My new Volkswagen

[ihartmacz]

I'm the proud new owner of a 1999 Volkswagen Passat with the 1.8L turbo motor.

More pictures to come, but here's one:



A couple of you have noticed that the car is an automatic from looking at my Facebook. I don't want to get into a big thing, but my sister will need to have hip surgery and she won't be able to drive a car with a manual transmission. The only other car we have in our family that's automatic is my mom's Jeep which is too high for her. I figured since I was looking for a new car, I would try to find an automatic so she can do the things that she wants and so she can feel somewhat independent. Plus, this car was well taken care of, and I have reason to believe the transmission could have been replaced once in it's life, although it wasn't mentioned by the previous owner. Hope you guys understand, I'm still going to be part of the community as much as I can.



Anyway... I still have the Mustang, but only until it sells. I love the gas mileage that this baby gets!

[potownrob]

nice ride!
you've done a respectable thing in this case by keeping your sister's needs in mind (not that i'd want to share my car with my sister...)

[theholycow]

You're getting 47mpg? Can you elaborate on that? Hypermiling, driving slow, driving like a normal person? City/highway? That's pretty awesome for a decently large car, even with a small-displacement turbo engine, especially with a slushbox.

...or was that just a show-off thing after a short drive down a hill?

[Squint]

You're getting 47mpg? Can you elaborate on that? Hypermiling, driving slow, driving like a normal person? City/highway? That's pretty awesome for a decently large car, even with a small-displacement turbo engine, especially with a slushbox.

...or was that just a show-off thing after a short drive down a hill?

What he said! Or, my other guess... that it is an "instant mpg" that shows what you are getting currently. My wife's sister/husband have mazda 3 that does that so they fly between 5mpg and 60mpg depending on whether throttle is being used...

[94Corolla5Speed]

Congrats Graham! That's a very respectful thing to do for your sister, kudos to you for that. And yea, I don't buy your mileage readout for 1 second My girlfriend's car will show 99.9 MPG off throttle on the instant readout. I've been able to do 65-70 mpg constantly on a downhill.

[AHTOXA]

I think it's a good car but not my cup of tea. To me it's terribly bland.

Good luck to your sis and speedy recovery after.

[ihartmacz]

Yup, it's instantaneous. I was actually using light throttle while climbing a hill on a major street here in town. The average for the car is a respectable 25MPG so far. We'll see what's up when I fill it up for the first time.

Thank you all for the well wishes for my sister!


For an automatic, it shifts well. Although, for these cars, they seem like they have a hard time choosing whether 3rd or 4th gear is best (I've driven a 2.0L Turbo Audi 4A that does it too, although it is a 6-speed auto).

Just waxed and detailed it today.



Inside:



Yeah, I see where you do think this car is boring. It is quite on the bland side with it's light steering, automatic transmission, and supple ride. It is a family car, after all! I do like its level handling and European ride. Build quality is extremely good, save for a couple of the usual broken VW interior trim pieces. Remember, you're reading a post from a guy that would be tickled pink to drive a brand new Toyota Camry with a V6 (~270hp).

[potownrob]

unholy noise batman!!
is that a cellphone camera??

edit: try shrinking the pics

[theholycow]

If you request a gear choice with the +/- or 4/3/2 on the shifter, will it obey? That could help with that indecisiveness.

[ihartmacz]

You mean trying a different range? Thing is, that might do something, since most transmissions (at least the ones that I'm familiar with) have a separate shift schedule for each range. Though I said it can be fickle, it's not intrusive or noticeable by anyone who isn't watching or paying attention. Most notably, it's only apparent at very light or less than normal throttle. Under most traffic circumstances, it shifts amicably though all gears. If WOT is achieved, there is no point to shifting yourself; it shifts all gears at 6,500 RPM. The torque converter seems to lock quite a lot.

This engine is great, it's all mid range torque... When mashing the pedal at a stop light, the car is just a little sluggish to take off until about 2,000RPM, then the acceleration is brisk - anything above 4,000RPM provides very good acceleration. Highway passing is anything anyone could hope for from this kind of car.

Edit: Here's a video for you guys! Warning: NSFW language in the music!