Need info on a VW TDI Please - Diesel Forum

dieselgold · 05-16-2009, 11:15 AM

Recently have changed careers and am going over the road and my truck isn't going to cut it with 15-18mpg with the traveling i'll be doing I like the thought of 45mpg with a 2002 VW jetta gls tdi, with an auto trans. The car has 225,xxx miles on it. The timing belt and waterpump were just replaced at a VW dealer where it is for sale. I was wondering if anyone could help me out with any info I should know? Is the car a good deal they want 5000 for it? Or should the price be lower? The car is in very good condition very very little rust if anything at all some minor dings very minor, paint is good and inside is in very good shape. I heard some people say that the 1.9L tdi isn't a good motor is that true? I thought VW tdi's are quite reliable much like our powerstrokes all they need is to be taken car of. Any input would be much appreciated sorry for the long post.

Thanks T.J.

blackout · 05-16-2009, 01:31 PM

Actually this is a good year engine to have. Easy to fix, reliable, we get 40mpg doing 80mph.
First thing (if you buy it)
*buy a Ross-Tech Hex-USB interface with the software and you can take a look at all the systems on the car including the engine.

engine
*the miles are starting to get up there, but as I said you can rebuild it if you have to
*timing belt and pulleys- the stealerships are notorious for not doing this correctly ( buy the parts and do it again yourself) or get a parts list from the dealership for the work that they did and check it all
*general maintenance- look for signs this has been taken care of, any bypass filter?, check the oil pan for hits, see if it has a plate to protect the engine from curbs, does the engine look like hell or is it clean, oil leaks,...

transmission
the auto for those years (I have an 01) are again notorious for failing, be ready for changing it out to a stick shift in the near future.. see if they will give you a tranny guarantee for the vehicle or price a new transmission and use it as a bargaining point

suspension
I just bought an entire kit to redo the suspension struts, shocks, and bushing for something around $700, haven't put it in yet (the reason I bring this up is that for less than 1k you can bring it to better than new)

If I could find that year in a station wagon for that price I would consider buying it. That is a bit of a small car, short wheel base, for lots of hwy driving. Also, there may be lower mileage cars of those years out there, shop around.

Go to TDIClub Forums - Powered by vBulletin and research big time. You can look here for classifieds as well.
Good Luck

dieselgold · 05-16-2009, 06:16 PM

Thanks for all the info helps a ton!

Westro · 05-19-2009, 11:59 AM

That year is a pretty good year, really is a mechanical type pump on the 1.9L motor. 2 Valves/cylinder and I haven't had any problems persay with the 4 I had at one time.

Guys on TDIclub.com are getting up there on miles, I just saw someone with over 400K on it with no major motor work. The auto tranny is the weakest link, the timing belt change interveral is 80K (with the upgraded rollers) in the auto and 100K in the manuals.

My 2002's have 205K and 180K, they are still in the upper 40's for mileage, the one with 180K has averaged 48.42 MPG lifetime.

$5000 might be a bit much considering the mileage, and try to find one with a manual in it.

Good luck, TDIclub.com is your best resource (I spend a lot of time over there too.)

Cavitation · 10-13-2009, 01:18 PM

Westro, did you buy the TDI? I just bought a 2005 TDI GLS with 126K miles on it, with the 5 speed manual. The auto trans in these cars are notorious for failure and are the single weak leak. I like the autos but after doing a hugh amount of research decided to only go the manual route. Just curious if it worked out with the purchase or not.