Buying & Selling TDIs? Read this first!!

VeeDubTDI

Wanderluster, Traveler, TDIClub Enthusiast
Joined
Jul 2, 2000
Location
Springfield, VA
TDI
‘18 Tesla Model 3D+, ‘14 Cadillac ELR, ‘13 Fiat 500e
useful info. but what about trade in values... i have 2000 white mk4 with 185k miles, is now due for timing belt, and surely needs shocks but otherwise has been taken care of correctly largely using the wonderful advice i've found on this site over the years. knowing that it would need ~$2000 worth of work to make it last another few years correctly is a trade of $3000 worth it? or am i getting ripped?
Are you asking for specific advice on your car? If so, start a new "Feeler" thread.
 

kgh127

New member
Joined
Jan 16, 2013
Location
fairbanks alaska
TDI
2004 jetta wagon
I read it and I am a newbi just bought a 2004 jetta wagon tdi. 93000 miles. Have a 2000 GMC 1 ton crew cab. I'll see how this works out. First VW since owning a stripped down Gia in the early 70's.
 

Moesauction!

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Apr 2, 2008
Location
kansas city
TDI
2001 tdi 423,000 sold:[ , 2003 tdi 425,000 lower ryder hot rod 17/22 520rc southbend clutch. 2005 mercedes cdi 232,000 sold , 2003 7.3 ford 586,000 miles.
I would like to add thanks for the post internesting adds to any conversion or theory of buying or selling a unit.

Some really value the work done as equity in a nice unit some dont.

make sure if the work has been done recipts go with it. the idea all this work is done and no paper trail is a nono.

And confirm work was done by a great mechanic.

Just a little addition, some cars are sold over kbb but have a better value then one with less miles and less repairs. Hopefull the idea is buy one you will ahve 1o or more years and the idea that all repairs will be fixed.

Very much enjoyed you post thanks.
 

Moesauction!

Vendor , w/Business number
Joined
Apr 2, 2008
Location
kansas city
TDI
2001 tdi 423,000 sold:[ , 2003 tdi 425,000 lower ryder hot rod 17/22 520rc southbend clutch. 2005 mercedes cdi 232,000 sold , 2003 7.3 ford 586,000 miles.
Are you asking for specific advice on your car? If so, start a new "Feeler" thread.

yes i think 3000.00 is fair but amy bring a few more bucks on a cash and carry deal.

and you keep the car and still get a cheaper price try that first hehe.
 

LBC/TDI

New member
Joined
Apr 8, 2013
Location
Long Beach, CA
TDI
2011 Jetta SportWagen TDI
darkscout, I took your advice and jumped on a good deal. After a 16-year break from Jetta owndership, I got this 2011 JSW TDI in almost-new condition after her owner babied her for 2 years and 30k miles:




Thanks, darkscout. Will post my own pics soon.
 
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DualcertK9

Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2013
Location
Florida
TDI
Wanting to TDi swap a 'yota!
I've read it, as well as doing the past few weeks of research for that Golf I need for my after Army job!
 

RockRockRock

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 13, 2008
Location
So Socal
TDI
2015 GSW M6
Can we get enforcement action (lock or delete) for threads that don't have the location in the title?

:)

/ballbust mode
 

Lindamh

Active member
Joined
Aug 13, 2003
Location
South of Boston, MA
TDI
1981 Chevette (deceased), 2002 Jetta Wagen Silver (sold), 2011 Jetta Wagen Gold
Uploading photos

I read the instructions and cannot find an "[FONT=&quot]button labelled 'Manage Attachments'" nor a "browse" button on New thread. How do you upload photos on a new thread? The instructions are confusing to me since I cannot find those buttons.
Thanks !?
I may be selling my 2002 (or keeping it and selling the 2011) Either way I would need to submit some photos.
[/FONT]
 

AWD9590

Member
Joined
Dec 9, 2012
Location
South Salem,NY
TDI
2013 Passat 6 sp. mn.
May Have to Sell My 2013 Passat TDI 6 Speed

All,
I am considering selling my 2013 Grey/Black TDI manual 6 speed. It has 16500 miles. The turbo was replaced at 8k and has been trouble free since. I really never thought that I would sell this car so soon, but finances may force my hand.
It is flawless without any damage whatsoever. It came with heavy duty mats, and the trunk spoiler, no sunroof, no navigation.
I read the text regarding inappropriate posts; consequently I am entertaining offers/suggestions regarding what its a fair price. I will take pictures over the weekend.
Thanks,
Peter
 

ChrisHyattinSD

New member
Joined
Aug 9, 2013
Location
San Diego
TDI
VW Jetta TDI
Any advice on selling my TDI ??

