Loving my 2012 Passat TDI - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

compu_85 · #1 03-11-2013, 11:37 PM

I had been eyeing the "New Midsize Sedan" Passat since it came out. After our 91 Jetta got totaled we were down to 2 cars... our 6.0 F350 needs head gaskets and is too much of a bear to drive in the city. On a whim we contacted a dealer in PA known for getting good deals, and he happened to have one coming on a truck that was the exact color and trim we wanted. $22,000 later it was in the driveway

This is my first new car, and I'm enjoying keeping it nice. Some observations:

The ride is controlled and comfortable, and the control layout is excellent. There's tons of interior space, it's actually a big bigger inside than a long wheelbase W126. The automatic climate control does a great job, and the air conditioner has great cooling capacity.

We opted for the DSG automatic. You can do lots of reading about this transmission, but it's basically 2 computer controlled manual transmissions with wet clutches. All the even gears are one one trans, all the odd on the other. When it "shifts" it's actually just swapping the clutches, the actual gear is pre-selected.

Initially I was worried about how the DSG would handle traffic. It's not as smooth as a torque converter, but it does a great job. When underway it seems to always be in the right gear (it's a 6 speed). The "shift" is so fast and smooth it's magical. Still puts a smile on my face

I feel like VW spent a lot of time with QC at the new American plant. The build quality on this car seems very very good. Apart from a very small rattle in the sunroof when the vent is up the interior is squeak and rattle free. All the trim has a nice look and feel, and all the buttons feel great too... properly weighted.

It has a 1200 watt electric heater built into the HVAC system, so it blows warm air almost right away and blows hot even when the coolant isn't up to temp.

Last weekend I removed most of the interior to do some wiring and liked what I saw... all the plastics are high quality and none of the clips broke as I was removing pieces.

We got the car last April and already have 23,000 miles on it

The lifetime economy number is sitting at 41. Passat TDI (VW Passat) | Fuelly It's used about 10 gallons of AdBlue over that time (just under 2.5 gallons at each 10,000 mile oil change, 5 gallon tank).

The only problem we've had with it has been a leak from the sunroof when it rains hard. Should be fixed by the dealer next week.

Center stack & CB:

Driving through the mountains the car decided it was time to do a regen. The MPG figure in the cluster is the tank average. Note the EGTs displayed on the scan gauge up on top of the dash (labeled as CAT).

One more, from when I picked it up. I find it amusing when the trip and odometer match

I hope to have it for many years to come

-Jason

spdrun · #2 03-11-2013, 11:51 PM

I'd still rather have a real German car built by beer-swillers than moonshine-swillers.

Angel · #3 03-11-2013, 11:55 PM

I do like that someone finally realized that us lazy americans like heat in the winter, and its worth putting an electric heating element in...just so we can get it sooner (heck, we have been too lazy to crank windows up and down for a while, so this shouldnt be a surprise)

So the new VW TDI's force a "Regen" every so often - how often ? How does that affect you ? (does it have to idle or can you drive it ?)

..AND they require Adblue - is that the same as DEF at truck stops ?

I know that this is the future, but geez, I'm gonna find it harder to sell my friends on new diesels in this has made its way to the VW's...

-John

E150GT · #4 03-12-2013, 08:18 AM

Nice car. I want one but I am not willing to buy another car. Oh well. What kind of antenna is that? I have been in search of a good antenna for the mazder.

compu_85 · #5 03-12-2013, 08:24 AM

TDIs have had electric supplemental heat since 1995, they just upped it in 2005. Before then they had 3 glow plugs in the coolant flange on the side of the cylinder head. 2005 and later have electrically assisted power steering too, because of all that our car has a 180 amp alternator!

It does a regen every 800 miles and whenever the DPF loads up. You can't tell it's happening while driving; the only way to tell is when stopped because the idle speed is slightly higher and the radiator fans run on high speed. It only impacts me because I wait for the turbo to cool off before shutting down the car.

All of the trim and body is made in the USA, as are most of the electrics.

