As far as mid size and luxury passenger cars go, is the maintenance more in the luxury?
For example, I am considering buying a VW jetta or a passat. Both approximately the same year, mileage, and price to buy. Would the passat cost more to maintain? I know that in the past I have worked on old cars and this has been the case.
Neither car is particularly known for its reliability.
BTW, unless you’re talking about a Passat CC, it wouldn’t be considered a luxury car. It’s an “affordable large family car.”
And if you Are talking about the CC, then have fun with the mechanic’s bills, because any time you introduce an unusual engine (the W8 in this case) it’s harder to find people who are willing to work on them, and even harder to find people who are willing to work on them without charging an arm and a leg.
Either of these cars will be expensive to maintain. The Passat might be more expensive, but neither is cheap.
Is the Passat considered a luxury car? I was not aware of that.
The Jetta and Passat share alot of the same parts, they are built on the same platform. Most of the engine choices are the same (no W8 on the Jetta though), they use the same transmissions, similar suspensions, brakes,etc. Maintence costs should be pretty close between the two.
It is not considered a luxury car. I meant more so than the jetta but that couod be debated as well.
No real difference in those two cars.
Yes. Both maintenance and repair costs will be higher; about 25%.
VW cars are horrible in terms of reliability. Brother had one and had nothing but issues. One weekend they were changing the strut, my dad’s eyesight aint the best and he jacked the car up in the wrong spot and snapped the axle (thats why I always jack up the car from the tow hooks) turns out the boot was cracked and leaking oil anyway. Well, they put the axle in and then they wheel bearing went the next day. This was after the clutch went then the next week the tranny and shortly after the other strut. I know several ppl with vw’s…just horrible cars. Check carsurvey.org for ppl’s opinions on their cars
My Uncle’s Audi (made by VW) has been similar. He spends like $2000 every 3 months to get something fixed.
Don’t buy either one. The fact that you are asking us the question infers that you are not aware of the vast difference in upkeep between a normal size Camry, Accord and similar size or smaller Volkswagens.
Most luxury cars these days are standard cars dressed up with fancier upholstery and more gadgets, all of which have the potential for failure. A Passat is hardly a luxury car, but has the upkeep cost of very luxurious competitors.
If you want affordable “class” shop Korean (Hyundai). If you just want a good and comfortable car, the Camry, Accord, Hyundai Sonata and Mazda 6 are your best best. All will cost substantially less to own than any Volkswagen.
No there are nice luxury oriented or near luxury cars that less maintenance intensive than VW’s. This includes BMW, Infiniti, Lexus, and a few others.
The last VW I had was a 59 and that was plenty, although the inlaws like them. They have about 2% of the U.S. market if that says anything but seem to sell well in Europe.