Replacing ALH? With what?

[macoombi]

My '02 is getting pretty rough - been running with no power steering (bypassed and removed) and no a/c for a few years, body is getting rough and a few other minor problems. What do you fellow ALH'ers plan on replacing your car with? I had a rental Golfwagen with AWD last January in Vancouver and drove up to ski in Revelstoke and it handled awesomely on the infamous Highway to Hell despite the all season tires. I always thought that AWD was only good for accelerating but no good for braking and cornering (probably still true) but it was steady as a heat seeking missile.

Anywho, I'm looking for a newer vehicle and it needs to be diesel and a manual - all wheel drive would be nice but I realize that I can't have all three on this side of the Atlantic. Are the problems with the DPF and the HPFP that bad on the newer cars? Should I just buy a gasser and give up the torque and great mileage? I do most of my own work including timing belts and clutches so does that change things?

 

[rwthomas1]

I find it odd that you would put up with dead power steering and no AC, but are capable of doing timing belts and clutches. Why didn't you fix those issues? Most of what you ask is answered in this thread here. https://forums.tdiclub.com/index.php?threads/why-do-you-still-have-your-mk4-tdi.491126/

RT

 

[KrashDH]

My '02 is getting pretty rough - been running with no power steering (bypassed and removed) and no a/c for a few years, body is getting rough and a few other minor problems. What do you fellow ALH'ers plan on replacing your car with? I had a rental Golfwagen with AWD last January in Vancouver and drove up to ski in Revelstoke and it handled awesomely on the infamous Highway to Hell despite the all season tires. I always thought that AWD was only good for accelerating but no good for braking and cornering (probably still true) but it was steady as a heat seeking missile.

Anywho, I'm looking for a newer vehicle and it needs to be diesel and a manual - all wheel drive would be nice but I realize that I can't have all three on this side of the Atlantic. Are the problems with the DPF and the HPFP that bad on the newer cars? Should I just buy a gasser and give up the torque and great mileage? I do most of my own work including timing belts and clutches so does that change things?

You can have all 3 but you need to be willing to step into a 3/4 ton truck (Cummins).
As of 2020 you can still get a manual. Might not be much longer though.

Even in gassers your going to be hard pressed to find and AWD with a manual any more. Subaru, Tacoma trucks, I think some Mazda cars...

I'll be keeping this ALH for as long as I can because I have another vehicle that is my 4WD rig (truck above). When the ALH goes, depending on how and what, I'd be replacing it with another ALH as I'm very keen on them. Easy to work on, inexpensive, fun to drive, parts widely available, the best fuel mileage, not run by an electronic system that you can't work on without a degree, etc. There's lots of reasons, for me.

 

[300D]

My partner just picked up one of the last of them. A 2020 Golf Alltrack 6-speed manual. She felt it might be her last chance to buy a smallish car with AWD and a manual. She probably isn't wrong.

 

[wonneber]

Doesn't the Touareg have a V10 diesel?

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

Doesn't the Touareg have a V10 diesel?

It did. 15 years ago. The V-10 Touareg is the polar opposite of the ALH when it comes to runnning costs. Complex, many things break, and they're all expensive.

To the OP's original question: I'd look around in BC and find the cleanest MKIV ALH you can. Cosmetic condition and service history is more inportant than total km on the car. Buy it and invest in bringing up all wear items and maintenance up to date, and enjoy the car. It'll be more economical to own and operate than a newer TDI, and you'll probably get more enjoyment out of it.