Fun topic -- Why did you choose your TDI?

[RDC98tdi]

I got lucky and got mine with 0 down and 0% apr.

 

[Cayman]

I drive a Porsche Cayman, a two seat/mid engine car. There are times when there's more than two of us and a backseat is required, and making trips to Costco or Home Depot with a sedan is more practical. Keep in mind I drive the TDI about 500 miles a month so spending a lot of money on a car didn't make sense; that said I intend on keeping the sedan for 20 years or more. I wanted an efficient car and have no interest in hybrids, as such a diesel was an obvious choice.

Since we own an Audi TT as well and both cars have been extremely reliable, I wanted to purchase another German car. At first I thought an Audi TDI would be ideal, but the price tag ruled it out so VW was the next best thing. The lack of amenities in the TDI Premium was disappointing, however I did a fair bit of mods to make the car comfortable. In hindsight, I probably should have bought an Audi but I'm happy enough with the Jetta given the modest price tag.

 

[Stealth TDI]

Cayman - Coming from a Mk3, I'm quite thrilled with my Premium. I'm curious to know what amenities the Premium lacks that you are accustomed to having? Not poking fun here. I really want to know what I'm missing. It probably won't change how I feel about my new Premium. I'd just like to know what the Audis offer. And what mods did you do to narrow the gap between the two? Thanks!

 

[ytjetta]

In 2004, I rehabilitated a 1984 model Mercedes Benz 300D turbodiesel that had been parked in a backyard for more than 4 years (total $2k to get it back on the road) . I drove that car for over 4 years and had to sell because it had some rust in the rear fenders but mostly, because our toddler daughter was becoming sensitive to fumes and smells. Other than that, the 300D was perhaps the one car I enjoyed driving the most despite lack of amenities such as A/C, ABS, etc. I used to get 30mpg/city. In my humble opinion, the 5cyl. OM617 engine in those cars is perhaps the best diesel in the world - ever. Anyone who has driven these cars will know what the signature purring noise invokes in them. To this day, I snap to attention when I hear that engine noise on the street.

Fast forward to 2009, when we bought a new jetta to replace the benz. I tried hard but by wife didn’t want another diesel car so we ended up getting the wolfsburg 2.0T and I took over her old 99 civic as my daily driver. The civic served me well up until last year, when at over 150k, maintenance was beginning to cost. Upcoming maintenance of over 2.5k (steering column, timing belt, water pump, brakes etc) meant it was time to get a new car and this time, I insisted that it would be a turbo diesel. After convincing my wife that the current generation VW diesels were clean diesels with no soot and smell, I started researching the 2013 passat tdi. Anyways, to make a long story short, I missed a couple of good deals on passats while procrastinating so I defaulted to the jetta tdi and got mine in Jan2014. Suffice it to say, I haven’t regretted my decision.

 

[sinnettc]

Cayman - Coming from a Mk3, I'm quite thrilled with my Premium. I'm curious to know what amenities the Premium lacks that you are accustomed to having? Not poking fun here. I really want to know what I'm missing. It probably won't change how I feel about my new Premium. I'd just like to know what the Audis offer. And what mods did you do to narrow the gap between the two? Thanks!

It's not the Audi but coming from the 2009 Sonata (limited) I was surprised that the seats in the TDI premium are only partially electric. I miss the automatic nighttime dimmer and compass on the mirror too. The visors are about 2 inches too short (horizontally) so they don't help much when the sun is setting and you're driving north (or south). No fog lights. Can't force the transmission to start in 2nd (DSG), which I suspect will be interesting in the snow/ice this winter. No Aux on the ignition so you can't listen to the stereo without having the day runner lights on; not much draw, I'm sure, but still an unnecessary drain on the battery.

On the plus side, the Fender audio is comparable to the Infinity system we had in the Sonata and doesn't lose the Sirius/XM signal as often as the old one did. The bluetooth phone/radio interface is nice; phone connectivity was a $450 add-on for the sonata that we passed on. I like that there are 3 stops when you open the doors. The day runner lights are nice. And of course I love the mpg compared to the Sonata.

 

[Stealth TDI]

Nice! Yeah, I hear you about the lack of aux on the ignition switch. The stereo will work for 30 minutes without the key, though. Just push the power button with the key off or out. Still, sometimes it's good to have the vents on while listening. I do wish those DRL's were off when the parking brake is up, though. And I don't like that everything shuts off just because I turn off the engine.

Regarding the visors, they can slide/extend aft when you have them along the doors. Give it a try and see if that suits your needs. I don't miss the fogs. Mine always seemed to catch rocks on other cars, anyway. Thanks for the explanation.

 

[gerry100]

Low fuel cost per mile.

German ride and drive as compared to Japanese toy like feel for equal fuel economy

 

[elcid86]

Bought it for my 19yo son who wanted something "he could just drive" as opposed to the BMW 330i ZHP I offered him. It is an AT and he wanted a stick also. Plus we love the looks and MPG.



