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Looking for a reliable used vehicle, want a small diesel. Found a 2002 Jetta and a 2002 Golf, both diesel. Golf is manual, Jetta is auto. The Golf has 108k miles, the Jetta has 118k miles. Golf is $6995 if I don't dicker down the price, Jetta is $7495 if I don't get the price down. They're both in good condition, with clean carfax.
Suggestions? I like the look of the Jetta better, but I prefer manual trans which would be the Golf. Any input from owners of either of this type of vehicle regarding reliability, what you like and dislike about them? TIA
I would get the Golf since it has the stickshift, unless you really really prefer the sedan layout of the Jetta. I know the Diesels have changed over the years, and have more power now, but the older NA Diesels were slow enough with a stick, horrible with auto.
Beyond that VW automatics are not known for long and reliable service.
GTOlover is right of course, you don't *have* to choose from just these 2 cars, you can wait till a stickshift Jetta Diesel shows up available.
Pay attention to the timing belt change interval and don't push that, also pay attention to oil and filter on these cars, make sure you are getting oil that meets the VW spec for this engine, quickie lube outfits probably won't know or care, I'd insist on a Mann or Mahle filter too. The right oil and filter are not cheap, but if you use them you can get mega miles from these engines.
I would get the Golf since it has the stickshift, unless you really really prefer the sedan layout of the Jetta. I know the Diesels have changed over the years, and have more power now, but the older NA Diesels were slow enough with a stick, horrible with auto.
Beyond that VW automatics are not known for long and reliable service.
This is very good to know, thanks. Do the 2002's fall into that "slow/horrible" category?
Quote:
GTOlover is right of course, you don't *have* to choose from just these 2 cars, you can wait till a stickshift Jetta Diesel shows up available.
Pay attention to the timing belt change interval and don't push that, also pay attention to oil and filter on these cars, make sure you are getting oil that meets the VW spec for this engine, quickie lube outfits probably won't know or care, I'd insist on a Mann or Mahle filter too. The right oil and filter are not cheap, but if you use them you can get mega miles from these engines.
Thanks to both of you. I am fortunately in the position to look around and not buy right until I find what I want.
I think by 2002 the Diesels were making good power in TDI trim, you will just have to drive them and see if you are satisfied with the power or not. Generally the TDI is known for a lot of torque, most people consider it a fairly powerful engine. It's a complicated turbocharged Diesel though so you have to keep up on the maintenance. Below is a link for one owner's website.
The Jetta was made in Mexico and I think the Golf may have been built in Brazil. Mexican-made VWs aren't always the best built cars. I'm not sure about the Brazilians, though. If you can go a bit newer, the Rabbit was German-made.
You're looking at the 4th generation aka MK4. They came with a 1.9l turbo diesel motor. I don't know much about them other than you can get some decent extra power with a chip and some bolt ons. It is not as slow as previous VW diesels. It's not uber fast either.
I prefer the golf personally. I've had golfs, jettas, a corrado, a passat etc... I prefer having a hatch back. I also think the Jettas are a bit heavier and may feel slower.
You can also find a same generation Jetta with a manual trans that will get excellent gas mileage but with a 2.0l motor for probably a bit cheaper. Keep in mind, a lot of teenage girls owned these Jettas so you may want to make sure the car was "adult owned".
Basically I just want an inexpensive daily driver with good mpg and an acquaintance mentioned that the diesel VWs were reliable. I don't care really what it looks like or if it's got a lot of spunk, I just need it for my 15-20 miles a day work drive.
Basically I just want an inexpensive daily driver with good mpg and an acquaintance mentioned that the diesel VWs were reliable. I don't care really what it looks like or if it's got a lot of spunk, I just need it for my 15-20 miles a day work drive.
You can save yourself some dough by picking up a 2.0 and you would also be able to get the manual trans Jetta you spoke of. I don't have much experience with that version of VW's 2.0 8v motor, but I have had several of the previous (code ABA). Pretty inexpensive to repair, not many problems to begin with either.
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