Yeah I’m looking for a bit newer for her. Nothing pre-2010.+1 to the above. The main downside of those Mk4 ALH cars at this point is simply that they are old and almost all have been owned for the purpose of getting lots of use and miles, so finding one that is not worn into the ground at this point is harder than it was 10 years ago. That alone is a reason to consider something newer but if you did, going much newer with a TDI gets into trouble areas the Mk4 cars never had. All around, the PD cars (2004-06) are good too though. The late era TDIs with common rail engines (2009-15) can do well for folks but are in a different universe of complexity and long term cost of operation. The B5 Passat TDIs with PD engines (2004-05) are good cars too but are also more complex than the Mk4 with rotary pump, and have some trouble spots that have to be addressed and can get expensive (BSM, transmissions primarily). The pre-Mk4 cars (Mk3 Jetta, B4 Passat) have their fans and advantages and are objectively good cars that can serve well for many miles, but are much more primitive vehicles for daily use and much harder to get parts for, plus the early 1Z/AHU engine has some failure points that were eliminated in the ALH. So that really leads you back to the Mk4 with ALH as the most solid option out there, even today when the newest of them is 20 plus years old.
All that said, a Mk4 ALH car can still be completely viable even well over 300k miles if given decent care. And keeping one going for the long haul is not hard as they are simple and easy to fix and still easy to get parts for. Still huge numbers of them on the road worldwide. As long as you start with a decent example that is not beat/crashed/rusted, keeping it on the road is a reasonable proposition. Just last week I picked up an 01 Jetta sedan with 385k on it that's a little tired but will clean up just fine, intended for a Smyth Ute project this winter.
The only caveat to add to Peter's good advice above IMHO is to stay away from automatic transmissions in the ALH cars. If you need an automatic then the consensus recommendation would probably swing more towards the 2004-2006 Mk4 with BEW engine and 09A transmission which was a massive improvement on the 01M auto that was offered in the ALH era. Also slight preference among most of us for the 2000-2003 models as the 1998 (NB) and 1999.5 Mk4 ALH models had certain small disadvantages. Not enough to make you avoid one if you found a nice early car for a good deal, but all else equal the 2000-up cars had updates that are preferable.
And since you mentioned "much more" power than stock AND indicated it is for your partner to drive on a daily commute to save miles on your truck (meaning you want it to be reliable), remember that you will be starting with a car that has already been on the road for decades and probably hundreds of thousands of miles. FORGET about modifications until you get the car to a very thorough "Stage 0", in other words plan on spending plenty of time on servicing and inspecting fundamental systems and catching up on deferred maintenance before you think about turning up the fuel and boost. Mods that put heavy pressure on things like cooling systems, old turbos, etc are not a recipe for reliability or saving money in the long run if they are done on an ancient heavily used car that needs attention to the basics first.
We don’t have the CUA or CUAA in the US don’t we?
Gotta be a few based on numbers alone! Maybe? The other day I saw a B4 Passat sedan for sale with an ABA and automatic (would that be 01M or 096? not even sure) with high miles and a beat body and interior yet still running/driving ..... Amazing what kind of stuff can survive by random chance. Can't even remember how many years it had been since I last saw one of those.Are there even any ALH+01Ms left on the road?
Well idk about ALHs, but you will be getting my 04 BEW Jetta on 6/26. It's a original 108,xxx mile car.Are there even any ALH+01Ms left on the road?
Lol I know the basics but as far as the newer TDI’s go, I’m all ears. I have a very stout AHU but for her, I don’t want her in a manual **** box as a commuter. It would be a clean newer tdi. “Basics”
the main question is about the newer TDI’s. Pro’s and con’s…..
So who makes a good hybrid?
Better than reflex silver that’s for sure lolThe best newer than ‘10 rules out my ALH answer but whatever you get, platinum grey makes everything better
My wagon is RS. I wonder how it would look in plat grey.
I’ve never seen or heard this phrase before but I love it lol. I wonder if I can use it when I talk to my wife about her friends. Lol
Better than it does now?
Lol
Oh the woahs of a TDI. My 2003 Jetta recently went over 300'000 miles runs beautiful looks great. GLS, standard with the leather interior. I could probably throw another two grand in it, for the headliner , windshield , front brakes , things any car would need not specific to a TDI. I can still do some of the work. My investment on the car and repairs hasnt been to bad. However if the engine blows I thought of rebuilding or replace. Can you rebuild the engine without removing it? When I used to be a Sales Weasel at a used car lot the mechanics would do a rebuild on V8's without removing the motor. Any info out there on that?+1 to the above. The main downside of those Mk4 ALH cars at this point is simply that they are old and almost all have been owned for the purpose of getting lots of use and miles, so finding one that is not worn into the ground at this point is harder than it was 10 years ago. That alone is a reason to consider something newer but if you did, going much newer with a TDI gets into trouble areas the Mk4 cars never had. All around, the PD cars (2004-06) are good too though. The late era TDIs with common rail engines (2009-15) can do well for folks but are in a different universe of complexity and long term cost of operation. The B5 Passat TDIs with PD engines (2004-05) are good cars too but are also more complex than the Mk4 with rotary pump, and have some trouble spots that have to be addressed and can get expensive (BSM, transmissions primarily). The pre-Mk4 cars (Mk3 Jetta, B4 Passat) have their fans and advantages and are objectively good cars that can serve well for many miles, but are much more primitive vehicles for daily use and much harder to get parts for, plus the early 1Z/AHU engine has some failure points that were eliminated in the ALH. So that really leads you back to the Mk4 with ALH as the most solid option out there, even today when the newest of them is 20 plus years old.
All that said, a Mk4 ALH car can still be completely viable even well over 300k miles if given decent care. And keeping one going for the long haul is not hard as they are simple and easy to fix and still easy to get parts for. Still huge numbers of them on the road worldwide. As long as you start with a decent example that is not beat/crashed/rusted, keeping it on the road is a reasonable proposition. Just last week I picked up an 01 Jetta sedan with 385k on it that's a little tired but will clean up just fine, intended for a Smyth Ute project this winter.
The only caveat to add to Peter's good advice above IMHO is to stay away from automatic transmissions in the ALH cars. If you need an automatic then the consensus recommendation would probably swing more towards the 2004-2006 Mk4 with BEW engine and 09A transmission which was a massive improvement on the 01M auto that was offered in the ALH era. Also slight preference among most of us for the 2000-2003 models as the 1998 (NB) and 1999.5 Mk4 ALH models had certain small disadvantages. Not enough to make you avoid one if you found a nice early car for a good deal, but all else equal the 2000-up cars had updates that are preferable.
And since you mentioned "much more" power than stock AND indicated it is for your partner to drive on a daily commute to save miles on your truck (meaning you want it to be reliable), remember that you will be starting with a car that has already been on the road for decades and probably hundreds of thousands of miles. FORGET about modifications until you get the car to a very thorough "Stage 0", in other words plan on spending plenty of time on servicing and inspecting fundamental systems and catching up on deferred maintenance before you think about turning up the fuel and boost. Mods that put heavy pressure on things like cooling systems, old turbos, etc are not a recipe for reliability or saving money in the long run if they are done on an ancient heavily used car that needs attention to the basics first.
