Volkswagen Passat reviews

I cannot recommend this car highly enough as a reliable, economic and versatile family saloon with exceptional build quality and good performance. It is the archetypical quality German automobile which has delivered 100,000 (137k from new)trouble free miles of motoring with low maintenance and servicing costs. Performance from the 20 valve 1800 cc petrol engine is very good delivering quick and instant responses when required and cruising comfortably for hours on end. Specification on the model I purchased is limited in that there is no sun roof, no air conditioning, no cd player, electric windows front only and no alloy wheels. However it has started first time, every time in the 13 years I have owned it and no major mechanical faults have been encountered. All major components (except battery) are original, bar brake pads, filters, wipers, bulbs etc which I consider to be testament to VW quality and consistency. Most reliable car I have ever owned and would seriously consider purchasing another newer model to replace this one when it finally fails an MOT.

Does what it says on the tin. Economical, comfortable and performance more than adequate. Does not quite have the quality feel of the Audis that I owned for the last 20 years, or the performance, but does exactly what I wanted as a more economical car without loss of too much performance and comfort. As I have seen on reviews before I bought it. It is Competent to the point of being boring, but generally does exactly what I bought it for.

One of the best cars I have ever owned. Excellent on a long run in terms of comfort and economy. Quite good on short runs on economy. Great capacity for carrying all sorts of things and bags of power to tow a caravan or trailer. On a par with the peugeot 205 ( although quite different in category)for sheer drive ability. Similar qualities to the Peugeot 405, also an excellent vehicle. Only concern is the computer element - way too complicated if it goes wrong.

All very good

A comfortable and generally reliable car, good on long journeys. But it is not a BMW

The best car that I have owned with an economy rating to match. I can think of little that could make it any better for me!

I HAVE HAD THIS CAR FOR TWO YEARS AND HAVE NEVER HAD ANY TROUBLE WITH IT LAST YEAR I TOWED MY CARAVAN BATH AND GOT GREAT MILEAGE WITH IT I LIKE THIS CAR BETTER THAN THE RENAULTS I HAVE HAD OVER THE YEARS LONG MAY IT CONTINUE

have done over 50k in 18 months,car is excellent, reliable, comfortable and economical. highly recommend it and would definately have another..

Having owned citroens for many years this is the first vw I have bought. so far its been a good solid towcar and it excels as a daily workhorse. It is a drivers car and performs and handles well.

Solid, reliable and unexciting. Perfect for me as I hate cars.

Good performance and comfortable drive but parts expensive when replacement is required.

The Passat is a very comfortable car and has all the gadgets that I would need, except maybe Sat Nav. It has a good performance for the roads. The running costs are quite high. Anything goes wrong and you will pay dearly for it, but it is reliable. As I am 6foot 6inches tall I find it one of the most spacious cars on the market. It is an alround very good car and I would recommend it, unless you want a flying machine. which I dont.

My car was bought second hand and is a high mileage (248,000 miles) vehicle. I've owned it around eight years and it has in that time been very reliable. For a heavy car it is fairly powerful and very economical, especially on long runs, where it is comfortable to drive. I carry three dogs in it behind the back seats, so it is roomy, but if I could change one thing, I would like it to be a little higher off the road. Also, on this model, the control unit for the central locking is located in the passenger footwell which has led to faults due to damp/corrosion. I would buy another, newer one if I could afford it.

Very pleased with the car - particularly the space in the boot area. Accelerates fast enough and top speed is adequate for me. A bit worried about future maintenance costs but happy that the cam belt change has now been extended to five years. Will be worried if car management systems fail as I believe this will be unjustly expensive.

Great running costs does approx. 650 miles to a tank. Poor boot design though which limits practicality. The saloon design does not make for easy parking. Feels safe to drive and the build quality is good.

I am proud of my Passat. However, my next car would be smaller for easier parking.

I have owned 2 of this particular version of the Passat and if it was possible I would try to find it again ( buy a low mileage second hand version). I tried the newer model of the Passat and I did not like it. Things like having a traditional hand brake affected this, also the shape and sight lines. It is very responsive when speed is needed and it has been reliable; becoming more expensive when going past 130000 miles.

Getting a bit elderly but one of the best cars we've ever had and hoping it continues for a couple of years and several thousand miles more before we have to replace it.

Great reliable car. Very cheap running costs

Usual trouble with EPB button but replaced outside warranty at no cost. Injector failure (no.3) outside warranty period but VW picked up 75% of cost. My share later refunded when there was a recall for all injectors to be replaced. Both rear coil springs have failed at different times - appears to be a fault in the metal but have yet to take this forward. Device on crankshaft failed - very expensive!!! The car is economical (53 mpg), comfortable and good for all purposes required of it.