04-06 Golf Automatic Wanted

[joshetude]

My current vehicle is 30 yrs old, and I want my next car to run on biodiesel. Would love to find a VW Golf TDI (esp 2004-2006 automatic) in decent condition, with an owner willing to sell in the range of $2,000 - $5,000. I'm a solo parent with a young child, so can't take on major repairs. Need solid, reliable, well-maintained. Please be willing to let my mechanic take a look. I'm in the SF Bay Area, open to transporting from other areas if the logistics can be worked out.

 

[deegingerkid]

I cannot recommend highly enough that you get a car from the 99.5-03 generation. The 04-06 engines are not biofuel friendly and the injectors clog up easily running B100. b50 is all the more concentrated you can run bio in an 04-06 car. They are called pumpe duse or PD engines in tdiclub lingo. New injectors run about 1000 per set. The automatic trans in the older cars (99-03)is notoriously unreliable and hurts mileage. If you can drive a stick, do it.

If you want a car that's fairly low maintenance, a TDI may not be the best idea. Unless you are willing to do basic maintenance by yourself, it can get pricey in a hurry. Something reliable and low cost to maintain (read: Japanese or Korean) may be a better choice.

I can certainly respect you wanting to use biofuels, but this car is picky and can cost a good deal in basic upkeep alone, not inclusive of large repairs that may crop up.

Caveat emptor.

Just a friendly heads up. I'm also in the Bay Area if you'd like more advice. Plus, California prices on the 04-06 cars are still hanging around 8k. Good luck in your search!

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