Cons, disadvantages and breakdowns of Volkswagen Passat B6

Volkswagen Passat B6. Is it worth buying? Are all official dealers bad?

Navigating the blog 1 Navigating the blog 2 Hello everyone. Today I’m going to show you another look at the Volkswagen Passat B6, and try to figure out if it’s worth buying, or should I look at other cars? Prices for the Volkswagen Passat B6 are very different – from 370,000 rubles to 550,000 rubles. Of course, everything will depend on the engine, year of manufacture and configuration. But let’s say many are looking for these cars for 400,000 rubles, for very different reasons, which I will try to understand in this post. Previously, I have already examined used Volkswagen Passat B6, let’s remember how it was: 425. What did you get for 400,000 rubles? Passat B6. 423. Volkswagen Passat B6. What do 10-year-old Germans look like on DSG? And at the end of the post I’ll write you how you need to be able to find a common language with the dealers, so that you were welcomed there as one of your own and that there were no posts of revelations, which so many bloggers love.

And if Volkswagen Passat B6 with DSG6 box people are afraid of, no matter how reliable it is considered by VAG owners, time, thousands of kilometers and riders have killed almost all existing such cars! And to get to the mechatron is easy, and the price of repairs these days is too great … Even though everyone tells me that it can be fixed for almost 20 000 rubles, but an acquaintance had a mechatron on a Volkswagen Passat B7 for a Golf6 1.4TSI, and it drove for exactly six months. The car was sold, and it broke down to the new owner, he has already called and presented it. But this is VAG, think about what you are buying, there is no fault here, this is the design of the cars. And consciously you can take these cars, if you do not understand what this car is, look towards other cars. And attractive at first sight price and equipment, can leave you in the future without pants! After all, it is one thing to buy such a car, and another thing to maintain it. And frankly speaking, it is time to forget about them already…

But more often people look at atmospheric 2-liter Volkswagen Passat B6, on a usual simple automatic machine. And, it would seem, the car is super reliable, but it is only at first glance … and these cars keep thousands of different problems – automatic and the engine I can not call it reliable … The box often overheated and dies, unstable operation of the internal combustion engine and all because of the injection, often coils die … I mean a used Volkswagen Passat B6 and believe me, not every, but one car these problems are caught, and how it will drive further? You have to understand why you take this car.

I told the client approximately all this, to which he replied as follows – the car is taken for six months, a year, mileage of 30 km during this time, and then sell. To get over, need a car. And they say the car is solid, 2006, automatic 2 liters, in perfect condition. Let’s look into whether this is actually the case. Passat are near one auto service, and the car is the worker of this service. He took it from his friends, as he knew the car, the friend’s wife drove it. After the girl car is often not very … At the service station was dark, I asked to take it outdoors, even though it was -20C or just below the temperature was, but the diagnosis did not turn on immediately, because the battery is dead. Like, take a look, take pictures and then we will drive it to the service station and diagnose. At first glance the car was not bad.

I tell you more than that, the car was not hammered! I was only strained by the rear fenders, which were not factory shagreen, but were without putty (see video), can be LACED?:)))) But WAGs have this bug, by 120-150,000 km, or 7-10 years old, the paint starts to come off in big bumps. It’s inevitable. And all those who say that these cars do not rot, very much mistaken! 100% of all the Volkswagen Passat B6’s I have inspected have had this problem. And if the fenders are painted, they do it with putty (a little), people are afraid to take them, beaten type! And if such a peeling paint, then what the hell is it for? Paint after purchase or what? This is such a vicious circle. I think it’s better to buy it underpainted, although it doesn’t say anything about the fact that it won’t peel off again in 2 months. The problem areas are all the fender arches, front and rear. The edge over the windshield. Doors on the bottom, and sometimes on the top. I have seen the same story more than once in the openings.

