Find out what's really wrong with it though. From ignition parts to oil pump sounds like no one has any idea what's going on.
Tips for kicking tires on a fixer-upper
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Nick1994
$100 site donor 2024
Originally Posted By: maxdustington
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
I would buy it assuming the price is right.
I'm a gearhead and like projects I guess.
Sound like it’ll be more than just a project. A project is a Jeep or a domestic pickup you can tinker with, not a car that requires heaps of money and is so complicated the average Joe can’t figure it out.
Originally Posted By: maxdustington
I'll bet 90% of people bashing VWs in this thread have never owned one. The Mk4 2.0 is one of the hardiest and cheap cars currently available. Even here in Toronto, I see TONS of pre 2003 MK4 2.0s still on the road because their only weakness is the auto trans, rear beam bushings (pre 2003) and the inner fender rust.
Most noobs will fear VWs of that era because of the 1.8T which is why you can pick up 2.0s cheap. 2.0s are a simple SOHC 8v design dating back to the 80s. I am biased because my first car was a 2000 golf 2.0 5spd but they are excellent cars and very fuel efficent.
I currently have a 2003 Jetta 1.8T that went 200000km on original auto trans fluid, suck on that VW haters!
Been there, done that, had an MkIV VW. Won’t touch one with a 30 foot pole ever again. It drove and performed great but man, it needed SO much work after a life of being maintained to the T by the same dealer.
I noticed that you left out that it was a TDI or which version of the TDI when this discussion is about gasoline models. The MK4 with a 2.0 mill is about as rock solid as they come. TDI is a different story but you see them with 300+ km for sale here all the time. VWs specifically TDIs are bad for people who don't wrench, or are bad mechanics.
You have to know what you are doing to own them, that's why they are so polarizing.
MK4 v contemporary Toyota or Honda and the interior quality is not even close. The quality MK4 platform helped make VW the biggest automaker in the world. Those early 2000s japanese cars represent the cheapening of those marques.
TDI didn't have anything to do with the interior falling apart, CV boots failing left and right, the a/c compressor failing, the blower motor failing, the radio failing, the sunroof failing, the airbag sensors failing, the seatbelt sensors failing, the alternator failing, eating batteries, melting the fuse box, etc. DSG transmissions are used in some gas models and that failed on me too.
Or my aunt's 2013 Beetle TDI last year that had power window issues, constant a/c issues including compressor replacement which didn't last a year, sway bar bushings replaced, instrument cluster replaced, center console replaced, $200 battery died at 18 months old, alternator pulley replaced, howling steering wheel, etc.Those weren't TDI issues either
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
Originally Posted By: dlundblad
I would buy it assuming the price is right.
I'm a gearhead and like projects I guess.
Sound like it’ll be more than just a project. A project is a Jeep or a domestic pickup you can tinker with, not a car that requires heaps of money and is so complicated the average Joe can’t figure it out.
Originally Posted By: maxdustington
I'll bet 90% of people bashing VWs in this thread have never owned one. The Mk4 2.0 is one of the hardiest and cheap cars currently available. Even here in Toronto, I see TONS of pre 2003 MK4 2.0s still on the road because their only weakness is the auto trans, rear beam bushings (pre 2003) and the inner fender rust.
Most noobs will fear VWs of that era because of the 1.8T which is why you can pick up 2.0s cheap. 2.0s are a simple SOHC 8v design dating back to the 80s. I am biased because my first car was a 2000 golf 2.0 5spd but they are excellent cars and very fuel efficent.
I currently have a 2003 Jetta 1.8T that went 200000km on original auto trans fluid, suck on that VW haters!
Been there, done that, had an MkIV VW. Won’t touch one with a 30 foot pole ever again. It drove and performed great but man, it needed SO much work after a life of being maintained to the T by the same dealer.
I noticed that you left out that it was a TDI or which version of the TDI when this discussion is about gasoline models. The MK4 with a 2.0 mill is about as rock solid as they come. TDI is a different story but you see them with 300+ km for sale here all the time. VWs specifically TDIs are bad for people who don't wrench, or are bad mechanics.
You have to know what you are doing to own them, that's why they are so polarizing.
MK4 v contemporary Toyota or Honda and the interior quality is not even close. The quality MK4 platform helped make VW the biggest automaker in the world. Those early 2000s japanese cars represent the cheapening of those marques.
TDI didn't have anything to do with the interior falling apart, CV boots failing left and right, the a/c compressor failing, the blower motor failing, the radio failing, the sunroof failing, the airbag sensors failing, the seatbelt sensors failing, the alternator failing, eating batteries, melting the fuse box, etc. DSG transmissions are used in some gas models and that failed on me too.
Or my aunt's 2013 Beetle TDI last year that had power window issues, constant a/c issues including compressor replacement which didn't last a year, sway bar bushings replaced, instrument cluster replaced, center console replaced, $200 battery died at 18 months old, alternator pulley replaced, howling steering wheel, etc.Those weren't TDI issues either
Originally Posted By: HawkeyeScott
I haven’t seen it yet. I’d pay $500 tops, so I’d be limiting my damage from the start. I also have my primary vehicle so this one wouldn’t have to be perfect. Like dlundblad said, I kind of like projects. Parts also seem to be very cheap.
We’ll see. I’m back and forth but I’ll at least go look at it. Probably.
Parts ARE cheap, and plentiful. With a little love they make efficient and reliable drivers.
Heads up, it may smell like crayons. If it does there's no getting rid of the smell, lol.
