2003 Volkswagen Passat Review and Specs

Summary

What Edmunds.com says

This is our favorite midsize car -- in both sedan and wagon form. Don't make your vehicle choice without driving one.

Pros

Fun to drive, excellent value in GL or GLS trim, roomy interior with upscale feel, outstanding build and materials quality, available all-wheel drive.

Cons

Expensive upper-level models, can't get AWD on GLS, less rear-seat room than Camry or Altima, some confusing interior controls.

What's New for 2003

For 2003, a base GL sedan and wagon are available. Think of the GL as a GLS 1.8T for buyers who don't require any extras like alloy wheels, leather upholstery, seat heaters or a sunroof. Meanwhile, alloy wheels and sunroof are now standard on GLS models. The 4Motion all-wheel-drive system will not be offered on GLS V6 models, forcing interested buyers to cross the 30-grand line; however, VW has made stability control (ESP) optional on all Passats (except the W8, which has this standard). Also this year, you'll be able to get W8 sedans and wagons with a six-speed manual transmission and a sport package that includes a firmer suspension and the requisite 17-inch wheels. Lastly, the standard stereo head unit gets backlighting for the buttons.

Consumer Ratings & Reviews

Fun but tempermental

Written by: tim d on 11/09/2009

Detailed Ratings

Overall Rating


Performance:	8	Fun-to-Drive:	8	Build Quality:	8
Comfort:	9	Interior Design:	8	Reliability:	3
Fuel Economy:	8	Exterior Design:	10

Vehicle

2003 Volkswagen Passat GLS V6 Fwd 4dr Sedan (2.8L 6cyl 5A)

Review

Bought this car new in 03. Blue Anthracite with Grey Leather. Very well appointed and good performance. Drove great, had the feeling of a safe and heavy car. Had problems that I would not expect of a fairly new car: Short Brake Life, including warped rotors. Bad Breaklight Switch, $900 alternator replacement, a battery that only the dealer can replace (not good when it goes out on Sat. night). 2 bad CV boots. Oil leaks. Improper alignment burned up 2 new tires. Ridiculous price on 40K and 80K maintenance. When this car was getting near 80K, I sold it on Craigslist and bought a Honda. I could not stomach another trip to the dealer for them to find more stuff wrong.

Favorite Features

Styling, performance, comfort. I still enjoy seeing them on the road (with someone else incurring the cost of ownership). I like the longitudinal engine layout, even though the car is FWD, it makes for better handling through less torque steer.

Suggested Improvements

Make this car as reliable as a Ford or Chevy (or Japanese) and it would be a winner. I have a 13yr old Ford that still runs better than this car ever did. Also consider rear wheel drive. Would have kept this car 15 years & 200K if it had been more reliable and lower cost of operation

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What a Mistake!

Written by: Karen on 10/07/2009


Performance:	7	Fun-to-Drive:	8	Build Quality:	2
Comfort:	7	Interior Design:	8	Reliability:	1
Fuel Economy:	5	Exterior Design:	8

When I purchased this car new in 2003, it was my first experience with a Volkswagon. I now now it will be my last. The first month the starter went and I was without a car for days. I unfortunately continued to bring the car to the dealership and never got out of there under $1000, even for routine service. The recalls have been numerous, and my pants actually caught fire with the lovely heated seats prior to the recall. I recently replaced an axle, and now I am told I may need a new transmission. I don't even have 80,000 mile yet. My back doors do not unlock, the handle came off the glovebox, the alarm no longer sounds when I leave the lights on, the sunroof gets stuck open, ....on and on..

Exterior design.

Everything

NEVER BUY A VW !!!!

Written by: sk on 09/11/2009


Performance:	1	Fun-to-Drive:	2	Build Quality:	1
Comfort:	2	Interior Design:	5	Reliability:	1
Fuel Economy:	2	Exterior Design:	5

2003 Volkswagen Passat GLS 1.8T Fwd 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 5M)

I bought vw passat 03 as certified used and had a very bad experience. The only reason I bought the car was because of its sexy interior and exterior(silver). Last 4 yrs, I had nothing but bad experience, done every service regularly, almost every time the vw dealer finds some problem costing anywhere from $300.00 to $1500.00 for that repair or this repair. I was driving probably about 50 miles a month as I had a Honda Civic. After about 3 yrs of use, I was worried and purchased a top vw platinum warranty, but the problems didn't stop nor was any part/problem covered by this worthless warranty - i paid about $2000 for this warranty. NEVER BUYING A VW AGAIN.

I had a friend who also had Passat, told me had similar issues, not to buy, but I did not heed his advice and have paid for it, am paying for it. Some of the issues I had were: trunk hydraulics stopped working(tight trunk cover),CV Joint failed, axle boot, bulbs failed all the time. Worthless car!

W8 the car you'll love to hate

Written by: zerowheelspin on 08/31/2009


Performance:	7	Fun-to-Drive:	7	Build Quality:	5
Comfort:	9	Interior Design:	7	Reliability:	5
Fuel Economy:	6	Exterior Design:	8

2003 Volkswagen Passat W8 4Motion AWD 4dr Sedan (4.0L 8cyl 5A)

After picking up the most grown up car I've ever owned, I find my self in a Love hate relationship.. I bought it right off lease with 24k on the clock on 4-13-07. The first of the problems was the ac went it the first week right before a trip to the fl. Keys. The roof trim keeps popping up at the rear over the rear window. Window regulator broke, over head interior light stay on, sun roof opens for no reason, trunk lock broke, head light washer non opp, cv boots leaked, trans torque converter replaced, brake booster vac line. The list goes on I just don't have the time or space. By the way as of 8-31-09 this car only has 49,290 miles on the clock.. If you ask me stay clear of VW! All lemons!

the w8 engine is really smooth on power, good on fuel(must use 93oct), all wheel drive keeps the tires planted in the wet, hid head lights($90 ea bulb),clean lines, great ride.

VW needs to stand behind there product, not in front of customers trying to keep there car on the road. my car has been back 4 times for the same problem and now they want to charge me to repair the sunroof switch and over head lights that malfunction and leave the lights on or open the sunroof!!!!!

Wolf in Sheeps clothing

Written by: Andreas on 08/07/2009


Performance:	9	Fun-to-Drive:	10	Build Quality:	10
Comfort:	9	Interior Design:	9	Reliability:	10
Fuel Economy:	8	Exterior Design:	10

2003 Volkswagen Passat W8 4Motion AWD 4dr Wagon (4.0L 8cyl 5A)

I've only had my Passat one month so I wont comment on reliability. This car has everything; power, style, innovative features, comfort, I could go on and on. I love the exhaust resonance when I start it up and the fact that you can open and close all windows with the key in the door and the rain sensing wipers and the headlight sprayers and the fastened down floormats and of course the tiptronic. I would recommend this car to anyone.

Monsoon stereo, awesome power, tiptronic, exterior and interior style, automatic climate control, blue and red dash illumination

Handling is pretty good but could be better, more interior storage would be nice

2003 Volkswagen Passat Consumer Ratings & Reviews