Anybody owns a VW Eurovan?

[alia176]

Just doing some exploratory research on an Eurovan and wanted to know if any of you have any feedback. I'm comfortable with owning high maint cars, especially European vehicles. Still, the English cars have to be the worst car I've ever owned, LOL!

In any case, it seems like the Auto trans are the failure points in these vehicles and with the exception of the 1993 model, they all have automatics. I test drove a '93 with a 5sp and a 5cyl engine and loved it. For our needs, the Weekender version will do nicely with the poptop. We have a very nice 1997 Landcruiser that I'm thinking of getting rid of in favor of picking up the Eurovan. On our road trips, the extra room will be very nice indeed.

Anyway, thanks for any feedback.

[Green1995SVX]

I don't own one, but I know them fairly well. They use the same drivetrain as the year equivalent jettas. The transmissions are awful. Also on the VR6 models, watch for timing chain guide failures. Listen for noise from the timing chain case when the car starts. The timing chain is on the backside of the engine, between the engine and transmission. That's a very costly and labor intensive repair.

[alia176]

Originally Posted by Green1995SVX

I don't own one, but I know them fairly well. They use the same drivetrain as the year equivalent jettas. The transmissions are awful. Also on the VR6 models, watch for timing chain guide failures. Listen for noise from the timing chain case when the car starts. The timing chain is on the backside of the engine, between the engine and transmission. That's a very costly and labor intensive repair.

Yeah, I've heard about the drivetrain and the timing chain. It's interesting that the timing chain is on the back side of the engine; I need to investigate that further as I can't see how that works. Being that it's a transfersal engine, I'd have thought the chain to be facing the passenger side of the engine compartment. How bizarre!

Thanks for the heads up.

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by alia176

Yeah, I've heard about the drivetrain and the timing chain. It's interesting that the timing chain is on the back side of the engine; I need to investigate that further as I can't see how that works. Being that it's a transfersal engine, I'd have thought the chain to be facing the passenger side of the engine compartment. How bizarre!

Thanks for the heads up.

It's a complete pain in the ass. It's just sandwiched in there the same way it would be on the front of the engine. There is a cog on the crankshaft which drives it that goes to an intermediate shaft/cog and then up to the cams. Then just has metal timing covers that go over it. I have a few pics of one with complete failure somewhere.







Personally, I'd stay away. They fail thanks to the plastic tensioner pads and need to be done about every 100k miles regardless of how well they have been maintained. This one had around 110k miles iirc with excellent maintenance history and one owner. It's about 11 hours of labor if you catch it before it does any damage. Also, while in there, there are a few other parts you want to replace which makes it all quite costly for something that needs to be done at that interval.

[Huskymaniac]

Bad VAG.......BAD!!!

[Sean486]

I would never buy a VW, or any German car unless I could afford to buy a new one.

[bwb3]

In all fairness, I just parked my daughter's 2002 4 cyl. Jetta 5 speed after 190k miles and 4 years, 90K of good hard service under her watch. Still runs great so will probably donate it. It served her, and me, well. My only complaint is the interior and plastics parts self destructed.
Gene

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by bwb3

In all fairness, I just parked my daughter's 2002 4 cyl. Jetta 5 speed after 190k miles and 4 years, 90K of good hard service under her watch. Still runs great so will probably donate it. It served her, and me, well. My only complaint is the interior and plastics parts self destructed.
Gene

Pretty much the norm. They're built about as cheap as possible in Mexico.

the 4 cyl engines from VW/Audi are generally good. The exception is when people follow the maintenance schedule for oil changes which is too long on the 1.8t(transverse or longitudinal). The Audi 2.8, 30v V6 is also a great engine and other than having it's oil leaks be fairly typical, is bulletproof. The Audi V8's are generally great as well, though do have transmission/torque converter issues thanks to the higher torque and power.
The 2.7 twin turbo, W8, VR6 have a fair share of issues typical around 100k and sometimes sooner and I would never recommend anyone buy them without a decent amount of mechanical ability. Even then, they're not really worth dealing with the headaches and why I chose to stop thinking about upgrading to an Allroad 2.7t from the A4 that I have now. (The V8 allroad was never offered with the 6 spd manual, though I do have all the parts needed to swap one if I chose, but just not worth the investment/bother)

They can be great cars if you know what to look out for and if they haven't been driven to the ground. Also, parts are cheaper for my A4 than parts we buy for the Subarus on the lot. (brakes, timing belt parts, sensors, etc) So don't let the myth of expensive parts fool you.

