Hi sifus,

As per topic, I’m currently looking at the 1.8 Comfortline variant

I’ve done a little bit of research (well quite intense actually ) and I do know that there are a lot of issues with the previous gen Passat... But I’ve also heard that their gearbox issue has been resolved this time around is that true ??? Especially when I’m eyeing over the dry clutch model.... Scary...

Btw I really wonder if there is any Passat owner lurking around in this forum coz I don’t seem to even find a Passat club to begin with... This makes me think if this car is really so bad that nobody drives

Million dollar question:

Will you buy a showroom demo unit (<10k mileage) at say 110-120k if it is made available to you??? Or would you recommend me to go for other options be it new or used at the said price. And of course your justifications.

Would really like to hear from the sifus here. Very much appreciated

Well, I personally take mileage as a benchmark to compare if the car has been ‘trashed’ or not. I think you must agree with me that a pre-reg or demo unit with <10k mileage is still better than a unit with 30k mileage right...

Other than that, I don’t think any sane person will sell their car when their mileage is only between 10-15k to begin with so you couldn’t compare...

Got spare car at home?

Their courtesy car policy isn't very customer friendly and in limited quantity.

I bought demo unit 2014 mfg Polo Sedan on year 2016 with 168 km mileage, at MyVi price.
Sounds great right? Well, upon deliver, the engine bay has loud vibration sound during reverse, radio signal bad reception which I need to deal with VW SC. First issue quickly rectified but 2nd issue radio poor reception had gone numerous visit to SC on 6 months span, complaint, left car over 1 week twice for inspection, and email to VGM. End up they preferred to blame the fault on I installed reverse camera(which is after some time), which causing interference on common ground. Bullshit, I fixed after visit workshop outside, which found the fault on corroded antenna PCB under the base...
Things does not end there, I got absorber faulty within 10k km, which they said absorber only covers on 6 months/10k km, but my demo car already passed 6 months and not entitled for warranty. Arm rest button, ECU bracket broken on 20k km, which also cannot claim due to these are wear and tear warranty 6 months/10k km only.
So moral of the story? Don't buy demo car that has passed 6 months/10k km. Majority of their warranty claimable items falls under 6 months/10k km including absorber, interior accessories, brake disc and pad etc etc...

Theres a few pre-reg units that has less than 500km mileage. Look for that instead

My answer is simply "No" :-)

You know what causes most engine wear? short distance travel - when the engine oil is never able to reach it's optimum temperature to perform fully.

Now imagine the demo car is driven less than 5km during every test drive, also 5 times out of 10 it is revved sky-high by enthusiastic customers before the engine oil have a chance to warm up.

You get the idea. And that's just the engine, not including other parts of the car such as the steering, suspension and brakes that are abused everytime it goes out for a test drive. I've been to test drives where the SA encourage me to speed over a road bump just to show me how good the suspension is.

So yes, you actually have better chance getting a 30k km car from an actual owner that's in better condition than a 10k km showroom demo car.

Thanks for the feedback guys. Really appreciate that.

Don’t mean to disagree but does that mean the total savings of ~35k ie. 110k as compared to new unit 145kish is not at all justified??? Taking into consideration VW poor resale value, I was thinking I may be able to cushion some of the highest depreciation which happens to be in the first few years of ownership.... hmmm...

Btw I thought there are 5 years warranty so there is no issue

I already listed down some common items ridiculously classified as 6 months/10k warranty only.

Suggest u think twice. I have not seen many of new passat on the road. I had initially wanted to get one also...test drive it. Driving is good...specs is good however many advised against it.

lol, don't listen to most of them la. Many of them don't know what they are talking about

100k would be good value in my opinion. 110k is average for a 1.8. This is my perspective as an ex-owner. If you can get one unit at 80 to 90k NEW, that's even better!

And yes, the car WILL HAVE poor resale value. I can confirm that your car is only be worth 45 to 50k to 2nd hand dealers after 5 years. So the less you have to pay for it, the less you lose on depreciation.

If you want a car with better resale then you need to get the 2.0, I'd definitely get the demo unit 2.0 which is priced at 135 to 140k, a friend of mine got the 2.0 demo unit and that is a much better value car that doesn't depreciate as much as the 1.8 because of the 6 speed DSG and GTI spec engine.

