[ChefJim]

I'm close to 230,000 miles on my '04 V6 and going strong. My indy keeps asking me if I'm getting rid of it and I keep telling him I'm going for 300K and if she's still going strong at 300, I'll go for 400K. Still the best car I've ever owned and I bought it with 98,000 on the clock.

 

[2001.5mine]

i am SO excited to read all these stories of Passat Future, as my 2001.5 baby just hit 150k miles, and I'm hoping she's only half way though. LOVE my PASSAT!

 

[Elwood_Blues]

Congrats OP! I'm on the way there with 137K at the moment.

But since nobody asked, I will; what did it cost in maintenance (major stuff) up until this point? The reason I ask is because I got the 2007 2.0T with 107K on it, for $5500 in September 2013, and have dumped more money into it than I'd like to. I know that having a car from new is different than getting one with few owners, I'm 3rd. My biggest issue was transmission valve body.

 

[Lagarb]

Congrats!!
I just rolled past 180k in my 2003 1.8t last Thursday
Have a CEL due to a bad 2nd O2 censor

 

[macaddiict]

Nice!

 

[orts]

Congrats OP! I'm on the way there with 137K at the moment.

But since nobody asked, I will; what did it cost in maintenance (major stuff) up until this point? The reason I ask is because I got the 2007 2.0T with 107K on it, for $5500 in September 2013, and have dumped more money into it than I'd like to. I know that having a car from new is different than getting one with few owners, I'm 3rd. My biggest issue was transmission valve body.

I'm with Elwood on this one, curious what people had had to do on their B5.5 v6s. I have an '03 GLX 4motion wagon with >185k, and it looks great and still runs like a top (never stranded me except for 2 flat tires). No transmission issues

My major work looks like:
- timing belt @ 105k, rotors ~150k mi
- 130k head gasket replacement for oil leak
- 150k cat replacement (~$2300)
- 160k cam adjuster replacement on left cyl bank (~$1700)

For past 2 winters i've had low output in winter from heater core, had it back-flushed which helped for a winter but tech says will need to be replaced to fix permanently (in back of engine so not cheap to replace).
I've started having coolant leak from the water pump which causes me to top off more frequently, but has started leaking more rapidly. I'll likely replace this and heater core together since they are both in back of engine.

Any other items that people have generally seen go wrong with B5.5 V6?

 

[Passat2.8]

The maintenance aside from routine:

PCV tubing (OEM)
Two sets of plugs and wires (OEM)
Timing belt, water pump, etc...(ECS big kit)
Valve cover gaskets (OEM)
CCT gaskets (OEM)
Rear cam end rubber caps (OEM)
Alternator (Bosch)
Oil pressure switch (OEM)
Rear O2 Sensors (OEM)
Forward O2 sensors to-be replaced (OEM)
Engine mounts (Meyle)
Snub mount (OEM)
Trans fluid and filter (OEM-ECS Kit)
Front brake lines (NAPA)

Control arms once (Meyle)
Shocks and springs once (H&R/Bilstein HD)
New exhaust with downpipes (Techtonics Stainless cat back and DP's from Rockauto)
Brakes 3x (OEM supplier rotors, twice OEM pads and on PBR ceramics now)
New front brake calipers (ATe brand but OEM)

I have a complete record at home, this is damn near all of it though.
As for cost, go to ECS and load up a cart with all the above as its actually where I bought it all, I'd estimate all the above around $4k-$5k.

Bought the car with 97k on the clock in 2008; For three years of college, 90% of the weekends I drove home from the Bronx to NEPA ~120 miles each way. This car did not have an easy life but it took all it got and never left me stranded.

 

[Passat2.8]

Also note I've spent probably that much on mods as well. I have plans for interior work possibly this year as some spots are showing age and it bugs me.

 

[DenBlue]

Congratulations on the milestone achieved!
Should be plenty of life left in it, as I have now done well over 300,000 miles - 303,051 to be precise!
So just 12,000 kilometres short of half a million kms - Sounds grand, that!

Running costs remain low - largest expense was 2 years ago when the Turbo failed completely - £750 (= $1,120).

 

[orts]

Passat2.8:

Congrats again; however I must admit, thats a serious repair list for 103k of driving.
I've heard about a lot of control arm replacements (fronts?) and O2 sensors, but some of the rest is surprising (brake lines? engine mounts?).