I haven’t seen it yet. I’d pay $500 tops, so I’d be limiting my damage from the start. I also have my primary vehicle so this one wouldn’t have to be perfect. Like dlundblad said, I kind of like projects. Parts also seem to be very cheap.
We’ll see. I’m back and forth but I’ll at least go look at it. Probably.
Parts ARE cheap, and plentiful. With a little love they make efficient and reliable drivers.
Heads up, it may smell like crayons. If it does there's no getting rid of the smell, lol.
Originally Posted By: jeepman3071
Stay away from these, especially since the previous owners sound like maintenance is not their thing. These were some of the worst cars VW ever made. My sister owned a 2001 2.0 auto Jetta and it was trash by 100k miles. VW makes some good cars but the MK4 Jetta was not one of them.
Yep. My SIL owned a 1999 or 2000? It was the first year of the "new" body style. It was a more basic model with the 5spd manual. It was a nice car to drive, but consumed oil and had constant CELs that we could never rectify for long. I recall checking the oil level for my SIL to find NOTHING on the stick having to add 2-3qts of oil, yet it ran on just fine until she traded it off in 2003 with about 100K miles on it.
Stay away from these, especially since the previous owners sound like maintenance is not their thing. These were some of the worst cars VW ever made. My sister owned a 2001 2.0 auto Jetta and it was trash by 100k miles. VW makes some good cars but the MK4 Jetta was not one of them.
Yep. My SIL owned a 1999 or 2000? It was the first year of the "new" body style. It was a more basic model with the 5spd manual. It was a nice car to drive, but consumed oil and had constant CELs that we could never rectify for long. I recall checking the oil level for my SIL to find NOTHING on the stick having to add 2-3qts of oil, yet it ran on just fine until she traded it off in 2003 with about 100K miles on it.
In general the only MKIV jetta worth owning is the manual trans TDI model 2003 or earlier. That being said there are plenty of perfectly reliable 2.slow jettas out there humming along happily still today. I would only get into it if its both dirt cheap and you are interested/willing/capable of doing your own repairs up to and including swapping in a junk yard engine if the worst case scenario is the case.
Originally Posted By: HawkeyeScott
I haven’t seen it yet. I’d pay $500 tops, so I’d be limiting my damage from the start. I also have my primary vehicle so this one wouldn’t have to be perfect. Like dlundblad said, I kind of like projects. Parts also seem to be very cheap.
We’ll see. I’m back and forth but I’ll at least go look at it. Probably.
Are you on a tight budget?
I think that VW is a time bomb on 4 wheels.....
I haven’t seen it yet. I’d pay $500 tops, so I’d be limiting my damage from the start. I also have my primary vehicle so this one wouldn’t have to be perfect. Like dlundblad said, I kind of like projects. Parts also seem to be very cheap.
We’ll see. I’m back and forth but I’ll at least go look at it. Probably.
Are you on a tight budget?
I think that VW is a time bomb on 4 wheels.....
No VW experience here but this one seems like a waste...no telling what the shop or other shops have done to it
Originally Posted By: maxdustington
I'll bet 90% of people bashing VWs in this thread have never owned one.
I currently have a 2003 Jetta 1.8T that went 200000km on original auto trans fluid, suck on that VW haters!
Not saying there is anything wrong with VW at all. The MK4 Jetta with a 2.0 auto is just not worth the headache. Slow boring car with very high potential for transmission issues and oil burning. You can find MK5 Jettas with the 2.5L manual which is a much more reliable and fun to drive car for not much more money.
I'll bet 90% of people bashing VWs in this thread have never owned one.
I currently have a 2003 Jetta 1.8T that went 200000km on original auto trans fluid, suck on that VW haters!
Not saying there is anything wrong with VW at all. The MK4 Jetta with a 2.0 auto is just not worth the headache. Slow boring car with very high potential for transmission issues and oil burning. You can find MK5 Jettas with the 2.5L manual which is a much more reliable and fun to drive car for not much more money.
My recollection was that VW couldn't make a slushbox to save its life back then. Does not help that most enthusiasts aren't auto fans (no one wants to buy or fix them).
Had MkIV Jetta wagon, I really liked it and took it to reasonable miles. I couldn't work on the engine and no one local could either (well I didn't try, didn't want to find out the hard way). A gasser ought to be easier to work on.
Would be interesting to drive a 2.0 MkIV. Some days I find my Camry a bit too slow & I miss driving stick. But then I am reminded how mine had a bent axle beam (I guess they can bend over time), doors that were too hard to open, an impossible to replace heater core (whole dash comes out?), and IIRC there was something about the front subframe--the nuts were hidden and could break loose if you needed to remove that. The 2.5L I5 might be fun to try some day.
Had MkIV Jetta wagon, I really liked it and took it to reasonable miles. I couldn't work on the engine and no one local could either (well I didn't try, didn't want to find out the hard way). A gasser ought to be easier to work on.
Would be interesting to drive a 2.0 MkIV. Some days I find my Camry a bit too slow & I miss driving stick. But then I am reminded how mine had a bent axle beam (I guess they can bend over time), doors that were too hard to open, an impossible to replace heater core (whole dash comes out?), and IIRC there was something about the front subframe--the nuts were hidden and could break loose if you needed to remove that. The 2.5L I5 might be fun to try some day.
No axe to grind vs VW. "oh look at this nice low miles older car" "they don't make them like this anymore" Run away, Cars don't age well when they sit. Better is a high miles car with a stack of maintenance slips.
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