DfwRevolution From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 23 hours ago) and read 831 times:
I saw an interesting review for the VW Passat TDI today and I was rather intrigued. I was in the market for a new car several months ago, but I've decided to hold off for a few more months. I had not previously considered the Passat, but this TDI sounded really neat. I'm aware that it has been in Europe for a while and is just now jumping the pond. The 134 hp seemed low, but my current 140 hp 2.2L Camry has nice pick-up.. and don't disels have very high torque?
I'd much rather give a clean disel a shot than a hybrid like the Prius or Civic, I just like the size of the Accord, Passat, ect.
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5394 posts, RR: 19 Reply 2, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 12 hours ago) and read 795 times:
There's even more powerful, 130kW, version of the 1.9 TDI available, but the 96/81kW version seem to be most popular.
There's also new generation of "PD" VW TDIs: 103kW 2.0 and 77kW 1.9
Despite the fact that until very recently Honda did not have any diesel in its engine range, the new Accord's 2.2 i-CDTi 103kW common rail diesel is supposed to be very very good, thouigh I'm not sure if its offered in the US...
Flight152 From United States of America, joined Nov 2000, 3291 posts, RR: 7 Reply 3, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 11 hours ago) and read 789 times:
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5394 posts, RR: 19 Reply 4, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 11 hours ago) and read 781 times:
Do BMW import their diesels to the US yet?
No.
Too bad. The BMW diesels (made by Austrian Puch) are one of the best diesels one can get, if not the best. Gasoline car-like performance with diesel-car gas mileage and costs:
DesertJets From United States of America, joined Feb 2000, 7673 posts, RR: 18 Reply 5, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 9 hours ago) and read 763 times:
The Passats' diesel is the new 16v 2.0 litre engine. Really quite nice and a major improvement over the 1.9 TDIs from what I keep reading. They should be available now nationwide except for CA, NY, MA, NH, and CT.
Performance wise don't expect to be winning any stoplight drag races. I believe its 0-60 time is somewhere in the 10 second range... pretty much on par with with your 2.2 liter Camry. But the Passat has roughly 230 some odd lb-feet of torque. So it should be a pretty good highway cruiser. The only downside is that the 5-speed tiptronic is the only transmission. And they maybe difficult to come by as they aren't going to be made in huge numbers and TDIs tend to be picked up pretty quickly.
Stop drop and roll will not save you in hell. --- seen on a church marque in rural Virginia
174thfwff From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 6, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 9 hours ago) and read 757 times:
DWF,
Don't let the low HP numbers fool you, torque is what moves you off the line and the TDI has plenty of that! Watch your state though, as New York, and other states are not allowing diesel engines in some classes in 2005 model year.
Leskova From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 6075 posts, RR: 72 Reply 7, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 6 hours ago) and read 743 times:
The only downside is that the 5-speed tiptronic is the only transmission.
Are you calling that a downside because it only has 5 instead of 6 gears? I'm not really sure that 6 are really all that necessary for driving in the US (or other countries with speed limits), although - admittedly - I'd probably prefer 6 gears as well...
But if you're saying that because of the "Tiptronic" part... what could be better? You can use it as automatic transmission or as "pseudo-manual" transmission, so you get to choose which you prefer.
And they maybe difficult to come by as they aren't going to be made in huge numbers and TDIs tend to be picked up pretty quickly.
Does VW build them in the US, or do they export them from over here? Because if they export them from Europe, then the only reason why it might be hard to get one would be that they're selling in really big numbers over here... most people that I know that have driven a TDI (or similar diesel) wouldn't even dream of going back to a regular fuel-powered car - they consider fuel-powered cars too slow...
It's not an unusual sight on the Autobahn to see a Passat, Audi A4/A6 (or another car with a TDI type engine) sitting behind another car on the fast lane at around 180km/h - and when the car ahead clears the lane, you get to see how much power those diesels really have...
Klaus From Germany, joined Jul 2001, 20853 posts, RR: 55 Reply 8, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 5 hours ago) and read 732 times:
Still, as long as they haven´t got soot filters, I won´t buy one. Having a brand-new Audi or VW in front of you at a traffic stop and getting soot-soaked when they´re starting again... neither pretty nor exactly healthy...
But it seems even the german manufacturers are beginning to see the light - after all, the french solved this problem years ago already...