You can see more of these paint regurgitation points in the video. And here is the body perfect can not be found with a probability of 99.5% (0.5% exceptions). Even if you buy it with painted flaws, one hell of a tear off the paint when you get it, even if in another place, but it will. Just understand it. It is like chicken pox in a person, it began in one place and then the whole body became covered with sores. But if you got over chicken pox in childhood and forgot it, WAG has not decided problems with paint erosion in any way. If you think that Audi Q7 has no such thing, it is Audi! You are deeply mistaken, I have noticed such stuff on all WAGs. Do you need such problems? Everyone decides for himself… but personally I do not… Maybe someone else remembers a long time ago purchase – 312. Skoda Octavia. At the time of purchase everything was fine, now, the same rusting spots all over the car went. I know many will deny it, because everyone praises their swamp, but this is a real problem with VAG group bodies.

The bodywork has been dealt with, it is intact, but we need to paint the roof, fenders, and in the future the rest. There was one accident at the DMV, but the problem was small, the rear bumper. It was with bumps (see video), but it was also previously painted, and it is done so itself … Although it is plastic on the old car, fuck it. The windshield also needed to be replaced, although the crack is not “wipers”, and the windshield is native and original yet.

On the engine. Getting ahead of myself, I will say that there were errors only on the speakers, and some small things. There was nothing serious at all. Ignition misses were there, but a long time ago, at the time of the inspection, everything was fine in general. Volkswagen Passat B6 engines, there is a large line of them, and they are not all equally good or bad. The 2 liters can be BLR, BLY, BVX, BVY, BVZ. In the examined version is engine – BLY, which is generally considered reliable, but it suffers from poor starting in freezing temperatures, and this post I’m writing tonight and the temperature outside -36C, and if googling, you read so much negativity about these engines that even take the car is unlikely to want. This engine is always loud (nozzles clatter. FSI is direct injection) and has a belt drive timing. Personally, how many times have I seen these cars, not once have I seen them without errors on the ignition coils … all are always replaced, and not just once sometimes … RPMs in many cars are floating and so on and so forth … need good fuel, at least 95th, but in Russia people are used to refueling 80th, and then there are problems … many problems are from improper maintenance and operation. You can buy such cars only from inveterate VAG owners, who knew and did everything. BUT! I have no complaints about the engine of this car, even the radiator did not leak, which is usually the case with them. The only thing, one nozzle was not in place. In general, it is necessary to buy European cars with diesels. But somehow many are afraid of diesels in the Urals, so any sedan + diesel is a very rare variation in our area.

Barum tires, its tread was fine, although there are few spikes. Two hernias on the rear right wheel on the outside. Why do I write that on the outside? Because often they can be on the inside, and the rubber is intentionally turned upside down so that they were not visible. That’s why at service stations one should pay attention not only to running gear, etc., but also to rubber. The struts were dry and working fine.

Headlights are original, most likely polished, because they look good for their age, but that’s just my guess. All of the body iron attachment bolts are still in place, the spars have no visible damage or repairs. Again, I write visible, because it is necessary to look from below as well, but it will be mentioned in the video about Astra.

Now the most interesting. You see cars in ads, and constantly throwing me references, as somewhere out there in a parallel universe all cars are ideal, they say, look photos! And here you have a look. Mileage of the car is 180 000 km. How is the interior? Excellent, for its mileage? Even the steering wheel is only shiny, not wiped to the plastic rim of the steering wheel.

But in fact, this photo does not carry any information. From the seller’s words, while looking at the car and chatting with him, he got the car very unkept… Girl just drove and didn’t get into it… was eating liters of oil, but as it turned out, it was the crankshaft oil seal, after replacing it, no oil flow at all. Seats…I haven’t seen a B6 this bad in a long time…everyone loves leather, but no one likes to take care of it…the result is in the photo below.

