advice on golf wagon

Hello,
I've been looking for a golf wagon, six speed. there are a few in my area. They all seem to have between 90-120k km. I assume these cars are buy backs? I was wondering if one of these wagons was a buyback what was replaced, and is there a warranty. If I was able to get the VIN could I verify that it had the "fix"?

Also, is there anything I should be looking for when purchasing? Is one model year better than the next? From my reading it seems I should stay clear of the wagon with the sun roof.

Would a Malone tune void any warranty? I was planning on a stage 2 tune. Has anyone had any first hand experience with this tune? I have an ALH golf and its great, but it is getting long in the tooth. I was hoping to upgrade to a newer diesel. My commute is about 130 km round trip on a moderately winding mountain highway. I know I wouldn't get the same fuel economy as my ALH, but I'm okay with that. Thanks for your help.

yes they're buybacks, yes they're fixed, yes they have a warranty, and yes any tune will void the warranty. and they will come with the extended warranty paperwork

The TDI golf wagon only exists in the 2015 model year. Wagons previous were labeled Jettas, so finding a golf wagon would be a good find. A somewhat “rare” car that would hold its value well.

I have a Jetta (2011) with a panoramic sunroof. Personally, I have loved the sunroof BUT I haven’t had any issues with it (YET. Knock on wood). I make sure and clean the drain tubes every year and grease tracks with white lithium grease. Anybody who service VW will tell you don’t do it though.

If you buy from VW dealership, you can be assured all recall repairs have been made. If you buy elsewhere, get the vin and check NHTSA website (https://www.nhtsa.gov/recalls). I can’t imagine it’s possible to find one that hasn’t though.

Another perk of buying from VW is that they have an extended warranty on TDIs because the cars sat for so long, there are known to be some reliability problems sometimes as a result. In the first year after buying mine, they had to replace radio, console, master & slave cylinders, parking brake cables… And all this was free since I bought from VW dealer. However, if you buy from a private party, it’s likely they’ll have been driving the car so these kind of issues will likely have been resolved.

Any tuning you do will technically “void” the warranty, though I’ve joked with my VW dealership service guy and he’s like “as long as you put stock parts back, we won’t know the difference.” That excludes anything computer-related though, so take your chances with Malone.

Also, I get 43ish MPG so no complaints with mileage at all (I drive manual). My brother drives exact same model year (auto) and gets 37ish. I think he also drives like he’s in a car chase movie so…

Good luck shopping! Free

I have 2014 with sunroof. Bought it with 81k miles and have had it for about a year. While the roof itself does not leak, it had an issue caused by a displaced drain hose which was easily fixed. Full disclosure is that I seldom open the roof and it is parked indoors.

Mechanically, the car has no problems but it is bone stock and I have no intention of modifying it. My driving is mainly rural and I am a conservative driver. As a result, I easily average 45mpg and have seen as high as 51mpg. It accelerates strongly and I can see no reason for a tune. It is fine as-is. Mine has had the "fix" but I don't know what it drove like before.

Keep in mind that people do not post on forums unless they are having a problem that they want help with. There are many, many more (like myself) who are satisfied and simply enjoying the ride.