Volkswagen Passat 1.9 TDI > Reviews (32)

Since my wife had a very serious car accident when driving an ancient VW Beetle, we have stuck to the most tank-like cars we can find. She suffered bad injuries, but would have been killed if she had been driving a flimsy, modern car. The old Beetle was made of heavy-grade metal and stood up to the impact much better than a lightweight fibreglass car would have done.

We had a Shogun for a while, but it was too much of a drain on the bank account (£500 for a gearbox, etc.), so we bought a Passat. It was the old shape, suitable tank-like in construction and a nice drive. We had it for two years and then they brought out the new shape, the one like the Audi. I fell in love. I WANTED one (well, in truth I'd have preferred the Audi, but this one was only too expensive, not "Don't be ridiculous!"). We couldn't afford a new car though.

One day we were passing a local VW dealer and saw the car of my dreams sitting beckoning me from the forecourt. It was a bright red, shining, new Passat. It is that kind of red that is so red it's ridiculous. It was an ex-demonstrator and had a few miles on it, but it was about £2,000 below the going rate and, well, what is HP for?!

It was the test drive that did it. Smooth, quiet, raring to go. The salesman didn't try to sell it to me. He just handed me the keys - it was all he had to do. Wise guy, he didn't talk down to my wife either - he just asked us who wanted the first go. That helped!

The car is typically VW. Nothing fancy, essentials-only. But what essentials!

Ours is a diesel and does about 70 mpg. Pretty good. It will go like the clappers in an emergency (which is obviously the only time I drive fast - unless my wife is asleep). The seats are good and very adjustable - back, forward, up, down - and provide good lumbar support.

The gearstick and box are comfortable and smooth. Steering wheel fine, pedals fine, windmirrors electric (which knocks up the insurance a bit, but I think it's worth it). I seems that every time I get in the car my wife was the last to drive it, so the driver's seat is so far forward that I can only squeeze one leg in and have to adjust everything until I get it perfect. Wingmirrors, rear-view mirror, seat - fortunatly, this doesn't take long.

It's not too bad on insurance, but obviously doesn't qualify for the lower road tax. The good mpg makes up for that though. It's quiet for a diesel. The handling is good for a family car.

It's a big, long car that could take a bit of getting used to when parking. I drove vans for years, so anything is easier than them. My wife is used to driving lots of different cars so it didn't take her long - one clip of the gatepost and a look at my face cured her of any parking problems very quickly.

It's a pig to work on, as most newer cars seem to be, so I've given up doing it myself. It's a myth that only VW dealers can work on them, I've found a local mechanic who loves it and really enjoys working on it. He even has the little computer that plugs into the centre console and tells him lots of things to make him feel important and me feel ignorant.

It's not heavy on tyres but does like a good drop of oil regularly.

We have two young children, and there is plenty of room for them and a friend in the back - plus assorted Pokemon, Action Men, Barbies, teddies ...... but NO FOOD. This car is special and I'm not having it covered with gunjy banana goo that is impossible to remove. Of course, even though the children don't eat in the car (unless I'm really, really hungry), they still manage to get it full of crumbs. I tend to vacuum it out once a week. The seats are covered with a tough fabric that is quite easy to clean. The only drawback is that the interior is black and our dog is white. And he's not learned how to use the vacuum yet.

The boot is cavernous, but I'm not sure if that is a good thing. The bigger it is the more junk you tend to carry round. Great for holidays though (especially as I have two birds of prey and have to carry their big perches around - yes, they go on holiday with us!).

DRAWBACKS
There is a dreadful droning noise when the rear windows are open.
There is a known electric problem with this model. We've only had just a couple of problems with the central locking not unlocking (it works after a couple of tries).

Can't think of anything else. We'll probably keep this for a while as we're happy with it and we've paid for it now. I would have another when the time comes. I'd like one with air-conditioning next time.