Yes, AdBlue is the DEF you see at truck stops. And it works, much better than the system in the Golf / Jetta that doesn't use DEF... they get worse fuel economy than the larger Passat! Because the car uses so little the cost is negligible.

The antenna is a Wilson 5000

-J

elchivito · #6 03-12-2013, 09:15 AM

Nice car. I've liked them for a while. 22K seems like a very good price compared to what I'm seeing locally. What means 'regen' please?

jcyuhn · #7 03-12-2013, 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elchivito

Nice car. I've liked them for a while. 22K seems like a very good price compared to what I'm seeing locally. What means 'regen' please?

Regen is a periodic incineration of the accumulated soot to clean out the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF). Extra fuel is injected and burned in the oxidation catalyst which raises the temperature of the exhaust gasses. This higher temp exhaust gas incinerates the soot in the DPF. Mercedes uses the same system in Bluetec diesels.

MB also uses an electric heating element in diesel cars. On a chilly morning (and it don't get that cold here in Dallas) I have seen it take 10 miles for the Bluetec to reach full operating temperature.

Seems like a lot of car @ $22K. I was shopping for a Jetta TDi wagon about 2 years ago. Despite going for a base model with DSG as the only option, the lowest quote I got in DFW was $25-something-K. Ended up not buying one as a result.

t walgamuth · #8 03-12-2013, 10:44 AM

Is it available in a wagon? ...with a stick?

41 lifetime average?

Thats better than a hybrid.

barry12345 · #9 03-12-2013, 12:03 PM

That electric booster heater was really needed as soon as the tdi was introduced in climate as cold as ours up here in eastern Canada. Unfortuantly it was not available.

We went from some of the best heaters I have ever experienced to one of limited worth very fast. Glad to hear they got this dealt with.

The manufactuers chose increased power over increased fuel milage. To me this was somewhat of a dissapointment. North america gets what they feel will sell I suppose. I have felt that perhaps close to 60 miles per american gallon could have been engineered into the same cars with only a small reduction of power.

rscurtis · #10 03-12-2013, 12:05 PM

CU reports a real-world 51 HWY MPG with the manual transmission. That's almost as good as my svelte '89 Jetta was with its 52 HP engine.

spdrun · #11 03-12-2013, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rscurtis

CU reports a real-world 51 HWY MPG with the manual transmission. That's almost as good as my svelte '89 Jetta was with its 52 HP engine.

Imagine if it had the same engine tech in a car as free of pigfat as the Jetta.

compu_85 · #12 03-12-2013, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by t walgamuth

Is it available in a wagon? ...with a stick?

41 lifetime average?

Thats better than a hybrid.

No wagon, but you can get it with a 6 speed manual. Yes, that's the real lifetime. Winter in the city kills the economy, low to mid 30s... but on the highway it shines. It's easy to break 45. 52 MPH breaks 50 MPG, even with the automatic.

I think VW gave us the 2nd most powerful tune of this engine so that people wouldn't complain about a lack of power, or try to modify it and make the emissions worse. It doesn't have as much torque as my 99.5 Jetta, but the extra HP is nice and the engine is very smooth (16v w/ balance shafts).

-J

barry12345 · #13 03-12-2013, 01:04 PM

Up front cost of getting into that car for 22k was great. I wonder if volkswagon have increased the ground clearance somewhat reciently. It was too low in 2000. At least for the area we live in.

SwampYankee · #14 03-12-2013, 02:26 PM

Sweet CB!

I'm interested to see how the trans. holds up. Frankly I'm tired of shifting in traffic in a DD. For a play vehicle, OTOH, I still want a standard. Unless I finally get around to building that super turbo.

compu_85 · #15 03-12-2013, 03:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SwampYankee

Sweet CB!

The box of tricks I mounted under the passenger seat is sweet too

There's tons more ground clearance on this than the 99.5 Jetta, and the engine seems to be mounted higher up in the chassis as well. I've yet to scrape it on anything.

-J