealing against the car frame is very value engineered, and mine let the door sills leak a bit of water in the car wash.

The pulsing on slowdown may be the DSG downshifting, I noticed a little bit of that when test driving a DSG before buying the 6M. Learning transmissions tend to work their way out of that kind of jerkiness over time as they adapt to the driver's style.

Passat has an awesomely tight turning circle compared to competitive models, and even some smaller cars.

Salsaman06 said:

Ditto.

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Here's a comparison to other large cars. So, based on these comparisons, I'd say in the 21st Century Passat is knocking on the upper range of mid size to large sedans.

Passat Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 38.3 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 42.4 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 56.9 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 37.8 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 39.1 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 57.0 in.






Audi A6 Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 37.2 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 41.3 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.5 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 37.8 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 37.4 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.3 in.

BMW 5 Series Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 40.5 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 41.4 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 58.3 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 38.3 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 36.1 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.2 in

Yeah, they are for sure bigger. And they are for sure "cheaper", but I don't really mean that in a bad way. It isn't like they didn't adjust the price accordingly. A "value" car is a good way to put it. They remind me a lot of the Impala, at least the one before the newest one. Big, dull, inexpensive. But guess what? That is EXACTLY what Volkswagen set out to build, because that is EXACTLY what the lion's share of that American carbuyer wants in that segment. And the sales numbers prove they must have done their homework. I'd say they did a great job. If you want something more akin to the B1, B2, and B5 Passats, the Audi dealer will gladly sell you an A4. They start at nearly $31,000.... or about 10 grand more than the Passat does. And the A4 is smaller.

To me, the greatest thing about the NMS Passat is that it can still be had with a proper manual gearbox, and we can still get a diesel option.... and if you want, you can even have both! Something I couldn't get on my B5. The Camry manuals are gone. The Accord manuals are gone (save for the butt-ugly coupe, and then only the V6). The Impala never had a manual. Not sure about the Malibu. The Fusion you can only get a manual with the 1.6L EB in the SE trim, and those are probably like hen's teeth. And of course NONE of those cars have a diesel option.

Steering wheel is most definitely NOT centered with the drivers seat, and it is odd.

Well, since I'm a little curious and a bit prograstinatic here's some more:
Passat Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 38.3 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 42.4 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 56.9 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 37.8 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 39.1 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 57.0 in.






Audi A6 Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 37.2 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 41.3 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.5 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 37.8 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 37.4 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.3 in.

BMW 5 Series Interior Measurements
FRONT HEAD ROOM 40.5 in.
FRONT LEG ROOM 41.4 in.
FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 58.3 in.
REAR HEAD ROOM 38.3 in.
REAR LEG ROOM 36.1 in.
REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.2 in

Lexus ES 350
Interior Measurements

FRONT HEAD ROOM 37.5 in. FRONT HIP ROOM 54.8 in. FRONT LEG ROOM 41.9 in. FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.6 in. REAR HIP ROOM 53.8 in. REAR HEAD ROOM 37.5 in. REAR LEG ROOM 40.0 in. REAR SHOULDER ROOM 55.0 in.

Impala 2014
Interior Measurements

FRONT HEAD ROOM 39.9 in. FRONT HIP ROOM 54.9 in. FRONT LEG ROOM 45.8 in. FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.9 in. REAR HIP ROOM 54.1 in. REAR HEAD ROOM 37.4 in. REAR LEG ROOM 39.8 in. REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.9 in.

Mercedes E Class
Interior Measurements

FRONT HEAD ROOM 37.9 in. FRONT LEG ROOM 41.3 in. FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.8 in. REAR HEAD ROOM 38.2 in. REAR LEG ROOM 35.8 in. REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.9 in.

2014 Fusion
Interior Measurements

FRONT HEAD ROOM 39.2 in. FRONT HIP ROOM 55.0 in. FRONT LEG ROOM 44.3 in. FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 57.8 in. REAR HIP ROOM 54.4 in. REAR HEAD ROOM 37.8 in. REAR LEG ROOM 38.3 in. REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.9 in.

