[CheapyB5]

Upgrade to B5.5? With the ugly taillights, terrible front and rear side markers, I would say thats a downgrade. B5 always looks better IMO. Terrible story but I am glad you are here to tell it. Who in the hell drives a semi fast around wet corners? I hope that guy loses his job and doesn't get the responsibility of driving such a large vehicle in the future. Good luck!

 

[TheColoradoRed]

Today I went to Petco for dog food. I came outside and opened the door to a CR B5. I sat in the seat and was so confused as to why the interior was tan leather and not black leather. The owner came out screaming that was his car. I was so embarrassed, I showed him this thread and said I wasn't thinking - it was instinct. Also told him he shouldn't have left it unlocked. There are some crazy people in this world..

I'm having withdrawals. On the bright side, I think the owner is joining PW :thumbup:

 

[bungle]

too funny, you are not the only one, my mother in law went into her buick lesabre after watching her grandsons football practice, she sat there for 1o minutes before realising she was sat in someone elses car, oh yeah she was 67 years old at the time

 

[Steve in Chicago]

Too funny. Good thing they understood your mistake. I also always try to turn Passat owners I meet onto this site. Today in the Home Depot parking lot I parked near a MINT 98 CR wagon. I'm talking pristine clean. I wanted to wait and meet the owner but I didn't have the time to spare.

 

[RxRC]

There are some crazy people in this world..

Crazy like getting into someone else's car in a parking lot?

 

[TheColoradoRed]

A member posted that he babied his Passat more than any other on here. Brought me back to this thread.

I miss this car.

She was a pain in the ass. She had a horrible ride from blown shocks along with busted control arm bushings and clicking axle joints. She had headlights that made it impossible to see at night. She had a bum injector, a warm air intake, a piece of shit cupholder that would never close, a dying fuel pump, leaking valve cover gaskets, and had a horrible time at gas stations whether it be reacting poorly to cheap gas when I had $10 in the bank and needed to get home, or her charcoal canister causing the tank to overflow when I filled up using premium gas. She was a pain in the ass. But Jesus Christ did I love her.

With the help of the members on Passatworld -both the ones who I met in person who took time out of their day to each me, and the ones who were always willing to answer questions I had while doing something on my own- I took the time to get to know her, and there was a strong bond from fixing each individual problem as it approached. What's moreso, is that I did it all having never taken a wrench to a car before. I made her better than I could have imagined. I owe it all to the members on this forum. I won't bore everyone with the stories of sleeping on Jay's couch, or having Kevin install a WAI, garage days at Branden or Jon's house, or any one that involves Mike Matt or alcohol, laughing at Neven's excitement in using powertools, meeting up with Ion to discuss wheels, or Joel to talk shop over 1.8T modding. Here's to the times my mother came home to see a car in service position in the driveway when she got home from work, and the time my dad held the fire extinguisher when I pulled the fuel pump out of a full tank, my grandmother who loved how low she was because it was easily accesable, and every cop who pulled me over to discuss the laws of lowering or the rejection sticker that was on my windshield.


Things aren't what they used to be on PassatWorld.

But in any hope of holding on to what they were - here's to Heidi

 

[Bdubskii]

This thread makes me sad.

 

[shaggy1071]

Very well put. This car was one of the ones that I liked when I joined this forum. I really liked the whole over all look of her. I am happy to say that a little piece of her lives in my B5. For that Aaron, you should be proud.

 

[vbora01]

This thread makes me sad.

Agreed.

Wish I could've been here before a bunch of folks started coming here with all their $500 Passats and problems. But I'm a little late to the party (2-3 years ago?) and have learned a lot from the community here. I thoroughly enjoy my car as well. However, I wish there were more people I knew around Raleigh, or just from school or something, that enjoyed this hobby like I do.

Great looking car. I'll admit, while Candy White is a nice clean color (when it's actually... clean,) Colorado Red is sexy as hell and I'd get one in a heartbeat, or repaint that color onto my own if I was well off. That deep red metallic color is awesome. On a night like tonight, where the moon is bright and the sky clear, I can see a car like that shimmering pretty in the moonlight in the driveway. :thumbup: Sorry it went the way it did, but we can all be thankful that it did what it needed to do when the situation called for it.

 

[ZachB5.5]

Those wheels ColoradoRed! Looked damn good. What wheels are those?

