engine problem
9.2
really awfulTypical Repair Cost:
$2,371.00
Average Mileage:
79,135 miles
Number of complaints:
17 complaints
Most common solutions:
- replace engine (6 reports)
- dealer cleaned engine and replaced some unknown parts (5 reports)
- not sure (5 reports)
- synthetic oil must be used (1 reports)
Helpful Websites About 2002 Volkswagen Passat oil sludge resulting in engine failure
2008Dec 03
Passat GLS 1.8t
- Tiptronic transmission
- 95,000 miles
Bought car used from dealer 4 years ago. I have had very little issues with this car and had been very satisfied. I put 60k miles on the car and I encountered my issue at 95k. At the end of a 3 hour trip, I got the warning �Oil Pressure Low� STOP. I stopped and drove it to a VW dealer repair shop the next day. They said the issue was �oil sludge� and did additional diagnostics. The VW dealer replaced the oil pump and did a �de-sludge� on the rest of the engine. They said this was a best case scenario as no damaged had occurred. They gave me a 12 month warranty and charged me $2,200.
I change my oil every 5k, but rarely use synthetic. I was unable to produce 7 years of oil change receipts because I am not quite that anal. The moral of the story is 1) only use synthetic oil and change it every 3K 2) Keep all receipts 3) Some cars are not build to last (still trying to figure out which ones)
I did join the class action lawsuit at www.shulaw.com/unfair/vw-audi.asp I am guessing at this point this is more of a support group (but I will take what I can get).
2008May 19
Passat GLS 1.8L Turbo
- Automatic transmission
- 67,500 miles
Stop engine light came on and had to tow it home (325 miles) to the dealer where I purchased this fine certified car. After much search I was able to produce the appropriate receipts indicating oil changes had occurred on average every 3800 miles. Dealer pledged to do the "magical" flush. Two months later check engine light - bad cam position sensor - probable cause oil sludge - replaced w/valve cover gaskets and tensioner pulley. Now 6 months later cam bearings are leaking, valve covers are leaking, oil in Turbo and timing belt has oil on it. Dealer gave me an estimate of $4K to repair. Trying to get to the higher ups at VW is next to impossible. Can not believe that VW will throw away customers in these economic times.
2008Oct 18
Passat GLS 1.8t
- Tiptronic transmission
- 71,000 miles
Well I guess I should have found this website first. My problem is exactly the same as all the others. Coming home from a funeral, believe it or not, on I72 in Illinois my STOP engine light came on and immediately the car shut down. My problem is I bought my car used from a ford dealership. You want to talk about getting the cold shoulder from everybody. Not a single dealership within 100 miles would help and when I called Volkswagen they said sorry but you bought it used so there is nothing we can do. Well thats nice, I just bought the car 3 months ago and I have 4 kids and a car payment and now owe 4900 dollars more than the peice of junk is worth. I will tell anyone not to be these crappy cars. Sorry for everyone's problems and in case of a law suit. I'm IN
2008Jun 15
Passat Turbo 1.3L
- Automatic transmission
- 120,000 miles
My sons were driving the car on June 15th to join me, my wife and some friends to celebrate Father's day and what celebration it was. The car just stopped, died, just like that. The stop light came on and it just stopped. It took me a while to take it to the VW Dealer only to find out that the repair is going to cost over $5,000 and that is using a used engine with 90,000 miles on it. If I decide to get a re-built engine is about $7,000. I called VW customer services and they told me that the only help they will provide is a 10% discount. Their argument is that the car has high miles on it and I got a good use from it. To me it sounds like VW's are a temporary car, not a car that you want to enjoy for a long time. That is to bed because I really like the car. It's looks, the way it runs, it is just a nice looking car. I can tell you now that this is it for me. No more VW for me. I have a 2001 Dodge 1500 with over 180,000 miles and is still running good. Of course I have to make a few repairs here and there but nothing like this, just normal stuff for a car with that use. I never had this issue with any car in my life. So if you are thinking about a VW, do not plan on driving it for more that 36,000 miles. This seems to be the life of this cars, and VW will not stand behind their product.