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5394 posts, RR: 19 Reply 9, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 5 hours ago) and read 730 times:
My parents just bought a new Skoda Octavia (shares Golf V platform along with Seat Toledo and Audi A2) fitted with a VW 103kW 2.0 PD TDI (PD = pump-nozzle injection). I haven't even seen it yet but the engine should be really good - I've driven the 96kW Passat quite a lot and it was fun to drive, with manual transmission, so the 2.0 can in not so heavy car can be only better.
Superfly From Thailand, joined May 2000, 38502 posts, RR: 80 Reply 10, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 723 times:
Whitehatter: Do BMW import their diesels to the US yet?
Well they did, sort of. The BMW diesel engine was availible here in the U.S. under the hood of the 1984-1985 Lincoln Mark VII and Contenintal. That didn't go over very well.
DfwRevolution:
For econo-doxes, you can't beat a diesel. I know the current VW TDI Golf gets close to 50 MPG. I don't know how much the Passat diesels get.
Have you considered a base Chrysler 300?
They start at only $23,000 and get over 30 MPG with the base V6.
DesertJets From United States of America, joined Feb 2000, 7673 posts, RR: 18 Reply 11, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 719 times:
While the 5-speed Tiptronic is a nice tranny, it is still an automatic. Many TDI purists prefer a manual with the diesels.
AFAIK all US market Passats are built in Germany. The diesel market is pretty small in NA and VW has a pretty loyal diesel following. So there isn't going to be a lot of TDIs sitting in dealer inventories at any given time.
Stop drop and roll will not save you in hell. --- seen on a church marque in rural Virginia
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5394 posts, RR: 19 Reply 12, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 714 times:
Well they did, sort of. The BMW diesel engine was availible here in the U.S. under the hood of the 1984-1985 Lincoln Mark VII and Contenintal. That didn't go over very well.
Superfly,
today's diesels (both turbos and common-rails) in passenger cars are uncomparable to diesels 10, 15, 20 years ago. The US seems to not to take notice of that...
100hp 1.9TDi Passat gets 41 mpg with autoimat, 50.5 mpg with manual transmission (combined urban+extra-urban cycle)
L410Turbolet From Czech Republic, joined May 2004, 5394 posts, RR: 19 Reply 14, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 707 times:
Captaingomes From Canada, joined Feb 2001, 6413 posts, RR: 58 Reply 16, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 696 times:
Desertjets has essentially covered all aspects of the Passat TDI. I too think it's a shame that it is only available with the automatic transmission. This makes it less fun to drive, and considerably less efficient.
For two alternatives, wait a few months and the Accord and Altima will both have hybrid versions that you might be interested in. I can't wait for ultra-low-sulphur-diesel in 2006 or 2007, at which point we should get some more diesel offerings in North America.
"it's kind of like an Airbus, it's an engineering marvel, but there's no sense of passion" -- J. Clarkson re: Coxster
MD-90 From United States of America, joined Jan 2000, 8418 posts, RR: 13 Reply 17, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 689 times:
140 hp 2.2L Camry has nice pick-up
Are you kidding? Nice pick-up my ass. Those suckers are s-l-o-w (right off the line it's got just a little punch). And it's 125 HP, 145 ft-lbs torque, at least for the 95-96 model like I had.
I've ridden in a 2003 New Beetle TDI with stickshift. It was pretty nice. Red exterior, tan leather interior, moonroof, Monsoon, the works. Furney said he gets about 45 MPG. But the reliability of Volkswagens worries me. I'm too used to Hondas and Toyotas.
Believe it or not, I actually got 29.1 MPG in the Grand Caravan (3.8 V6) over the 180 miles between school and home a few weeks ago. All the back seats were out except for one bucket seat (that's about 135 pounds saved), and all I had was my backpack and an overnight bag. But it's mostly two-laned roads, so I probably averaged about 60.
Whitehatter From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR: Reply 18, posted (8 years 8 months 3 weeks 5 days 3 hours ago) and read 680 times:
VW reliability is not what it was.
My last car (before this one I've got now which is Vauxhall badged and Opel built) I had a VW Polo. Not sold in the US...think of a slightly shrunken Golf.
Bag of unreliable crap. It's made sure that I'll never buy another VW, even though I got offered a diamond of a deal on a 2.0 turbodiesel Golf last week by the local dealer.
Bit of an aside...when BMW introduced its new diesels to the UK, one of the most influential car magazines here reviewed it. The reviewer wrote out his review by hand, on a notepad sat on the top of the engine. Whilst it was running. Which sort of summed up just how refined BMW diesels now are.
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