Newbie here who found the TDI Club through my VW "Master Tech" mechanic who has been servicing my TDI with awesome TLC for 12 years. My baby is a 15 year old Silver 1998 Jetta TDI that was an airport car for 10 years. Only 88,654 miles, and in superb condition. A couple of parking lot scratches and scrapes noticeable if you really look hard. Never any accidents. Mechanically ultra-fit. Drives superbly. Near 50 mpg most tanks. My VW Master Tech suggested this site to sell it on. He said with how it has been immaculately maintained and the very very low mileage, it could sell for $8,000. I know absolutely nothing about cars, selling or buying, as was wondering if I could get any guidance here. I will take some pictures today to share with anyone who cares to see them. I'm in no rush, and would like to get the best $ sale I can for this very sentimental first car of mine. Why am I selling? My job... Image is important, and I needed a more "luxury" level car. Any advice in selling my precious TDI would be very welcomed! Thank you all! :) Chris in San Diego :)
 

Jdub2007

Member
Joined
May 14, 2011
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
TDI
2002 Jetta Sedan
Not always the norm...

But....do you honestly believe the Newbie........is going to read this????
I have my doubts........
Although I've been a member for a little bit, I'll admit, my activity is probably closer to that of a newbie. That being said, I read the post :D
 

kitko100

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 20, 2013
Location
Central PA
TDI
2001 Jetta GL TDI
you hit the nail right on the head! I looked for 3 to 4 months for my tdi. everyone wants 2-5K over book price. My patience and persistence paid off. Months of scouring the interweb, writing emails making call and numerous trips to look at cars i found her. Found an ad for 01 jetta gl tdi with 149000 miles on it in FL for $1500. At first i thought it was a scam, ive seen a few. After talking to the man i paypaling him $200 he took his ad down and i jumped a train for the 1700 mile trip. 5 days later i made it back to PA with a huge smile on my face! THANKS for all the great research info TDICLUB!
 

kitko100

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 20, 2013
Location
Central PA
TDI
2001 Jetta GL TDI
Newbie here who found the TDI Club through my VW "Master Tech" mechanic who has been servicing my TDI with awesome TLC for 12 years. My baby is a 15 year old Silver 1998 Jetta TDI that was an airport car for 10 years. Only 88,654 miles, and in superb condition. A couple of parking lot scratches and scrapes noticeable if you really look hard. Never any accidents. Mechanically ultra-fit. Drives superbly. Near 50 mpg most tanks. My VW Master Tech suggested this site to sell it on. He said with how it has been immaculately maintained and the very very low mileage, it could sell for $8,000. I know absolutely nothing about cars, selling or buying, as was wondering if I could get any guidance here. I will take some pictures today to share with anyone who cares to see them. I'm in no rush, and would like to get the best $ sale I can for this very sentimental first car of mine. Why am I selling? My job... Image is important, and I needed a more "luxury" level car. Any advice in selling my precious TDI would be very welcomed! Thank you all! :) Chris in San Diego :)
no one is going to pay $8000 for a 15 year old car. im not being a jerk but if you really want to sale get real. your car books around $2900 so adding the TDI $1000 you should realistically start at 4k.
 
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Rrusse11

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2014
Location
PA Deutsch Country
TDI
2002 Golf, 5spd; 05 Jeep CRD
Another newbie who read the thread,,,, the whole thread.
On the hunt for a TDI Golf, and have found an array out there,
ranging from the absurdly over valued, to cheap, with LOTS of miles.

Ideally a 10yr old vehicle, the "03 GL, 2 dr minimal accoutrements with none of those silly holes in the roof, manual a MUST!
Hopefully in the low 100k mileage range, $5-$10k price.
One thing I've already learned in the past few days, they do exist, but
be ready to plunk down some money if you find the right one.

Willing to travel as an option, but I'm not sure if I want to go 500 miles for a vehicle with 1/4 million miles on her, even if the price is right, in this case $3500. One owner and well maintained, the original clutch is a good sign, but help me out here, is that too many miles too many? Or should I be jumping at a deal?

Thanks to all the contributors, and the internet itself, for a remarkable resource, seek and ye shall find answers!

Cheers,
R*2

Feb 6;
Now the proud owner of a 2dr TDI Golf with 93k and a 6spd manual. I decided to go with a newer
vehicle with more miles than try and find an older one with low mileage.
Car runs terrific, single owner, well maintained and oh the joys of a manual!
Talked to Jeff of RocketChip and I'll see him next week for the Stage 1 upgrade.

Got the back bench seat out, the seat backs will be next. Shaving the weight and upping the ECU
should make a substantial performance difference.