2006Aug 21
Passat 1.8t
- Automatic transmission
- 68,000 miles
Where do I being? I purchased a used 2002 VW Passat back in 2006 from a dealership who had been in town for years. They provided a "copy" of the carfacts print out which showed no activity of any type of issue concerning this car. It was a beautiful car, drove very well and in my price range, so being a first time buyer I was eager to purchase the car. My life was great! About a month later, the engine light comes on. Like any person, I immediately drove the car back to the dealership. They said it was a fuse & the issue had been fixed. Light comes on again a week later, another trip back to the dealership. Now, they are stating it was a pump that needed to be replaced. "AT NO CHARGE", to make me feel like such a valued customer I guess.
After putting possibly 2,000 miles on the car, i'm driving on a highway and an abrupt warning to CHECK OIL PRESSURE, TURN ENGINE OFF MOTOR WILL BLOW, SEE MANUAL. Looking through the car's manual, while stuck on the side of the highway it states to contact local VW. My insurance company covers the charge to tow my car to the nearest VW shop. After about 2 weeks VW diagnostis states: 30,000 miles worth of OIL SLUDGE DAMAGE, needs new engine, cost of engine with turbo $9,000.00. Unless I come up with 8 Oil change receipts, indicating this is a manufacturing malfunction in which case VW will cover the costs of repair. The car was originally purchased in 2002 from this VW dealership, they have no record of this car in their system. The dealership I purchased the car from amazingly, filed bankruptcy and closed down 2 weeks before this happened.
I tracked down the mechanic that worked at the shop at the time I purchased my car, who was already working for another dealership. He stated he remembered the day my car came onto the lot. He was instructed to turn the oil sensor off and hung up the phone when I started asking to many questions I guess. I have had no luck locating anyone else from this dealership nor finding a resolution for this horrible issue other than paying between $3,500 and $9,000 for new or used engine.
It's been almost 2 years, I am still paying every month for this car that sits outside. It is driveable, however once you reach 30MPH it states the TURN ENGINE OFF, MOTOR WILL BLOW. I drive it down the street every now and then remembering the good old days that only lasted for a short time. As you can imagine I am VERY hesitant to deal with any mechanic, dealership or anyone that says they can fix it. I don't want to end up in this situation ever again. Right now, I have one guy telling me to buy engine flush, change the oil and repeat if necessary until indicator is gone and sell the car. Another is asking for $500.00 upfront to change the oil pump, filter, pan etc, clean out sludge and if that doesn't fix the problem he will put the $500 towards a used engine that will cost $3,500.
Can anyone advise on how I can get out of this nightmare I've been living for the past 2 years???
2008Jun 16
Passat GLX 1.8t
- Tiptronic transmission
- 61,000 miles
After running 61,000 miles my 1.8 turbo Passat engine has called it quits. I go a call this morning from the local dealer telling me I had complete engine failure and that I needed to replace everything in my engine including the turbo. I asked him what caused this and he was (seemed) reluctant on giving me a detailed description. I have researched this issue for 4 hours today and found many, many people suffering from similar issues with the 1.8t.
I was able to find a law firm who has a suite open on this issue. The url is http://www.shulaw.com/unfair/vw-audi.asp. I have already email and will follow up tomorrow with a call. Viewing the complaint is very interesting.
2008May 08
Passat GLX 1.8t
- Tiptronic transmission
- 60,000 miles
I had a 2001 Passat with the sludge issue. Volkswagen had released a statement that the turbo engines need to have synthetic oil. The dealership, West Houston rebuilt the engine at their cost because they sold me the car that way. If you purchased a car from a dealership I would assume they HAVE to repair the car or it will fall under the lemon law. Don't give up or back down. Make the dealership repair the car. For a quick short term fix, run a bottle of transmission fluid in the oil, then go have an oil change with synthetic oil. Do this again a week later. Transmission fluid will flush out some of the sludge. The dealership told me to do this and it worked, the Oil Pressure warning light stopped screaming at me. I am on my 2nd Passat a 2002 for almost 3 years and I have had no engine problems.
