Used 2016 Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A) Consumer Reviews
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Complicated
tray, Detroit, MI, 09/27/2016
updated 10/03/2017
Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
12 of 12 people found this review helpful
Still mostly in love with the Passat after driving it for 1 year and putting over 17,000 miles on the vehicle. First the positives include the vehicle handles great especially at high speeds, strong 4 cylinder turbo engine, nice rear seats, very attractive interior and exterior. The bad includes a front speaker rattle which Volkswagen cannot fix after three attempts, and hard surfaces especially on the door, cheap thin paint. Regarding the front right speaker rattle it seems that this problem just appears out of no where 80% of the time when I drive the vehicle, however the issue cannot ever be duplicated once you take the vehicle to Volkswagen. Regarding the hard surfaces I really feel that the door handle pads are to hard which makes getting comfortable in the Passat for a long drive a little harsh. Also the armrest is too small so two people cannot share the hard surface armrest. Recently I washed my vehicle and decided to use a towel to dry off my vehicle instead of the normal car wash air dry that i normally would do. Once I started drying the car I instantly started noticing that literally the car towel was causing the paint to appear scratched. Over over my 20 years of driving I've never seen paint this cheap before. So if you buy a black Passat please understand that it's in your best interest to only machine wash the vehicle vs hand washing. In terms of reliability I haven't had any engine problems at all. The one major issue that has driven me insane is the continental tires which have excellent grip, however constantly run flat from picking up debris. Too make matters worse the Passat will only notify you once the tire is dang near flat. The tire monitoring system also doesn't let you see the amount of air in all 4 tires, so basically you have to play the guessing game when it comes to air pressure in the tires. I have a Ford F-150 which shows me the pressure in all 4 tires which is extremely beneficial. I also have 3 other newer vehicles that I own ,and only the Passat has had multiple flat tires over the past 12 months. This is no lie , I have had every tire on the Passat plugged on this vehicle with some of tires having multiple flats. The issue got so bad that I replaced the front tires with cheaper tires and so far I haven't experienced any flats. Some advice to Volkswagen would include putting thicker rubber on the wheels so that the tires will not puncture so easily. Overall these issues are still minor and doesn't affect the reliability of the vehicle. The car has never broken down, and is excellent on fuel .
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Staying with VW
Esko Nopanen, Mooresville, NC, 09/01/2016
updated 09/05/2017
Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
13 of 14 people found this review helpful
Performance of the 1.8L engine continues to impress me. No maintenance aside from oil change at 10000 miles has been needed. One area of car's performance that is less than expected is shifting of the transmission during slow speed operation. Transmission shifts to a lower gear unexpectedly as the vehicle slows down. That action is not smooth but results in jerking. At normal speeds there is no unpleasant shift action.
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2016 Volkswagen Passat for sale near you
3 of 34 listings
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Finally got a German engineered car
harley, Maineville, OH, 08/29/2016
Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
7 of 7 people found this review helpful
As a road warrior I chose this car over a Chrysler 300, Taurus, and Charger as my sales car. I put 33K mi a year on my cars for business. Thought the 300 was descent for the last 4 years but my lower back hated that car in the end. I was very hesitant to go with the Passat due to the 170hp 4 banger after coming from 290hp 6 cylinder with the 300. But I am very pleasantly surprised about the 1.8T motor, torque, off the line and in traffic acceleration. So anyone worried about performance I will tell you it is pretty much everything you need power wise - no more and no less. The motor and 6 speed are very nicely suited for this car and how I intend to use it. I ultimately selected the Passat due to the safety technology such as emergency braking assist. It is a bit confusing though reading up on the technology to understand how it all works. For example - will it stop the car if a deer runs out in the road before I see it? Or that kid walking into the street playing Pokemon Go? I'm sure after 100K miles I'll find more to complain about but for now the only con is the cheap plastic turn signal. I do not understand how something that is touched and used so often was made so cheap feeling. Oh yeah if you want the nice turn signal you have to buy the Audi.
