Volkswagen TDI

One of my engineers has a 2011 TDI Jetta and he gets 40 hwy and about 33-35 city and its an automatic.

That's about all I have to offer here.  

I am not as knowledgeable as I want to be on cars, but I have said for a long time that my dream car is a 10 year old Jetta with a TDI engine. You're looking at one only 8 years old (assuming the 05 was actually out in 04). Buy it before I make a long road trip and grab it first.

Two VW TDI's in this family (My dad, and my brother).  My brother has a long commute Near Milwaukee to Madison every day.  He has had Zero problems, and is over 200k and LOVES the gas milage.

My dad is over 300k in a Jetta wagon and also has had no significant problems..

We had an 01 Beetle, we took it back as a lemon.  After 7 dealer visits, they never were able to figure out why the airbag light kept coming on.  A friend of mine had an 03 Jetta and her sister had an 02 Beetle, when her sister would have a problem, it meant her problem would be coming soon.  

The engine would probably be OK, but I'm not sure if VW ironed out their problems by 05.  The current ones are fine but cars of that era had problems.  Make sure you do your research for that model year.

Was this a TDI?  (I'm not sure they made very many - if any - Beetle TDIs)  I have heard that there are some electrical issues with the 2000 era Jetta's...

I have the '04 Jetta TDI.  I have the 5speed manual and get anywhere from 45-50 highway.  Most of my driving is highway, 1.5 hr commute each way daily, and i'm up over 150,000 miles and it still runs like a champ.  Biggest expense has been the timing belt change-out and i had a fuel pump leak a few years back.  I wish diesel prices were comparable to what they were when i bought it (i.e. 50-60 cents cheaper than regular), but with the new low sulfur diesel, the price is always higher than regular (today $3.69/gallon vs. 3.40/gallon in Arkansas).  Anyway, i would suggest making sure you have someone who will do routine work on it outside of the VW dealer, as they overcharge and the company seems to only take the side of their workers over their customers (a problem i had which i won't get into here), but you should make sure someone local will work on a diesel for you before you plan to buy.

***ETA, i just noticed you are from Puyallup.  I graduated PHS in '96 and my folks still live up in Washington***

The best place to ask questions and do some research is www.tdiclub.com

I have a 2003 Jetta TDI (manual transmission) and think its great.  Avg 47 mpg on mainly highway, and can get 50+ when I really try.  Around 160,000 miles and going strong.  I ran it on biodiesel made from waste vegetable oil when I lived in San Antonio; not available where I live now.

My complaints are the small things that are starting to go bad.  Like the roof liner cloth that's sagging and should be replaced or tacked up.  Like the spring that just broke in the trunk locking mechanism so the trunk doesn't lock (at least it stays closed).  Like the small VW logo on the hub caps that get unglued and lost every few months.  I haven't had these little problems on other 10 yr old cars I've owned.

I'm looking at an Audi A3 TDI which has the same engine, but hopefully is put together just a bit better.

Brian

The 2003 VW TDI and Audi A3 TDI engines are vastly different.  

Lisa, the 2005 automagic transmissions are a 5speed design and better than the previous 4speeds.

The 2005 engine uses a cam-activated HEUI instead of the bosch VE pumps on the pre-2005 models.   IT IS IMPERATIVE that you use a VW 505.00 rated oil on these engines.  The cam lobe that drives the injector is extremely narrow and therefore has some special oil requirements.  

Fan belts aren't an issue, and really neither are water pumps.  TIMING BELTS must be changed every 100k.  for a car with that many miles, you need PROOF that the timing belt was changed OR you need to plan on having it done immediately after buying the car.   Change the water pump at the same time.  It's only another $60 or so, and is good peace of mind. (the labor required to change a water pump is the same as doing a timing belt (4 hours) and a water pump failure, tho rare, will take out the engine)

There is a good concentration of TDI enthusiasts in and around Washington state.   Go over to tdiclub.com and poke around.  Ask if the current owner of the car is a member at tdiclub.com.... if they are, this is a good sign that the car has been taken care of well.  

None of the vehicles were oil burners, but the type of engine doesn't matter if it has electrical problems.  Except for the engine, trans, and fuel system there is very little difference between a gasser and oil burner.  VW looks to have taken care of some of their issues, I just don't know where the 05 falls.

I driving a 2010 TDI.  So far so good. 47-48 mpg on the highway. 

I was under the impression that the 2010 swithced to timing chains and don't need to be replaced like the timing belts. 

Biggest complaint so far is that I have been through three of the little wire jacks that you plug into the IPOD.  I take y IPD in and out of the car about once a day.

$40 bucks a pop.  I got them to replace it once, but the next time it cost me.

Does anyone here have problems with their IPOD jack?  Are there after market IPOD jacks that will hold up better?  I could not find one.

Check your manual, 2010 vehicles are still sporting timing belts.