2008Feb 12
Passat GLS 1.8L
- Tiptronic transmission
- 81,000 miles
I love my Passat. I bought it used because my sister totaled her car, so I gave her my Nissan Altima and decided to get a used car. I'm a college student and I needed something safe with good gas mileage...and was enjoyable to drive. So, after several weeks of searching, I found my Passat at a Lexus previously owned dealership. My first sign of trouble should have been like two weeks after I bought the car (76,000 miles, 1 owner, all service receipts) when the check engine light came on! I immediately took it back to the dealership...and they said it was some sort of frayed wiring. They "repaired" it for free and reset the engine light. No problems, for about four months. Then, one day when I was driving to work my car stalled...completely at a red light. Took it to a family repair shop (my mistake) and they replaced the fuel filter or something. The problem happened again immediately after I picked it up...again they "flushed" the fuel system. Picked it up and it was fine for about another month. One time I got the whole "STOP" , Turn off engine!! Oil pressure...message. It didn't come on again when I turned the car back on. Unfortunately, about a few weeks after that, I was in a car accident...I was stopped and a lady didn't realize (on a highway!) and she ran into me! I hit the car in front of me and so on. After my car being in the shop for 6 weeks, I went to pick it up...and the check engine light was on and it was making a noise I had never heard in the 5 months I had owned the car. The repair shop couldn't figure it out and sent it to a Volkswagen dealership. After 2 weeks of nothing...I got the answer I had seen after researching several internet articles ---Engine sludge! The previous owner had luckily had her car serviced at that exact dealership, so they had all her records and I had only had one oil change since I bought the car (I did use synthetic oil and it was at 3,500 miles). So, the dealership is using the extended warranty for the engine sludge issue to repair my car (we had to pay $62 for an oil change). After that, the insurance and the repair shop stopped paying for the rental car, which is not their responsibility at this point. So, I had to pay about $500 for a rental car for the 2 weeks it was at the Volkswagen dealer. It's been about another week and I've been driving my Mom's van to her inconvenience. I've contacted Volkswagen of America about reimbursement/supply of rental car and they said no. My car is supposed to be ready today...but got no call. I'm really nervous that I will keep having problems once it is fixed...I would rather have a new engine than a de-sludge. I've also made 2 car payments for a car that is undriveable. What can I do???
2008Mar 27
Passat 1.8t
- Automatic transmission
- 90,000 miles
I've gotten the same problems - just like others have gotten for vw passat,OIL SLUDGE.
I just missed 2 oil changes recently ,so I'm gonna have to pay for all that...Unfair,it is not my fault.
I am pretty sure, I'll never have another vw.
2007Oct 31
Passat GLS Wagon 1.8T
- Manual transmission
- 106,188 miles
It is a shame that VW has known about this problem and has not covered EVERYONE who has had this difficulty. They should already know that the pick up tube for the pump is too small, and that the engines should have been running on synthetic oil from the beginning. There should be a VERY low threshold to getting a new engine out of the deal.
2008Mar 03
Passat 1.8L
- Tiptronic transmission
- 101,000 miles
This problem was to be covered by my extended drive train warranty but the warranty company wanted a service report first. My car dealer really did not have much of a service report to provide. Anyway, the Volkswagen repair shop stated that there was sludge buildup on the engine and the warranty company would not cover the repairs since this was a maintenance issue. I hardly see this has a maintenance issue and had to fork over $1178 out of my pockets. I saw that their were some reported problems on this same issue so I plan to take this issue up with the warranty company, tomorrow.
2008Jan 15
Passat
- Tiptronic transmission
- 74,000 miles
My car had the oil pressure light come on, then the engine light. The car had to be towed. I was in a different state at the time. Had to call several Volkswagen dealers before I could find one that would even consider looking at the car within the next 24 hours. I had to leave the car in Minnesota for over two weeks waiting for Volkswagen to approve the repairs. Yes, I did have to provide proof of all oil changes and work done to the car before Volkswagen would approve the repairs. The engine should have been replaced, but Volkswagen would not pay for that. Instead they repaired the car. By the time it had been driven back to Wisconsin the engine light was on again. This time the car went to the local Volkswagen dealer and I ended up with a bill of $1200. It isn't over yet. I still need another $1000 of work.