Holes on all sides… but that was the driver’s seat, the passenger’s was a little better, but also tired…

Cars after girls are often nothing. Forgive me, dear ladies, it’s just statistics, I’m sure it’s not like that with you, but when I look at cars after the girls they are 99% of the time:) Sometimes even nails scratched all in the cabin … Here, everything was, I do not know how to say … sad … as if deliberately tried to kill the interior … all started to fray not only on the body, but also in the cabin … personally, I just would not like to buy a car with such interior …

The armrests are squeezed, all buttons and knobs are covered with some paint… I can tell you, the sight is not very pleasant…

Though the quality of interior is good and its performance is excellent too, but years take their toll… take it and do not ask! No one will keep the car just for you and then sell it for 20% of new price… This is how I explain car condition to my clients – do you want to buy a car for 400,000 rubles when the new car costs 2 million? Then there will be only 20% of service life left…

Volkswagen Passat B6 has another problem – the rubber of doors rubs the opening. By the way, it is only an initial stage here, there is often a dull rust in these places… and the doorways are painted because of this too, but they do not want to buy a car with painted doorways, and I myself constantly say until they show me why they painted it, I will not buy either…

The niche for the spare, the seams on the fenders, and other power elements were intact. The only thing that suffered in an accident was the bumper. And remember, doesn’t the engine eat oil? But a liter was in the trunk… though maybe it really doesn’t, but you won’t know until you buy the car.

Let’s summarize the inspection. Of course, you need to check a lot of things at the service station, but at first glance, everything is not so bad (on the one hand). To replace the windshield will go, no one and nothing in the old cars will not paint, and will continue to drive and grease all that comes out. The tires may have to be replaced, but not necessarily. The brake discs are new. Interior though terrible, but the buttons are not expensive to change from the junkyard dismantling, seats a problem, but many people don’t care about them. On the move, no knocks or bumps. Needs to replace the silents on the rear suspension – according to the seller. But the year of the car is 2005, not 2006 as stated. In general, if you want a tselka, it is as you see, with all the ensuing problems. Everyone decides for himself whether to take it or not. I would not take it! The customer decided to take it, but ended up not buying it Sitting at the station he got a call, the taxman came. And the seller refused to take a deposit, in the end he bought a Mondeo at all, and this car quickly disappeared from the ads.

Is it worth it to take the Volkswagen Passat B6. You know, it is impossible to answer unequivocally here. If to express my personal opinion – then unequivocally not to take, it is already buckets inherently. But craving for beauty attracts people, and what you buy nowadays for 400 000 rubles? A 1.4 Rio Solaris on a stick? Or maybe a Tidu? 400 000 rubles these days is not money … yes, yes … I’m serious … they do not buy a good car! All cars for 400 000 roubles will be with a set of compromises. Aveo, Lada and other small cars people don’t want either… It’s hard to predict how long the Passat B6 will drive… old cars are a lottery. Personally, I wouldn’t buy a car because it’s not well maintained and because of the body issues that can’t be avoided! But people love these cars, and many are willing to put up with the snags, so the Volkswagen Passat B6 is still on good account, and sells well. The acquainted dealers even sold such car in two days. But the problem is that every new owner doesn’t fix the bugs… and every year the cars get worse and worse. Much more correct, I think, bargain for the flaws, and the amount of bargain invested in the car. And the car will be normal, and it will be pleasant to you. In reality they will ask for a 50 000 ruble discount, and they will even discount them, and nobody will paint the fenders until they rot away, and when they rot away they will give them to a reseller, who will make arches out of foam and sell them to the next guy. That’s the car cycle we have in Russia. Do you still believe that we need “reusable” cars? What for?