Thumbs, iPhone, Tapatalk.

 

[RDC98tdi]

I'll take the 330i!

 

[jeffy]

My third VW and my second Jetta TDI....The 2003 GLS lasted for 10 years and 385,000 km. I traded for a 2011 Jetta TDI because I really like the new body design and the added space...and the value was there with the lower prices....

I ultimately enjoy the diesel torque, mileage and feel of a German engineered vehicle. I am happy with my decision.

 

[Cayman]

Cayman - Coming from a Mk3, I'm quite thrilled with my Premium. I'm curious to know what amenities the Premium lacks that you are accustomed to having? Not poking fun here. I really want to know what I'm missing. It probably won't change how I feel about my new Premium. I'd just like to know what the Audis offer. And what mods did you do to narrow the gap between the two? Thanks!

Tinted windows $225
Rear spoiler $255
Mudflaps $90
Transparent rear bumper cover $52
TDI front license plate frame $35
VW logo stem caps $20
SDHC card for the head unit $20
Gentex GENK50A mirror with HomeLink, compass, temp $249
Auto on/off headlights $120
Stainless steel exhaust tips $35
Sill plates $82
LED's inside the car $90
LED city lights $25
LED tail lights $40
LED Back up lights $40
Rear license plate LED's $43
Sports pedals $46
Right side steering wheel MFD control $65
Tao Tronics Rear license plate back up camera $50
Pioneer AVIC AVIC-X850BT headunit/GPS $450
Auto wiper kit $80
(2) grocery hooks $25
Fog light kit (ebay) $129
Autopage ADSALCA ADS Immobilizer Bypass and Doorlock $55
AutoPage C3-RS730LCD Remote Car Starter/Alarm $121
VCDS tool $200
Car cover $130
Michelin Primacy MXV4 tires $431

 

[DieselEngineer]

150 miles of commuting a day, available with a manual transmission, value edition was priced right, and I'm a diesel junky.

 

[Jetta SS]

I got lucky and got mine with 0 down and 0% apr.

So when ya going to change your screen name?

I was leary of the mk6 after reading all the hpfp horror stories. So I test drove some gas vehicles that were comparable to the TDI. I quickly found out I couldn't go back to gas, plus I've become a VW fan over the years. Rolling the dice on the clean diesel tech outweighed buying a gasser.

 

[Tuco]

The day I bought my TDI, I was actually just starting to look around, and was not planning on buying anything for several weeks. I first went to the Toyota dealer and drove a Yaris, Corolla and Camry. I had owned Toyotas almost exclusively for 15+ years, so I went there first. No surprises, they drove like Toyotas. Boring.

After leaving there, I was on my way home, and passed VW. I said what the heck, I'll look at the Golf and Jetta TDI's because they had some Federal tax credits in 2010 ($1500 for Golf, $1000 for Jetta). They only had Jettas available with the manual transmission, so we took one for a test drive.

The salesman proceeded to drive it like an Indy car, my @$$ nearly bit a hole in the seat, and I was hooked. It was over. However, having sold new cars once upon a time in my youth, I played my cards close to the vest, and pretended that I was lukewarm at best. It was late in the evening, about 30 minutes before they closed, so I figured they would keep the shenanigans to a minimum. On the first pencil, they offered me invoice price and 66 months at 0%. OK write it up! Easiest, most painless deal I've ever seen. Plus I got the $1000 tax credit from Uncle Sam. Still smiling 43 months later.

 

[Black_Smoke]

High quality, long-lasting, low-cost, fuel efficient transportation. Despite all of these, the car is still attractive, powerful, functional and comfortable.

There aren't many, if any other vehicles that have such an attractive balance of these characteristics (IMHO).

The downside... It won't pull your fifth-wheel.

 

[Dana Hanchett]

After driving, enjoying and working on my 1998 NB 5sp TDI for 320K miles my wife got Lymphdema in her left leg and was having trouble using the clutch. She told me to pull into a VW dealer and buy a Jetta. After she drove a Jetta with DSG she wouldn't let me leave without buying it. What a great car.

 

[ddixonpd]

I had a 06 jeep grand Cherokee that did 12 mpg. I never thought of vw cause of all the issues in the past. But i saw so many vw on the road so i was like why the hell not let me test drive one and see. Well after the first test drive i was hooked cant beat 42 mpg and the power. So that how i ended up my jetta tdi

 

[PacketHauler]

I had a 06 jeep grand Cherokee that did 12 mpg. I never thought of vw cause of all the issues in the past. But i saw so many vw on the road so i was like why the hell not let me test drive one and see. Well after the first test drive i was hooked cant beat 42 mpg and the power. So that how i ended up my jetta tdi

This is another reason I looked at VW. MN seems to be very VW friendly as I see a very good amount of them on the road around here. If VW makes such an awful vehicle as some people claim, I wouldn't think you'd see so many repeat buyers and so many of them on the road. I'm especially impressed at how many TDIs s I see on the road here as well. That's a good thing!