I really liked my Passat and was planning on driving it for a long time. No longer.
2006Sep 26
Passat GLS 1.8t
- Automatic transmission
- 60,615 miles
Practically out of the Major Auto dealership lot, the check engine light started going off. I took it back and was told it was coils and sensors. After several trips to Major, they finally told me my time with them was up and I needed to go to away. I should have got out right from the start but it was my first car and I was absolutely clueless. People were telling me that the check engine light often fails due to sensor problems and I shouldn't be that concerned. Little did they know. I could't pass my first inspection because of it. The mechanic at the inspection site sent me to another auto mechanic and told me to pray that it was my catalyic converter. Thank God it wasn't because I was quoted a couple of thousand to have it fixed. I'm not sure what the mechanic did but the light went out for a while (at least to pass inspection). After my first oil change, the oil pressure light came on with the ominous STOP! turn off the engine. I was terrified until this became a common occurrence and no one could find the cause. Finally, the car broke down on 9/26/06 and had to be towed. My first dealing with Big Apple Volkswagen, the rudest (that's your problem tone of voice) customer service center. Initially they wanted to try and charge me but luckily I had a tough talking insurance adjuster who told me to leave them to him. $5000 dollars( covered under extended warranty), several phone calls and no loaner later, I happily had my car back. Or so I thought.
2008Jan 17
Passat 1.8L Turbo
- Automatic transmission
- 67,000 miles
This freakin wagon has turned out to be a recurring nightmare! The first # of months it spent in the shop on & off should have told me-guess im slow. The turbo in this 4 cyl. engine is trash! Come to find out its advised you add premium gas. Now this oil sludge thing has created an entire new headache...bringing back the fact i need to fix the turbo AGAIN! 2002 Passat turbo is a great little wagon for those who don't have a problem & are in search of one.
2007Nov 27
Passat 1.8L
- Tiptronic transmission
- 77,000 miles
Bought this Certified Pre-owned Car 20 months ago. I have put less than 24K miles on it but it has been in the shop at least 16 times. Most recently the oil pressure light came and the engine sounded horrible. I have had 3 estimates and they are wildly different and incredibly expensive.
Spoke with the Service Manager, Mario at Pasadena Volkswagen and he informed me that they have to have all of the receipts for the car before they can make the repairs that are under warranty. I have NEVER heard of anything like this. At this point, it appears that they will do nothing with the vehicle until they receive the receipts
2007Nov 23
Passat TD 1.8L
- Automatic transmission
- 83,000 miles
I've owned 15 cars and i must say this is the worse automobile I've ever owned. From day 1 the annoying warning lights, water leaks the engine sludge, just too many other problems to list. was really looking forward to buying a Toureg but i will never own another VW. very disappointed.
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2008Nov 14
Passat
I was driving my 2002 vw passat up to Maine from Boston one rainy Friday night when a light came on my dashboard that said to stop the car immediately and check my owner's manual. When checking to see what the manual advised it said to stop the car immediately and get the oil checked. I had changed my oil a little over 3,000 miles before, and was not due. I did get oil added as a gas station as to get myself safely to Maine. Shortly thereafter though, the light came on again. Fearing for my safety, I pulled over and had the car towed to the nearest VW dealership. The dealership called me a few days later to let me know that there had been excessive oil sludge build up (similar to many of your stories), and that it would cost $10,000 to fix. Because the car's Blue Book value was only $5,500 in excellent condition and because the car had MANY MANY other problems that cost much money, I donated the car to charity as a tax write off. I did love how the car drove when it worked (I miss it now, but drive a much more reliable Honda Civic), but the grief and money this car caused is something to be reckoned with. I have copies of 8 of the 12 required oil changes (not because I am diligent, but because I just threw everything car related in the glove compartment), and will be in contact with VW headquarters before filing suit.
Robin C.
Brookline, MA, USA
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