BRAVO Red, now some back story??? That an awful lot of miles. What's the good, bad, and ugly?! (And it looks like you need to fill up!)
Let's see... 11 years and 500k+ miles
I have never babied the engine and rarely short-shifted. I've tried to have at least one full-throttle acceleration most days, so have never had a problem with sticky turbo vanes (that I know of).
I replaced the first turbo at about 200k miles, but that was purely an upgrade as there was nothing wrong with the original one. The first replacement was still performing beautifully as of last winter, but there was a "wobble" in the shaft, so about 270k miles on that turbo.
I've had three different tunes: 1) a mild RocketChip tune with mildly upgraded nozzles, 2) what I think was a Kerma tune, with the first turbo replacement, and 3) a Malone tune with the current turbo. I was pretty happy with all of them at the time. I went to a "dyno day" once, but that was with the original turbo and "mild" tune: 140 hp and 210 ft/lb. At the peak I estimate I had around 160 hp and 260-270 ft/lb of torque. It's less now with the slightly downgraded turbo.
The original injection pump is still doing fine, though I have a spare on hand when I need it. I credit two things for the longevity of the IP: clean fuel because of the Cat 2-micron fuel filter, and either Primrose or Power Service DieselKleen for lubricity. (not so important now as all the diesel I buy is either B05 or B10)
The cylinder head was replaced at about 252k miles, about 30k miles after a water pump failure, when I foolishly took the Golf to a VW dealership. One of the roller/idlers failed, the bearings disintegrated, the idler locked up and the T-belt melted through in a second or two. That particular roller-idler did not come from the T-belt kit I had purchased from a recommended vender; it was an off-brand that could only have originated with the dealership. When I went back to the dealership, the service managed claimed that they never even removed the idler to access the water pump, but more than one TDI expert told me it had to come off to replace the water pump. Anyway, since then I've paid special attention to ensure I'm only using top-quality water pumps, and I never again let a dealer mechanic touch my engine.
A couple years ago the differential disintegrated and it blew a hole in the transmission case. I ended up with my original gears and new synchros in a used transmission case, and it's working well.
I've tried to follow normal maintenance schedules for things like brake flushes and gearbox oil changes. I believe I'm on the third alternator and third starter. I didn't have much trouble with the suspension or steering parts until I moved back to the Snow Belt aka Pothole Belt.
I go to dealerships for some stuff, like a driver's-side rear view mirror, a multifunction switch, and programming a new key. I tell them what I want, I tell them I don't want to pay for "diagnostic" charges.
I've used Mobil 1 5w40 almost exclusively since the first oil change. According to my spreadsheet, only three oil changes out of ~50 were with something else.
I think the Dieselgeek Panzer skid plate was a good decision, and the Recaro seats. The original seats were comfortable, but the Recaros are much better. Replacing the disgusting original headlight lenses with glass ones really improved the appearance and the visibility at night.
I have lost track of the number of sets of tires I've bought -- mostly Michelin all-season but now dedicated winter tires from November to April. And absolutely no idea how many headlight bulbs I've replaced. I was never tempted to disable the daylight running lights; I'm pretty sure they have saved me at least a few times.
This is a rough summary of the first 500k miles. A few 50+ mpg tanks, some in the mid-30s during times of extreme temperatures, a lifetime average of 40.75 mpg but notably better with the current turbo and Malone tune (usually 43-45 mpg over the last 50 tanks).