[alia176]

Originally Posted by Sean486

I would never buy a VW, or any German car unless I could afford to buy a new one.

I own a 1990 Mercedes 300E and I'm very impressed at the quality of workmanship and the design of this car. Don't get me wrong, I still love my SVX but I'm a "car" guy, not a "brand" guy and each one of my vehicles serve a specific purpose. I buy vehicles that makes me happy, regardless of the brand and their quality. I can fix anything, anytime.

Driving the 300E is way more pleasurable than the SVX to me. Again, I said to "me" The fit and finish and the attention to details on this car is rather amazing. This was a hand made car and the quality has since suffered starting in the late '90s. This is the only MBZ I've owned so I can't speak for any other models/years.

From what I've been reading, VW's are not known for their fit and finish. As long as the timing belt and associated components are taken care, the 2.8 VR6 ain't a bad engine. The transmission on the other hand is a complete POS. But, the nice thing is that it takes less than hour to complete remove the front of the vehicle in order to access the engine and tranny If I can find an '02 or '03 for cheap, I'll pick it up and then convert it to a weekender. This vehicle would serve my family well for long distant trips I think.

Thanks for the inputs.

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by alia176

From what I've been reading, VW's are not known for their fit and finish. As long as the timing belt and associated components are taken care, the 2.8 VR6 ain't a bad engine. The transmission on the other hand is a complete POS. But, the nice thing is that it takes less than hour to complete remove the front of the vehicle in order to access the engine and tranny If I can find an '02 or '03 for cheap, I'll pick it up and then convert it to a weekender. This vehicle would serve my family well for long distant trips I think.

Thanks for the inputs.

The VR6 uses a timing chain, no belts... It is not part of any recommended maintenance from VW. They just are a timebomb after 100k miles.

[icingdeath88]

Originally Posted by bwb3

My only complaint is the interior and plastics parts self destructed.

Sounds like a job for plastidip.

[bwb3]

Sounds like a job for plastidip

No, I'm saying console hinge breaks, glove box door hinge breaks, switch tabs to hold in place break, door panel cracks, door panel cloth inserts come loose, you buy oil dipsticks by the dozen to keep up with handle breaks, went through several door mirrors, and on and on.
Gene

[icingdeath88]

Originally Posted by bwb3

No, I'm saying console hinge breaks, glove box door hinge breaks, switch tabs to hold in place break, door panel cracks, door panel cloth inserts come loose, you buy oil dipsticks by the dozen to keep up with handle breaks, went through several door mirrors, and on and on.
Gene

Ah, I gotcha. Yea, my mom has a beetle, and the finish on a lot of the interior bits has peeled off, and a friend with a GTI also has the same problem. Come to think of it, a Passat wagon another friend bought recently was in extremely good shape, including most of the interior, except a few bits where the finish peeled like the other car. I'm going to try plastidip with the GTI and see how close a match the finish is, and how well it holds up.

I have seen some things like what you mentioned as well - tabs holding switches breaking, the plastic tube the dipstick goes in breaking, etc. Seems like the plastic stuff in general doesn't hold up well.

[1986nate]

Originally Posted by bwb3

No, I'm saying console hinge breaks, glove box door hinge breaks, switch tabs to hold in place break, door panel cracks, door panel cloth inserts come loose, you buy oil dipsticks by the dozen to keep up with handle breaks, went through several door mirrors, and on and on.
Gene

Yep, Seems like about half the MK cars at auction have broken glove boxes or missing altogether. I just had to replace one the other day. Just junk interior quality. They are made in Mexico as opposed to Germany.