VW Diesel Gate Golf

[Huie83]

Just curious if anyone else has picked up a Diesel Gate VW? If so, what do you think?

I was looking at used VW Golf's and came across an abundance of Golf TDI's on the market now that VW has been repairing them after the scandal.

I ended up picking up a certified 2013, loaded with NAV, sunroof etc, mid 60K miles for under $10K. 2 year unlimited mile VW warranty on the TDI's. Had maintenence records every 10K on the dot as well as it's 40K service, so I thought why not!

Neat little cars and good value for the money IMO. I've put about a thousand miles on it in the 3 weeks I've had it and love the torque from the diesel. I'm still getting used to the DSG transmission, I like how crisp and quick the shifts are but it's certainly not as smooth as a conventional auto.

Averaging close to 40MPG with a 60/40 split between city and hwy. Hwy I break 50-53MPG easy.

If you're curious on oil, this one came from the VW dealer with Castrol SLX professional 5w30 which carries the VW 507 approval. Still deciding if I'll service it myself or just bring it in.

 

[gregk24]

Glad you are enjoying it. I found the DSG to be smoother than a conventional auto. It all depends on what you are used too.

 

[skyactiv]

If you change the oil, retain the receipts. VW and Audi want you to use a new drain plug bolt and washer for each oil change. I use a new crush washer and replace the drain bolt every 3-4 oil changes.
ECS Tuning has all sorts of things for your car; even a few interior things not on the North American version.
If you take it to a dealer, see if they can program the windows to open and close using the remote key unless you have a Ross Tech cable.

It's German, so the wheels are bolted on, no lug nuts but not an issue. Put the wheel on the hub and spin it till it lines up. The car also has triple square fasteners.

I'm a semi mechanic by profession. I don't recommend idling a modern diesel if you can help it. It's not the best thing for the emissions system in the long run.


Awesome when it's hot out:

 

[dbias]

OBDeleven is a good OBD scan/program tool also.

 

[Snagglefoot]

Are they planning on fixing and selling all of them?

 

[Kjmack]

I looked at quit a few , Passats mostly . Every one had dings and scratches everywhere . All the exterior trim was weather beaten . The warranty is just incredible but I couldn't buy a car with 7k miles that looked so tough . Every car at every dealer .

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted by Snagglefoot
Are they planning on fixing and selling all of them?

Definitely not. I saw a flatbed truck loaded exclusively with crushed TDI VWs headed for the port recently.

 

[Huie83]

Originally Posted by Jarlaxle
Originally Posted by Snagglefoot
Are they planning on fixing and selling all of them?

Definitely not. I saw a flatbed truck loaded exclusively with crushed TDI VWs headed for the port recently.


I believe if they had over 90K miles or something in that range VW was just crushing them as they are not worth reselling.

Thanks for all the posts. I am familiar with ECS and will probably get the oil change kit from them with the drain plug etc. I have a set of winter wheels I got from Tire Rack on it now. I went down to 16's with the same overall diameter as the factory 17's. It's improved the ride a bit

As for the comment of the used TDI's all being beat up; mine looks virtually new outside besides a few scratches and brand new inside. I can see how some may have take a beating sitting outside in the weather for a few years, mine seemed to fair just fine.

Oh and I forgot to mention, most of these have new tires, brakes and brake fluid as well. They were all authorized to get replacements as needed from sitting. Mine has new tires and brakes in the front. Can't tell on he fluid.

 

[BearZDefect]

Instead of crushing those TDIs why don't they just export them to a third world market?
Perhaps part of their agreement is that insurance would pay VW for those older vehicles if they were crushed.

 

[Huie83]

Originally Posted by BearZDefect
Instead of crushing those TDIs why don't they just export them to a third world market?
Perhaps part of their agreement is that insurance would pay VW for those older vehicles if they were crushed.


From what I have read, due to the case against VW, they would have to apply the fix even to the VW's they wanted to export. That fact made it cheaper to just crush them.