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VWPASSAT2016LEMON
Terri, Colonial Heights, VA, 05/22/2017
Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
15 of 17 people found this review helpful
**** "PROBLEM NOT FOUND", "PROBLEM UNABLE TO BE REPRODUCED" AND "EPC LIGHT, ENGINE LIGHT AND BATTERY LIGHT NOT ON" EVEN THOUGH THEY WERE ON WHEN I ARRIVED AND HAD TAKEN A PICTURE DAYS PRIOR SHOWING ALL LIGHTS (EPC, BATTERY & ENGINE) WERE ON. ALL OF A SUDDEN, AFTER HAVING BEEN ON FOR NUMEROUS DAYS, THEY TURNED OFF RIGHT AWAY. I GUESS I CAN NOT EXPECT THE TRUTH. THANKFULLY, I HAVE PICTURES VERIFYING WHAT I TOLD THEM IN THE FIRST PLACE. THAT WAS THE REASON I WAS THERE.**** This car left the manufacturer in March 2016. I leased this car from Brown's Volkswagen on Midlothian Turnpike Richmond, Va. in April of 2016. It had 8 miles at the time I leased it. Unfortunately, I have had to take this car to the shop countless times. In July 2016, less than 3 months after leasing it brand new, it stalled at a railroad track, and would not move, but sounded like something was still turning. In August 2016, I had my oil changed at Brown's one Saturday. The following Monday, I had to travel more than three hours away and was stranded because the engine light came on due to the car overheating. A local shop showed a very damaged hose as the culprit. In November 2016, the car stalled again. Also, in November 2016, the engine light came on because of a faulty leak detection pump. The service department explained to me that the car was supposed to release the emissions gradually, but my car let it all out at once. In February 2017, the EPC light, engine light and battery light came on, and made a loud, scraping sound when I turned. On my last visit in March 2017, I voiced my numerous concerns with the Volkswagen manufacturer who scheduled an appointment for me at the Bethesda Md. Ourisman service department. They had the car for a week since I had a loaner out-of-town, but had checked it by Monday. They stated if they can't find a problem they can't fix it, and left it at that. They also noted the EPC, engine and battery light were NOT on; however, I had already taken a picture of all three on. In addition, the Ourisman male rep I paid $15 to for the loaner tried to get me to sign and submit the service form releasing the car BACK to me. Upon my refusal to do so, he stepped closer and placed himself inches away in front of me as I stood up to leave. He looked at me sternly and somewhat angrily. I looked at him, told him he was in my way and needed to get out of my way. Afterwards, his co-worker called out to him and he moved. Frustrated after having another VW dealer tell me they could not find anything wrong, we removed the license plates, and left the vehicle with the Ourisman dealer. We gathered our items from the car and walked up the street to wait for a cab to the train station to travel 2 hours back home. At this time, I was in a lot of pain from an injury the day before. Minutes later, I ran into a non-VW mechanic to whom I explained the issues I had experienced with this car, and he responded they all sounded like transmission issues. He also stated that if the computer was not picking it up, the computer may be defective. None of the VW service departments I visited ever had a clue why my car was experiencing these issues. They kept telling me the car was fine, and left it at that. Obviously, if I had these mechanical issues and the engine light came on numerous times, there was an issue. A few days after returning home, I returned the license plates to the department of motor vehicles for the refund of a very recently purchased 2018 decal and was notified the refund would be sent to VW because it was a leased vehicle. I would never want to deal with another one of their vehicles OR trust any dealings with VOLKSWAGEN or their dealerships. I had nothing but issues with this car from a few months after signing paperwork for this BRAND NEW VW PASSAT until the time I left it with the last VOLKSWAGEN dealer to conclude THE PROBLEM CAN NOT BE FOUND OR REPRODUCED OR NO PROBLEMS FOUND AT THIS TIME. This car is actually a Volkswagen Passat 2016 1.8T SE, but that choice was not listed above for selection.
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32K miles and 1.8T REAR MAIN SEAL BLOWS OUT!!!!
James D., Chapel Hill, NC, 07/01/2016
Volkswagen Passat SE 4dr Sedan (1.8L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
36 of 47 people found this review helpful
I bought this car in March and do a lot of highway driving, not racing it around. Highway driving is easy: I drive conservatively and all my fluid changes have been done on time. Come to find out, I'm blowing smoke out the rear, and I blew a rear main seal on the engine and may have done some internal engine damage, too. The repair bill was nearly $3,000, but fortunately for me, it was covered under warranty. I looked up a VW tech I went to high school with who works for a large VW dealership in Dallas, and he says, and I quote, "VW's rear main seal design on their 1.8t's have been pure garbage for some time, and VW knows about this. We've seen a few Passat rear-main blowouts already. It's the same motor with the same problem the Golfs and Jettas had. This is how we make our money. Once the 36K mile warranty expires, the cost is no longer (negotiable, as always to the dealership) by VW. So the owner gets screwed." He went on to say, "Most 1.8t's are designed to hit 45K miles without serious problems, but with the 2014 to 2016 Passats, we're seeing this problem all the time. What's an owner to do? Sit around and say, 'No, I'm not going to repair this.' They end up forking over the $2600 and that's that, but in the end run, we lose another customer." He thinks VW does this by design, and to me, it's no wonder after realizing what they did with Dieselgate, with an aim to deceive. I should have gone with an Accord but was tempted by the extra inch or so of front-seat leg room the Passat offered me. BEWARE DO NOT BUY THIS CAR UNLESS YOU HAVE MONEY TO FIX IT.
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