If you do not want problems with the car, this car is not for you. If you went to TAZ, and you think to buy a foreign car for 400,000 rubles higher class, not to wash his hands of oil, and no more digging in the car, this car is also not for you! If you understand all plagues of WAG and are ready to accept them, then this car is for you. I’m not sure if you can find a car better condition than this … the body is almost all such, but this at least is not beat up. In the interior, many are like this, although there are better. An old car is always a set of compromises of some sort, and I place the integrity of the body above a good interior! The body is expensive to fix, and you can always buy the interior from a junkyard. Did I say junkyard? From a salvage yard I mean:) But I would look for a tinted, without peeling paint, and with a normal interior. Are there such cars? I have not met them yet…

Now, let’s take our minds off the car inspection and move on to the dealers. Many people on D2 are shaming official dealers for everything, and reproach me for writing about dealers well. Others write that, they say, you may have good dealers in the province, but in non-Russian one shit. But reading potter27 I understand that many of you just don’t know shit and, having read fairy tales, afraid to take a used car from the official dealers, which in turn are presented as cheaters, who only try to dislike everybody. I will begin from afar. When I was a hockey player, I was a kid. A kid who couldn’t go up to his coach to say something… yes, yes Boris, that was it. All my problems were solved by my parents. But it so happened that my father died early, and now all the problems should be solved by myself, not by my mother. And since then, I began to learn how to communicate, and take responsibility, and learn to make decisions. And also, I learned how to negotiate, because when you have nowhere to wait for help, you do everything yourself. I used to work at Contex, the company that they call condoms. I drove around stores, drugstores, and various outlets. I was a freight forwarder driver. And there were a lot of heavy stores that some drivers couldn’t turn in for weeks. I was always home at lunchtime and slept in, while other drivers plowed till 6. And there was no secret about it. If you don’t grease a cart wheel, it’ll turn, but it’ll squeak. And so, gradually, one chocolate bar for the girl, then I gave the condom dispenser, and so on and so forth, I solved the problem of the queues. Bread stood in line, and condoms were taken:) you know? You need to solve the problem, and not whine about how bad everything is! And solutions can be very different, from free (condoms were free), to offset sometimes (exchanged condoms for other goods), to the penny (buying candy). And then I started doing cars. Familiarity ZERO! No dealers, no services. No one has a fucking clue! In 3 years, I got them almost everywhere. How do you do it? Remember the X5 I found for a friend, a 447. Buying a BMW X5 E70 with a mileage of 17500 km. I went there to look at the X3 – 456 in general. BMW X3 2014 for 2 270 000 rubles. Why didn’t you buy it? And as you may remember, I did not know anyone there at all, but I was given to make a diagnosis (which you can not do), the X5 we kept much longer than the time that is usually reserved for the client, and everything I needed, I was given to do, and the TO was done on the X5 and the warranty gave. And right then I found a rapport with the people there, and now let’s just say I have my own people there. And in turn, for their good work from Novosibirsk sent T-shirts with autographs of the entire team. Wherever these people go to work now, they know me and will always help me in my business.

Do you think I’m going to look at this dealer’s garbage? One call and that’s it! And if I’m looking for a BMW again, I’ll call them right away and “put a fishing rod” in, and believe me, a good car won’t even make it to the ad, it will go to my customer on the call. That’s how it’s done, not otherwise. Connections in all areas solve everything! And you’re still reading about how cheating dealers are? NO! The cheaters are the ones who watch willy-nilly at the dealers and don’t know how to communicate. Yes, and the dealers are working people, and they are also sometimes mistaken, as Tertyshny says Sergey Viktorovich – in hockey you can not play without mistakes. It’s the same here, any receiver can make a mistake, sometimes they don’t look at openings, and other subtleties. But every picker has those friends at the dealers who save him time and money. Remember, the main thing is to KNOW how to find a good car, and know how to do it. Otherwise, you can look at everything for years, and not find anything. In the foreseeable future, but in 2017, there will be a review of the i40 I bought, where I will again touch on the topic of dealers, and how “bad” they are:)

Know how to communicate, talk, negotiate, and learn a lot over the phone. It makes the search a lot easier. Become acquainted with the dealers. And remember, if you don’t grease it, it won’t go. PEACE to all. There is no such thing as all dealers having bad cars, there are people who don’t understand what they do and what they do it for.

German quality flaws: flaws and breakdowns of the Passat B6

Our senior garage companions have estimated the disadvantages and shortcomings of such car as Volkswagen Passat with body index B6 in the form of ironic, but very close to reality phrase, that if to buy this car at the “secondary” it is the same as to go bankrupt.