Cheers all!
R*2

 
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RapidSE

New member
Joined
Dec 13, 2012
Location
Grand Rapids, MI
TDI
2002 Jetta Wagon
I just lost a 2002 Jetta TDI wagon with a 5-speed manual transmission and a solid options package. The auto insurance company offered me $3840 as replacement value. I held out and was verbally offered $5400. I'm still holding out, having explained the rarity of the vehicle, and they are assigning a "speciality valuation" to find out what the market would bear. I'll share details when it comes back.
 
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hisdad

Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2009
Location
Signal Mtn.,Tennessee
TDI
Mine--2009 Jetta,manual,Avignon; hers--'09 DSG
Totaled TDI--Lesson learned

Not sure what RapidSE's "lost" means, but our son managed to total my wife's 09 recently. The State Farm adjustor, apparently never having seen the car offered a fair price, I thought.

I then mentioned that it had almost new Michelins and the factory 17 inch Avignons, and he upped the price. The next day I thought about the sunroof and called back to see if he had accounted for that, and he had not, so that increased the price another $700.

Bottom line-- they don't know these cars, so build them up as much as you can. Final valuation for our perfectly maintained DSG with 58,000 miles was over $18,000. Our only worry was that they might "un-total" it if the value got too high.
 

Yawiney

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 25, 2014
Location
Northern California
TDI
2015 GSW DSG
Newbie here. First thing I read. Thanks.
I'm deciding between B4, B5 or a newer Jetta.
I'm leaning towards the B4 but so far they seem as expensive as the 10yr newer car with similar miles on the Odo.
 

stradlater

Member
Joined
May 23, 2012
Location
york, pa
TDI
2000 jetta tdi sedan
Dark Scout,


Read your post about buying/selling TDIs. I have a 2000

White Jetta TDI with about 224,000 miles on it- I've treated it very well

changed oil at recommended frequency ( usually 3000 miles but up to 5k

if using synthetic or my mechanic's recommended oil ) Always changed

the timing belt at 60k mile intervals. Have had my expert mechanic

in Broomall , Pa usually work on it for fairly major stuff. Needs

,probably , replacement manual 5-speed transmission now, possibly

to include a flywheel. The body is in excellent shape, including the

front grill , which was replaced about 30,000 miles ago. Have been

debating whether to repair it ( my mechanic said cost, as of a year

ago, would be $900 to fix transmission , including flywheel if needed.)

Beyond that , the seats need replacement. I bought some used seats

which ought to work, I believe- though they didn't come with the

bottom frame as I specified- but I believe with a little welding, the

frame for the driver's side seat could be fixed to accomodate the seats

I bought.

I wonder if there would be much demand for the car in present

condition ( presumably if I fixed it to where it would pass inspection,

I might even be able to get my repair costs out of it , maybe even

a little more ) .

But I don't know how to post things for sale here on the forum.
 

MageVortex

New member
Joined
Jul 29, 2014
Location
Florida
TDI
none / want one
I'm also a newbie who read the thread. Great info - Thanks everyone for contributing. took me a few minutes to read all 8 pages.

I'm currently patiently hunting for a 2010 to 2012 Golf TDI, but having a hard time finding any. But I can wait -

Is there a benefit to getting/using an automatic over a Manual, because I prefer driving a manual if there is no great benefit to a manual...
 

Rrusse11

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2014
Location
PA Deutsch Country
TDI
2002 Golf, 5spd; 05 Jeep CRD
MV,
Go the manual, much more control over what the engine's actually doing. I'm coming up on 10k since I got mine the beginning of the year. The 6 speed gearbox has great ratios,
and if you want to drive aggressively, nothing like being able to downshift eg 4th to 2nd. Heel and toe into the corners is the way to get around a bend quick. Harder to find, but well worth it IMHO. Want mileage?, keep it at 2000 RPM and watch the economy on the onboard mpg readout.
Manuals are FUN, and keep you involved in driving.
Cheers,
R*2
 

sunvalleylaw

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2014
Location
Hailey, ID
TDI
'05 Passat TDI GLS Wagon, 5 speed manual
S
Buyers
Don't register and post a WTB thread 30 seconds after joining and don't expect US to do YOUR work for you. If you want your $2000 mint condition one owner car that was only used to go to Church on Sunday don't expect us to tell you about it. Find it yourself because if we see it first, it's ours.
--
Newbie here. Just saw this. I posted a WTB last night. I will go back and put my location in, though I am willing to travel for the right car. I like to think I will be reasonable, and have been doing a lot of research here to educate myself before buying, and to find what I want. I found a pretty nice local B5, which is the one I would like, after getting the known issues addressed, but after researching here, it appears the seller is not aware of the issues and quite proud on his price. So, I am willing to wait and look for other rigs being sold by others that are realistic and knowledgeable. Thanks for all the great hints and info!

Steve
 
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