Just bear in mind that whether or not if its the 1.8 or 2.0, your wear and tear parts will cost more money than any Japanese car to fix, so this is where you MUST do your own research or you will end up being slaughtered like a water fish.

This post has been edited by zweimmk: Dec 3 2018, 09:59 AM

An 80 to 90k car drop price until 50kish level. Whatever problem it has also nothing to complain already. Plus, it's a 2014 manufactured car, which means it was sitting in some warehouse for 2 years... have some realistic expectation la friend.

I think you already got a very fair offer. You would at most lose another 25k or so after 5 years since the initial price in which you got the car was 50kish.

Yes i will buy if still got warranty. I rent a passat b8 trendline with socar for a day, manage to drive for about 476km. The car odometer almost reach 10k km, i dont find any issues with the powertrain and suspension.

I believe socar car has been trash hard by renter than any test drive car. The passat that i get very dirty inside out. Dented here and there and even got some accidents trace at the backdoor with unmatched colour.

Still have complaint on gearbox even though is wet clutch

I bought similar deal proton gen2 2008 mfg on year 2012 new with RM35k, no problem still driving today, except need to repaint. When VW Visit Workshop gen2 serving me. Quality speaks sir!
My main objective of story telling here is to inform TS on the expectation with Demo Car, not a complaint tho. Warranty as such need to be frank to him OK?

1.8L 7 speed DSG is dry. No wet.

Bang for buck I don't know, but the transmission confirm will go bang, just a matter of when. If you buy it used and cheap, then its good deal provided you have a spare car and you're mentally prepared for the hassle. If you buy new you're gonna get banged when you wanna sell it off.

I don't know about you but I buy a car to drive, not buy a car to maintain. Not much driving if its in the SC.

it may seem like good value, but the hassle of dealing with repairs alone isn't worth it yo

but like others have pointed, a spare car and dedicated annual leaves for SC visits are a must

think long-term

It's not just the transmission but VW cars are also famous for mechatronic failure which can happen without warning and leave your car stalled. Of course being a VW other things can go wrong such as sensors, water pump and coil packs. When I buy a car I want to drive with confidence, not drive in fear of when the next breakdown is going to happen.

When I bought by B8 2.0 and my wife bough her Polo Hatch, we both tried the demo car.

I took her B8 to 100kmh and jumped across her bump. My wife did the same. Then I took the B8 to 200kmh on highway.

All these were given green light by the Sales Rep

Latest update:

Manage to find another demo/test drive unit, 2018 1.8 Comfortline registered in Aug’18 with 900km mileage @ 123k OTR exclude insurance. Any thoughts??? Yay or nay

What's the furthest you guys been with 1 full tank?

What's the reputation of VW? Always breaks down....spare parts prices high like KLCC .... unreliable.... spends most of the time in workshops.

Bought the car @ 123k, started driving since 1/1/2019. I've been to ~800km+ with 1 full tank casually. Normally around 700+. Anyways, been driving the car for almost 5 months down the road, reg on 31/07/2018. Very happy driver at the moment. I think it's a good buy. What can you get with 123k nowadays?

Brought from Vernes? I got mine also thr same July registered but transferred at Feb 2019 ... happy that its 210whp on dyno after rechip ... highly recommended

This post has been edited by mewhoyou: May 21 2019, 08:23 AM

volkswagen 0.88% interest no more ? now seeing 1.88%only

Appreciate existing CL owner to provide feedback regarding the car pls? Service so far so good?

Very Unhappy Experience at VW

My experience with CL is only with the SOCAR units. But I can say the passat b7 feels much more powerful than b8 cl eventhough cl has +20hp over the b7

Once you source a good mechanic & set aside some money for maintenance anually, than fine. Maintennace will be higer that Jab cars! That's the reason for low RV! Readup on wet and dry clutch, make your choice! Some very good cars in the used car market.

I'm sure you'll enjoy this car.

Thanks guys... Test drove the car love the overall experience, but a bit worry about the service. Good thing there are two mechanics in my area capable of fixing conti cars... But how much to set aside? The dry clutch issue is resolved isn't it?

Segment aside, subaru or vw?

The first 5 years u wont have much issues lah. But 6 years onwards just set aside around 7k-10k yearly for emergency maintenance purposes

This post has been edited by Boy96: Jul 14 2019, 02:07 PM