 

[nthach]

Originally Posted by Huie83
Originally Posted by BearZDefect
Instead of crushing those TDIs why don't they just export them to a third world market?
Perhaps part of their agreement is that insurance would pay VW for those older vehicles if they were crushed.


From what I have read, due to the case against VW, they would have to apply the fix even to the VW's they wanted to export. That fact made it cheaper to just crush them.

Not to mention there's no such thing as ULSD in 3rd world countries - VW would have needed to rip the EGR/DPF/SCR off on those.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted by Huie83
Originally Posted by BearZDefect
Instead of crushing those TDIs why don't they just export them to a third world market?
Perhaps part of their agreement is that insurance would pay VW for those older vehicles if they were crushed.


From what I have read, due to the case against VW, they would have to apply the fix even to the VW's they wanted to export. That fact made it cheaper to just crush them.

I suspect many were beaters...and recall seeing that many of the cars, when parked (sometimes for a year) were vandalized.

 

[CleverUserName]

When I turned my 2009 Jetta sedan for buyback in October, there was a mint candy white 2009 Jetta wagon DSG w/ 29k miles on it that was turned in earlier that day. I told the sales guy who processed my paperwork that I wanted to buy that car.

He told me the dealer could not buy any ‘09 models because the emissions retrofit was too expensive and they "were too old". It was going to be crushed.

He also said they took in a ‘09 Jetta sedan with 24k earlier that month that also went to the scrapyard.

I was so angry! That I couldn't buy it and that they would scrap a car like that. What a waste!

 

[macarose]

VW is having a hard time selling them. We see tons at the auctions because the VW dealerships can't retail them successfully.

It is actually not a bad value but... the reliability of the dual clutch transmissions is pretty horrific.

http://www.dashboard-light.com/reports/Volkswagen.html

 

[BearZDefect]

Thank you for all the helpful explanations.

Lack of ULSD in the third world may not such big a problem - export them as-is and tell the recipients (whose labor rates are much lower) that they have to remove the EGR/DPF/SCR and tell them where to download revised engine control software to account for that hack.

Originally Posted by CleverUserName
...

I was so angry! That I couldn't buy it and that they would scrap a car like that. What a waste!

I understand!

 

[DoubleWasp]

I'd skip the washer/drain plug drama and use an oil extractor. Techs who work for Audi here tell me they never touch the drain plug. Extraction only.

 

[edyvw]

Originally Posted by BearZDefect
Thank you for all the helpful explanations.

Lack of ULSD in the third world may not such big a problem - export them as-is and tell the recipients (whose labor rates are much lower) that they have to remove the EGR/DPF/SCR and tell them where to download revised engine control software to account for that hack.

Originally Posted by CleverUserName
...

I was so angry! That I couldn't buy it and that they would scrap a car like that. What a waste!

I understand!

Trust me, they are far better in that than techs in "first world."
Huge amount of these diesels, even before all this drama, found their way to third world. Taking down DPF was serious business in those countries some 10 years ago, as soon as they found their way to the cars.
All thats tarted when DPF was introduced in EU and countries outside EU did not have such stringent laws. They cracked that thing within months.
While VW might not export these vehicles, there is some Nigerian immigrant in Miami exporting these vehicles in bulk.

 

[Cujet]

What kind of deals can be found? The tdi's I see locally are $14k for 55,000 miles. That's no bargain.

 

[Huie83]

Originally Posted by Cujet
What kind of deals can be found? The tdi's I see locally are $14k for 55,000 miles. That's no bargain.


Mine was a 2013 certified, 2 year unlimited mile warranty through WV. Has the sunroof and nav package, heated seats etc. It had 68K miles on it but full service records and really looks new in and out. I picked it up for a little less than $10K. Pretty good deal for what they are IMO. I've put almost 2K miles on it and love the diesel.

When I was looking there were other 2013's with ~20-40K miles for between $12-13,500. I picked mine because it had all the service records and was the cheapest in the area. The miles don't scare me, it has a 2 year warranty to fall back on.

 

[Cujet]

Is VW offering an extended warranty?