Mine history is from new, and I had bought extended warranty (I had poor previous history with German car maintenance) but never really used it. Most of my bigger non-maintenance repairs were after ~140k.

I did actually have alternator replaced as well, forgot about that.

 

[Passat2.8]

Passat2.8:

Congrats again; however I must admit, thats a serious repair list for 103k of driving.
I've heard about a lot of control arm replacements (fronts?) and O2 sensors, but some of the rest is surprising (brake lines? engine mounts?).

Mine history is from new, and I had bought extended warranty (I had poor previous history with German car maintenance) but never really used it. Most of my bigger non-maintenance repairs were after ~140k.

I did actually have alternator replaced as well, forgot about that.

The brake lines were the rubber sections from the body to the steering knuckle-The car wouldn't pass inspection because of cracks and for the mileage I think they faired well.

The control arms did not need to be replaced, nor the shocks and springs-I did them for preventative maintenance and I lowered slightly for looks.

The hydro engine mounts are prone to failure in these cars, and with over 150k at the time, I think they served their purpose; the snub mount went since the added stress of bad motor mounts ate it up.

The rear O2 sensors were replaced as process of elimination for a CEL of catalyst efficiency-so in reality they likely were not bad.

The one forward had the heater element burn up, so I'm replacing the pair.

Yes it was 103K miles for me, but the other 97K was still there. The major costs were the suspension, the stainless exhaust, and the downpipes (cats)-they account for around $2K of the maintenance cost.

 

[BradMD_96]

Right blinker on, zero miles per hour, and engine at idle - he's pulled over to the side of the road to take the pic

Also, that's not his average MPG, that's his active MPG. The average has the German Durchmesserzeichen symbol (average symbol) in front of it (⌀).

ahh I see, I have a B5.5 and the MPG goes to --.-MPG when at idle instead of showing your MPG for 0mph...

 

[VWs4Ever]

I have done 3 timing belts. When I replace the timing belt I also replace the water pump, rad fluid and thermostat along with the tensioner. I change my oil using synthetic 5W40 every 8000km. I have also done the following:
Control Arms,
CV boots
Comfort Control Module
ABS Module,
replaced the brakes 3 or 4 times,
Cam seals,
3 new batteries
3 sets of spark plugs,
replaced all O2 sensors,
PCV tubing
replaced the transmission fluid once as the seal had a leak.
I still have the original muffler, Cat and alternator although I wonder how much longer the alternator will go

I am not sure what the total cost is but this is over 13.5 years so it's not too bad.

 

[Passat2.8]

ahh I see, I have a B5.5 and the MPG goes to --.-MPG when at idle instead of showing your MPG for 0mph...

Mine chooses when it wants to do that, it's odd.

I also forgot outer CV boots once

 

[smalltownguy2]

ahh I see, I have a B5.5 and the MPG goes to --.-MPG when at idle instead of showing your MPG for 0mph...

At first, the active MPG climbs to ridiculous amounts (~50-100mpg) before it finally errors out and displays '---' I believe it's for anything above 100mpg.

On a related note, I had a pretty stiff tailwind on the way home from work last night, and achieved the best mileage I've ever gotten on my '02 1.8t wagon. I only count trips of more than 20 miles, and my drive home from work was 25:

This was as I was slowing down to make the turn to my local road. We had a BIG front moving in last night with >30mpg sustained winds, and they pretty much blew me home

 

[BradMD_96]

At first, the active MPG climbs to ridiculous amounts (~50-100mpg) before it finally errors out and displays '---' I believe it's for anything above 100mpg.

On a related note, I had a pretty stiff tailwind on the way home from work last night, and achieved the best mileage I've ever gotten on my '02 1.8t wagon. I only count trips of more than 20 miles, and my drive home from work was 25:

View attachment 49913


This was as I was slowing down to make the turn to my local road. We had a BIG front moving in last night with >30mpg sustained winds, and they pretty much blew me home

The most I ever had was around 32mpg, but that was reset whilst on the move.... My current long term average is 23mpg (with a bad 02 sensor according to codes and a bit of a miss on idle/under high power)
what do most people achieve?