 

[TheColoradoRed]

I have only been here since 2010, but I gained some real life and online friends on here in that time. I feel like the environment I knew seems to fading away from this forum. Just in the general behavior of the non-regulars, and the old regulars that have since moved on. The bashing, sarcasm, and joking was all taken in stride because at least someone knew them in person and understood their personality. The mantra used to be to behave on the forum exactly as you would at the next meet, garage day, whatever. That light still exists, but with old members leaving and new members joining, the darkness of the disrespect seems to be dimming that light considerably. Anyway, it's the internet. I shouldn't have high expectations for things to remain the same.

Regardless, I am happy to have met many of you, and look forward to meeting many more at garage days and TOTD runs.

The more I look at this thread, the more I want to build a B5. Soon


Zach, they're RS6 replica wheels. Here is another picture before I lowered it that summer:

Anotehr 4x4 shot. Embarassing height, before pinstripe and fender guard removal:

 

[VAGguy]

Agreed, the NE is something special when it comes to PW and these PITAs. From VA to NH and in between, there is a very strong presence and comraderie when it comes to these cars. Something I have experienced first hand many, many times. I have made a good many lifelong friends because of it.

Don't get a big head or anything Aaron, but yours was a good reason why I bought my 99 from Matty. Little problems and all.

 

[ZachB5.5]

Thanks for more pics! Those wheels fit the look of the car so perfectly. They pop.

I need to get rid of my 15s

 

[ameoba]

As an "old regular who has since moved on", I've got fond memories of PW, and some RL friendships that I've taken with me. I hope that I will never be one of those people posting wreck pics - looking at yours, the subframe and rim photos just blow me away on the amount of damage. I loved my B5.5 wagon and the people and advice on PW. It's a different crew now that it's a lot more affordable to many. I still love reading the project posts and seeing what people are doing for mods.

CoRed - still driving your A4?

 

[-BEE5-]

the thing is, these cars are getting old, and people are buying new cars and moving on.
i still have my B5 and plan to keep it til it dies. even then i might rebuild it and bring back to life, or buy another.
they will be classics soon. and as much as i love my A6, the passat has been more reliable. if i get another it will be a 4motion sedan.

i'm sure most of us, even when we decide to move on, will still stay in the VAG family. and move on to audi's and other newer Vw's.
so theres no reason to abandon PW.

i just wish there was more passat enthusiasts in my area. its a rare sight to see a modded passat out here. but i see modded audi's on the regular now.
on another note, i always found the b5 passat more attractive overall than its b5 A4 sibling.

 

[Vdub2121]

What color is that? It's sick!

 

[TheColoradoRed]

Dan - Thanks for the compliment, I won't take it to heart . I think were lucky to have such camaraderie here, I've made a few friends here as well. I feel like that general feel of this forum has significantly declined.. But the old relationships still remain.

Zach - No problem! I agree, the wheels looked like they belonged on that car.

amoeba - I had an A4, then an S4, and ended up in a new WRX and I'll find a nice VW as a project car. I hope that you never have to post a wreck thread as well, and am definitely glad you were able to maintain your PW friendships. I don't have a VW/Audi anymore, but I like to view people's progress with theirs, add sarcastic comments when I can, and keep in touch with the folks that got me into working on cars in the first place. I still go to garage days and see the members here, and I don't see that changing anytime soon. Especially with TOTD coming up!

BEE - I'm in a WRX but I am still modding and still looking for a VW to work on. Another B5, a MK1, a rabbit diesel pickup, whatever I see that I HAVE to make over. I was lucky enough to have a ton of members in my area, made this forum that much more personal having met them. And definitely why I'll always have a VW to work on.

Vdub - I'll give you one hint: check out my username


Sorry for my above rants. Just too many stupid people / stupid posts lately.

 

[2000Biker]

Condolences! Read the entire thread (4 pages at this point) and this guy said exactly what I was thinking on two points...the joke it'll buff out, and the fact that there really is no upgrade from a B5. I love mine so much and am lucky to still have it (since new) as my daily.

I congratulate you on your selection of a replacement! The '02 A4 is probably what I'd get if forced to part with my B5. Good luck with tha....what the hell, hit again, soooo sorry!

All my best,
GSport in Virginia

Nobody has said it yet, so here goes- "that looks like it should buff right out!"

For the 14-15 years I have owned my b5, and lurked on/been a member on CB5/PW, it has never failed to amaze me how well members have fared in bad wrecks. The safety of this car has been phenominal. I'm glad this held true for you as well.

As for upgrading, in my mind there is no upgrade for the b5. VW got the looks absolutely perfect. The engines, while not the most powerful (hello? 15+ year old engine designs!!) do the job and the 1.8t can be made into a beast if so desired (390 to the wheels anyone?) Even now, my neglected '98 beater gets comments on how good looking a car it is. The only other VW sedan I would look at and consider things maybe equal in the looks department is the first generation CC.