Testing driving an 05 Passat PD

[Viesel]

Stop by Reeves today and asked to drive a PD for a couple of days and took home a nice Silver with Grey interior. Its quite a nice car but I dont think I am going to get it. Im not to crazy about the engine growl, and the wind noise at highway speeds, but overall its really a nice car.
My biggest issue with the car is eveytime I get in a VW I expect it to have a clutch pedal. I wish it was a 5 speed. I was going to look at the passat as option and not get another CDI but I still am leaning on another one.
The sales manager even remembered me from a bug fest last year that I went to in Dade City. I didnt go last week so it impressed me that he remembered me from a year ago.
They said that I could be about 400 of the sticker.

 

[TDI Believer]

I wish we could get the 6-speed manual like they get in Europe. As for the growl, that's music my friend.

 

[jimoilrell]

Try to get the CDI with a clutch! I'd growl all the way to the bank with the $25,000 I saved by not buying the Benz.

 

[deming]

I drove the CDI last week and absolutely loved the car.
I personally would not buy the CDI because I hate all of the techno crap and electrical gizzmos.

If Mercedes stripped most of the crap off of the CDI and built the car with Leatherette, PW, PL, cruise, tilt and radio and then sold it for about $36,000 with an automatic and $34,000 with a 6 speed manual. I would really be interested in the car. It is an exceptionally quiet and extremely powerful vehicle to drive.
I just do not like all of the crap that will break and go wrong.

Thanks
Deming

 

[Viesel]

It is an exceptionally quiet and extremely powerful vehicle to drive.
I just do not like all of the crap that will break and go wrong.

No kidding! thats why I turned mine back in.
As for the Passat I am going to drive it around some more today. I guess its a little hard to compair to the CDI when I just got out of one for the last 8 months. But the passat seems to be really nice. We'll see.

 

[gtalum]

FWIW, I'm in the process of buying a Passat from Reeves. We're trading in a gasser on it, and from the test drives, I love it. Only problem is it's goign to be the wife's car. Now I'm jealous.

 

[deming]

We have an 05 Passat TDI Wagon and we really like the car.
We have had zero problems or concerns and it is a total hoot to drive. You can not compare a CDI Mercedes to a VW. They are not comparable. I like the MB ride quality, performance and comfort but I can not buy another car with all the electrical gremlins. We had that problem with Saabs and the Mercedes CDI is no different.

Just my .02.

 

[PlaneCrazy]

I've put 5000 km on my new Passat TDI (sedan) in less than a month and I absolutely LOVE the car. Build quality is fantastic. I've had zero problems with the car so far.

 

[Viesel]

Well I drove it around some today and its actually a nice car. One thing that bugs the hell out of me is, I sometimes have to sit at the job sight in the car at idle and the ac on for long periods of time, and with this passat the seat belt chime keep on ringing every 15 seconds when I take the seat belt off. I dont want to have to sit in my car parked trying to make calls and do papers with my seat belt on. That got annoying today. Other than that, I will give it a thumbs up. Im not sure though If I am going to get it. I really like a 5 sp in a VW. I think the wagon would be really cool. They told me that they are really hard to get.

 

[deming]

Viesel,
We have the wagon and absolutely love the car. Not as hard to get as they are leading you to believe. As for the seat belt chime, it can be disabled with a Vag Com and someone who is experienced using the Vag Com. A guy here in Chicago turned his off using the Vag Com. I hope to shut mine off in the near future.
Deming

 

[PlaneCrazy]

The seat belt chime is also an annoyance in our '04 Jetta wagon, but it's a minor quibble for me. The only time it bothers me is when I stop at our mailbox to pick up the mail and then I drive up the driveway with no belt on (about 100 yards-we live in the sticks).

 

[Kubla84]

the stupid seat belt chime chimes every 30 seconds for 5 minutes, one day someone will tell US how to turn it off
no comments about wearing a seat belt please
I understand that only north american cars continue to chime

 

[gtalum]

The easiest way to defeat the chime is to wear your seatbelt.

That said, my stepfather circumvented the chime in his Lincoln Continental by cutting one of those plastic credit-card-like hotel keys into the shape of the seatbelt tab that goes into the buckle (with an extra inch or so sticking out). He puts this in when he drives. It stops the chime, but when someone else (who is smart enough to wear their seatbelt) drives we can just take it out and buckle the seatbelt instead.

 

[tomo366]

My Passat no longer chimes or display's the seatbelt icon on the cluster.......Love that Vag-Com!

And I never move the car without putting on my sealbelt!!
I do not need to hear that NOISE and I don't any more!

 

[PlaneCrazy]

My seat belts have gone on as a matter of reflex since I started to drive in 1974. That said, when I stop by the mailbox on my way home at night, I leave the car running with the headlights on (so I can find myself to the box on the dark rural dirt road). The chime is annoying to me and more so to anybody waiting in the car. We have enough noise pollution already! I vote to silence it.

 

[deming]

Dammit. Why in the heck couldn't I have Tomo366 for a neighbor! You strike me as the Tim the Tool Taylor type.

Deming

 

[deming]

Has anybody in Chicago or Wisconsin with a Vag Com and a TDI Passat turned off their stupid door chime and seatbelt reminder yet? I could use some help learning how to correctly buy and use one of those little gems!

 

[Benjibird]

Details please! The chime is so annoying. What code do you use?

 

[tomo366]

You guy's need to read here more.. It was posted on the OBD forum on Sunday.

Fire up vag-com, hit (select), next page (17-instruments), next page (recode 07). Write down your existing code in case you have to go back to it, my code was 15235. The seatbelt chime code value is 02, subtract 02 from the first two digits 15=13, so new code for mine is 13235. I hope I explained the procedure clearly, if you need more help let me know.

 

[schipperke]

I hate the seat belt light/chime. It puzzles me why they did not set it to time out, as it does in many cars. The stupid thing starts ringing when I take my seatbelt off upon arrival. You can't unbuckle with the car running, nuts.

 

[Benjibird]

Thanks for the info on the chime Tomo. I have never read the OBD Scanner section as I don't have a scanner and I try to limit reading the Forums. There are only so many hours...!

 

[abctdi]

Besides turning into a seat belt chime and other pet peeve thread, did the dude buy a Passat or what? He could buy 2 for the price of the MB...