 

[RDC98tdi]

I'm glad to see this thread still going. It's nice to hear these stories! I agree with the above two. Yeah, the MPG isn't going to best a Honda CRZ 2 seater manual, or even a Prius in the city. But the car has balls, which the others don't.

My coworker drives a Mazda Speed3 and it will beat the pants off my Stage 1.5 6MT Jetta. But his suspension is stiff, tires are expensive, less room inside, and requires 93 octane gas. He's a gear head and told me that (esp. after the tune) my car is the perfect blend between practicality and fun. I have to agree -- and it will be more fun once I can find the time to get my d*mn sport springs installed!

 

[eddjmemg]

Yea sure can't beat the mpg but.

http://youtu.be/6xYZu1wy-lM

This comparison is a big reason I chose the Jetta

 

[maxst2]

I had a 06 jeep grand Cherokee that did 12 mpg. I never thought of vw cause of all the issues in the past. But i saw so many vw on the road so i was like why the hell not let me test drive one and see. Well after the first test drive i was hooked cant beat 42 mpg and the power. So that how i ended up my jetta tdi

I traded in my 06 JGC as well for a 2014 TDI. I realized i never used its full potential and it was there to burn holes in my wallet at the pump. I have an hour drive for work so you can see my problem... for winter i just plan to mount some snow tires on the front in case of the weather going to hell on me.

 

[JaredC01]

for winter i just plan to mount some snow tires on the front in case of the weather going to hell on me.

So long as you're driving in a straight line (highway driving) that's okay, but to give you a heads up, the rear tires are more important in winter driving... They're what carry you through a turn and keep the rear end from sliding out on slick surfaces. When I was in Alaska, I saw more than a few people spin out and end up in a ditch with studded or winter tires on the front and standard or bald tires on the rear. Once the back end goes out, there's no good way to get it back.

On the flip side of that, if you can manage to start moving well enough on summer tires, and have winter tires on the back, you should be fine.

 

[Mitternacht]

I was paying $385 a month in fuel for my daily B5 S4. Once it got smashed into and totaled, I went to the TDi strictly for efficiency. And when Tesla releases their car that'll be 20% smaller than the Model S in 2016-17 I'll be ordering one of those and selling the TDi.

 

[Gil Lindsay]

I lived in Germany and everything is diesel, so I decided to buy an American spec diesel vehicle after driving a Opel Astra diesel for six years.

Gil

 

[RDC98tdi]

How does the Premium Jetta TDI hold up against the Opel Astra, Gil?

 

[Gil Lindsay]

The TDI is a little better on fuel than the Astra, I was getting 38-42 with the Astra and 42+ with the Jetta. Granted the Astra was a 2003 1.7L, man I miss that car. But this was on the B routes of course the autobahn the mileage was about the same.

Gil

 

[mike-fr]

Well, First off all i have to say i live in Mexico & ive been a VW guy all my life, i had MK3,MK4 Jettas, and Golf all gassers also here there is a VW AG brand wich is called SEAT had a couple of Ibizas with the 1.8T engine on them...


My first Diesel came with a MK5 Jetta, as much strange it may be, diesel cars & trucks are quite rare in Mexico, so there is no much info about them here...


My Jetta wich runs a BXE PD 1.9L engine was bought two years ago with 50,000kms on it (almost new) since the first day i was in love with my car, it is just fist love with it, on first week i was amazed with MPG and with the amaizing torque it has

Have been doing quite large driving with a wonderful response on fuel economy and power, last travel was almost 3000 kms with out any kind of problem just a flat tire on the higway.

VW Diesels really rocks, and im planning to trade my mk5 and get a brand new mk6 jetta, here in Mexico there are not many options it just came with same equippment only diference is auto or manual tranny, both have sun roof, leather seats and RCD510 stereo, thats all... no HID lights, no option for them, no navigation system, no rear camera/parking sensors

So as you can see there are some limitations on the mexican package, but annyways is a great car, here the DSG version is $352,000 MXP that will be like arround 27,000 USD quite expensive considering it is not the full package version


Cheers from Mexico

Mike

 

[eddjmemg]

I always wanted a Lobo badged Ford or a Ram Charger SUV. I couldn't convince myself paying extra n forget about the import taxes to put American plates on them. Lol
Good to see that Mexican Jettas are actually used in Mexico.

 

[mike-fr]

Extra taxes for import are very high here also, all vw gassers are well known & used here, not same on TDI ones, these last ones are very "strange" to be seen on the roads.....

 

[beam_panhard_tdi_2013]

Because I like the ticking sound and soot of diesel, although not so much about the EPA-mandated DPF
The recall on the trailing arm of rear beam axle really p*ssed me off recently. But good to know Dozen's more than 200k-mi record with the same rear beam axle and many others on the road