Subaru Legacy
Interior Measurements

FRONT HEAD ROOM 40.3 in. FRONT HIP ROOM 54.5 in. FRONT LEG ROOM 43.0 in. FRONT SHOULDER ROOM 56.3 in. REAR HIP ROOM 53.9 in. REAR HEAD ROOM 37.5 in. REAR LEG ROOM 37.8 in. REAR SHOULDER ROOM 56.1 in

My intention was not to find out faults in car. I want to know whether my observations are valid or not.

I have 2013 Jetta TDI DSG right now and was considering an option to upgrade to bigger/better car.

-Bulletguy

Ok, from that stand point... If I were in the market for a sedan, I would opt for the Passat. I like the slightly larger car without sacrificing the performance of mileage. I especially like the trunk that looks like you could fit several NJ wiseguys into.

@bulletguy The Jetta TDI is a quality machine and you're happy with it. No reason to go to the Passat.

The first time we looked at a new Passat was way back over 25 years ago when I had all my hair. The steering wheel was offset then, just like now, to the best of my recollection even more. We didn't buy that Passat way back then, this 2013 being our first Passat and just under a year old.
If I sit in the driver's seat and look at it, I can certainly see that the wheel is not centered, that it is somewhat off to the right. The minute I start to drive, I don't notice it, it's just as comfortable as any other car we've ever owned.

bulletguy said:

Cons.
- Steering wheel is certainly off. Its towards right. So your right hand is closer to it than your left hand. It was very weird to drive and I'm not sure if I can manage with this on long drive.
- Above 80mph car started vibrating/shaking a lot.
- On down ramps to freeway it felt that it is engaging ABS. It was halting and moving from start till end of ramp.
- Big turning radius.
- Not as sporty as Jetta in handling.
- Doors are not as heavy as Jetta.

Pros.
Big
Better suspension

Did anyone else observed same on their cars or it was an exception.

-Bulletguy

Click to expand...

After just over one month of ownership of our 2014 Passat TDI SEL Premium (now with just over 1,300 miles), my wife (it is her daily driver) and I have observed the following:

• Steering wheel off-center (to the right) of the driver's seat: If my wife has even noticed this, she has said nothing to me. While I am aware of it, from reading posts on this web site, it doesn't bother me, nor do I notice it.
• Vibrating/shaking above 80 mph: We (well, I) have driven our Passat at speeds of over 100 mph (It is good to live in the desert! ) and the vehicle is rock-solid. There is no hint of vibrating and/or shaking anywhere in the vehicle.
• ABS engaging brakes when slowing down: Yes, we have both noticed this, but we are learning to adjust our driving style to accommodate this. I am not sure if it is the ABS or the DSG downshifting, or both in combination, which causes this, but the vehicle definitely does not 'coast' as much as do our other vehicles (2010 VW Jetta TDI & 1999 Chevy Tahoe LS 4x4 or our now traded-in 2008 Honda Odyssey). Is this 'bad' or 'good?' No, it is just a driving characteristic of the vehicle.
• Big turning radius: 'Big' is a relative term. Does the Passat have a larger turning radius than our Jetta? Yes. Does it have a larger turning radius than our Tahoe? No. Do we feel the Passat's turning radius is out of proportion to its size? No.
• Not as sporty as the Jetta: Of course not, the Passat is a larger (both in size and weight) vehicle and one sits higher in it than the Jetta. However, the vehicle doesn't feel ponderous and we are constantly finding ourselves driving faster than we think we are. Also, 90 degree turns and highway lane changes are quick and easy; the vehicle inspires confidence in the driver.
• Doors not as heavy as the Jetta: No comment; I do not understand the original poster's concern with on this point.

As for the original poster's pros:

• Big: Interior space (both passenger and trunk) is extremely generous, there is no doubt about it.
• Better suspension: 'Better' in what way? Yes, bumps and holes in the road are well damped and vehicle roll in twists and turns is kept to a minimum, but a sports car it is not. The suspension is tuned for comfort on very long drives on highways and interstates, at highway speeds. (Living in the desert, this is what we have a lot of! )

All-in-all, my wife and I are very pleased with our 2014 Passat so far.