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What is left to break?; How many things can break in one car? (a venting session)

2581 Views 32 Replies 14 Participants Last post by  Emry
In the 5 years I've had with atia (B5 v6 5spd) I feel like if it is possible for it to break, it has, twice. I'm wondering if there are other common failures someone has had that this car hasn't. I feel like I should get a prize for having a passat that ALL common failures were shown. This list doesn’t include wear items like clutch/brakes. It's a 5-speed v6 so no limp mode and turbo issues. Also I haven't seen barney blood yet, but they were preemptively replaced.


What has broke in the last 5 years and 76k miles:

Interior:
Rear view mirror went black
Rear window glass pin disintegrated
Rear defrost
Driver's side door:
window track destruction
door open handle broke
plastic cover that you remove to get the door skin off (2x)
window switch assembly (3x)
mirror switch
mirrors fold in but not out
speaker rattle
key broke off in trunk lock

Fuse #5 (HVAC, steering controls, heated seats)
heater core
dome lights come on and off as they wish
seat wobbles
seat adjustment only when car is on
screen in cluster cuts off corners (but still works)
trunk opening (electrical), and the key lock (mechanical)
CCM
glove box light (disintegrated while shorting out)
glove box door (2x)
visor lights
heated mirror wont heat

Suspension/Drivetrain:
every ball joint in the house at least twice!
3 days of fun with each pinch bolt, (now annually removed and re-greased)
calipers fused on (had to cut one out)
brake lines
CV shafts (4x)
abs module (3x)

Engine:
Vac lines
coil unit (2x)
spark plug wires (3x)
alternator
water pump
plastic that shows where TDC is
SAI fan plumbing
all PCV hoses
o2 sensor connections
Seven and counting flex pipes welded in
oil pan (2x)
bad coolant leak from back of engine (still can't find, ~1/2 quart a day of water added)
valve cover gaskets (2x but one was preventative)
most camshaft seals (2x)

Misc:
2 keyfobs
fell off and ran over corner marker light and belly pan at speed
car was impounded and they went muddin in it, still finding mud in new places
hood latch


I guess what im wondering is, anyone feel my pain or had a similar experience? I still do love her, but it's hard when 3/5 of the years I am greeted by beeping and/or STOP displayed every time I turn the key, and randomly while driving.

Either-way I feel better now.



Vehicle Car Vehicle door Family car Compact car

(The pull cord is to open the door)
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I dunno, but that seems very excessive. Two coil assemblies, and three sets of plug wire in 76K miles? I still have the OE coils and wires on my 2.8 at 260K. And ball joints bad twice? Our 1.8T wagon is still on the originals at 175K miles, and I had over 200,000 on my A4 at the first and only control arm change. Some of your troubles seem self-inflicted, such as the broken key and the twice-replaced pans. Do you park near an acid factory or something? All that disintegration of parts seems abnormal to me.
The coolant flange is a 1.8T problem, not V6. It has just started leaking on our '99.
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Wadia, your tale is sadder than most, because you actually know a lot about the car, unlike some who don't, and just ignore maintenance. Your taking care of the pinch bolts preemptively is just one example. But you have done some counter-productive things, like the ABS controllers that Scott pointed out. Your time has got to worth more than three trips to the salvage yard, and all the installation work. I also saw write up on fixing those things, and figured that for $100 or whatever the module company charges, it was cheaper than me attempting to learn how to solder an aluminum wire coated with gel. Are you doing the work, or is it a mechanic who is telling you it needs all these things? By the way, I saw that you listed "water pump" but not "timing belt service" as most would expect. If you've driven the car for 76,000 miles and have not changed the cam timing stuff, it would be about due. Any chance that the belt and rollers are still the originals at 175K?
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I wouldn't expect speed-related shaking to be a driveshaft problem, unless bent.
Sure it could, if they're cheap aftermarket axles.
How so? Shaking at a particular speed (wheel rotation frequency) happens when the wheel or something turning with the wheel is out of balance, and worse when at a natural frequency of the whole unsprung assembly. That's why I said "bent", because what else would allow the driveshaft to be way out of balance? Even then it would have to be incredibly bent, in my opinion. Now a loose CV joint, particularly an inner, can cause tremendous vibration when accelerating, but very little when coasting.
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