For objectiveness, without deepening of paints, it is possible to recognize, that on traditional for German cars advantages, beginning from comfort, simplicity of driving and finishing with equipment by various assistants, Passat B6 is appreciably higher, than its rivals from the Far East countries, such as Japan and South Korea. What cannot be admitted in terms of reliability (which is not like the Germans in any way) of some units after 100 thousand mileage of the model, viz:

• Some petrol engines;
• transmissions;
• Suspension elements.

Power stuffing of Passat B6

The engine lineup of wagon-sedan models such as Passat B6 is very wide and the most reliable of them is the 1.6-liter atmospheric engine in a hundred plus horsepower, achieved through distributed gasoline injection.

Volkswagen Passat B 6 Engines

All other atmospheric engines are equipped with systems of direct injection, and the most powerful (in fact, that’s why they are powerful) are turbines. And here, as they say, the dog which brings problems is buried.

Let’s take the 1.8-liter turbocharged 160-horsepower unit as an example, which often started rumbling, which was formerly and serves now as evidence that the timing chain drive structure is starting to malfunction. True, sometimes it happens when the tensioner fails.

As for the other engine malfunctions that occurred mostly at the end of the warranty, these are problems with:

• intake manifold integrity;
• pumps;
• Control valves for turbo compressors;
• fuel injection pumps due to low-quality gasoline;
• ignitions, to be exact, with plugs, probably also because of “diluted by donkey piss” fuel;
• oil consumption, up to half a liter per every 1000 runs.

By the way, the most significant oil burning, as it was demonstrated before and, however, even now after the repair there are cases, when the turbo charged 2L engine steams twice as much oil, than it is regulated by the manual.

Other flaws power units Passat B6 – it is difficult to start in cold weather (requires reprogramming the ECU at the dealership), the rapid wear and tear, and as a result – the failure of the timing belt.

The 3.2-liter gasoline engines besides the fact that they burned up to 15 liters in the city also require replacement of timing chains within 60 thousand mileage.

All above mentioned disadvantages and problems have been deprived and now the most successful as repair ones in the secondary market are 2-liter turbocharged diesel power units. Although they due to poor-quality fuel could fail HPF, as well as nozzle pumps that are placed separately on each of the cylinders.

During the operation of Passat B6, our garage expert community drew several important conclusions, namely that:

• The gearboxes on the manual became problematic after 150,000 mileage;
• bearings and also hydro-blocks of six-mode automatic transmissions often broke down because of overheating already within 80 thousand mileage;
• The owners of Passat B6 have had and still have much trouble with robotized transmissions DSG, especially DQ250, where mechatronic hydraulic blocks are problematic options.

Suspension minuses.

As to the running gear, our brothers by misfortune owning Passat B6 have no claims. But concerning the suspension, especially its front part (it is known because of what), namely silent-blocks which in conditions of Russian roads do not survive even 30 thousandths of a distance. True, after they have been modernized they began to serve up to 60 thousandth overpassed distances.

In addition to silent blocks, the suspension system of the chassis to the body is a regular consumable, as it was before and is still in demand on the market:

• both front and rear stabilizer struts;
• steering link rod ends;
• shock absorbers, especially front;
• stern camber arms.

Concerning the steering, the users of Passat B6 have almost no complaints, except, perhaps, previously failing bushings steering rack, because of which appeared knocking in the front of the sedan.

As a summary

At one time, Volkswagen Passat in a body like the B6 was the best seller in the D-class of cars because of the excellent, even for Russian roads driving qualities, thanks to the spacious interior and good equipment. However, reliability flaws, somewhat pushed this model in the Russians to the second plan after the Japanese and American cars with more simple, and therefore more reliable units.

As for the purchase of Passat B6 on the secondary market, it is recommended to take these German sedans or station wagons, after 2008 production year, equipped with turbocharged diesel engines in pairs with manual gearboxes.