1998 Volkswagen Passat Reviews
“Excellent Road Manners And Gas Mileage. But Required Quite A Bit Of Expensive Maintenance.”
When I bought the car, it was the first of the B5 platform. It had excellent driving reviews. I considered this versus the Honda Accord Coupe. I went for the VW because it was so mujch cooler looking. Since this was my first car purchase, I pretty much got it for the looks I walked into the dealership and bought the floor model. It is Colorado Red with tan leather and I also got the 5 disc changer. It's a 5 speed manual 1.8L Turbo because I always wanted to drive stick. I babied the car. Hand waxed it twice a year. And hand washed it frequently. It lived in NJ, PA, MO, and now resides in CA. I still drive the car and have been attempting to do my own maintenance which has saved me some money. But overall, it has cost me a lot to repair since most garages in Bakersfield do not service the car with confidence so I take it to the dealership. It has 145000 miles on it. I am probably going to drive this car to its death.
I got my VW to get a break on rising gas prices. When the transmission started to go out at 100K, we took it in to the shop and found out the car was falling apart beneath me.
My best car I've ever owned.. Prob most sensible, no bucket seats and not stripped out, but still best by a mile.
Solid car with uninspiring but simple good looks. Love the engine and trans and the general usability. Handling is adequate and predictable if not sports cad like