Strong engine, good handling, firm but comfortable seating for four.

Poor after sale support. Poor dealer maintenance.

Fun to drive, solid feel. Impossible to find quality care in the area. Have tried seek assistance from VW of America on several maintenance issues with little positive results. They do not own the repair facilities and only document the instance. VW of A does keep complaint statistics on the dealers, but does not make the information available to consumers. Will not buy another any time soon.

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Honda Accord, Toyota Camry.

1.8t turbo. fit finish. interior better than BMW by far only its cousin audi can compare. interior size. the looks it gets from being lowered

triptronic- could do with a more aggressive program, for my type of driving at least and the engine should have been tuned to the comparable tt 1.8 turbo - trust me this 1.8t engine can get 2110 hp with no ill efffect

my fourth VW and it is the best- that 1.8t kicks ass and is very smooth i have own everything from toyotas, mercedes, nissans, infinitis, ssaabs, volvos and this ranks as my second all time vehicle i have owned. the brakes are veery smooth and engine is very smooth for is size- i ahev done a few modification like lowered it 2" for better cornering, turbo timer and added a nuespeed chip and now it is totally won my heart- no problems so far except ticket and a flat tires

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g20, accord, maxima,camry, i30

Looks Ride quietness

Smell poor radio reception velour seats

After much review, I decided to lease the 2003 VW Passat V6. It has been rated so highly and figured if I stayed away from the 4 cycl, I could avoid coil problems. I have leased Hondas for the past 10 years, but was not fond of the newly redesigned Accord. The V6 Passat is a beautiful vehicle, drives nice and solid and you do feel very "safe" in this car. Acceleration is great, transmission extremely smooth, very quiet ride. Unfortunately, not the car for me. After 3 months of torture, I took a very large financial beating, to have the dealer buy this car back and end the 36 month lease after only 3 months! THIS was the problem...apparently I was allergic to something VW uses on the interior of the car. VW Corporation of America was not willing to work with me on this and I will never buy another VW just because of their customer service. I ended up leasing an Acura TL and am having absolutely no problems at all with any allergic reation. Be careful with this car. Mine had a very, very strange odor coming from the interior roof material whenever the sun beat down or the interior of the car was hot. My eyelids burned and turned brown after several weeks. It also started to happen to my husband after he drove the car, when I could not anymore. VW Corp. acted like we were crazy. Dealer bought it back, (but we had to pay thru the nose). Also the radio had virtually no clear reception and faded in and out. Dealer could not "reproduce" problem. Also material in velour seats are suspect in allergic reation I was having.

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1988 VW Jetta 1991 Mecury Sable 1994 Honda Accord 1997 Honda Accord 2000 Honda Accord SE 2003 Acura TL

*W8 Engine (beyond description in this price class) *4-Motion AWD *Build Quality *Handling *German Design & Engineering

Not price because this car is worth $40K compared to the competition in the overall package and driving experience. Maybe mileage, I'll have to see. The car is still in break-in so it is hard to tell. So far I'm averaging 19.5 mpg in mostly rural driving which is a few mpg less than our V6 Passats under the same conditions. I have not yet taken a trip with the car but when broken-in, if I can set the cruise and get 25 mpg on the highway at 70 to 75 I'll be happy (our V6 Passat's get 28 to 30).

I recently leased a black/black W8 sedan with sport package. This is our 3rd Passat. The first was a 2000 GLX sedan with Tiptronic and the second a 2000 wagon with tiptronic so both have V6, leather, Monsoon sound, etc. The first 2 have been fantastic cars and my wife and I love them. We both agree these are the best cars we've driven. With a total of 90,000 miles between the 2 we've had virtually no problems. The experiation of the lease on my sedan prompted me to search for a replacement so I test drove just about every configuration of the Audi A4 & A6, Mercedes C320 4-Matic and Infiniti G35 sedan (all automatics). I considered the BMW 330IX but ultimately ruled it out based on small size, limited trunk and uncompetitive price. The BMW 5 series is too old and dated looking for my taste plus it does not offer AWD. To sum up this experience the Passat W8 is an exhilerating drive by comparison. Very solid, tight car with incredible throttle response and effortless acceleration. The W8 will out run any A4 or A6 with exception of the A6 4.2. I know because I tested all of them on 0 to 60 and 50-70 times. Even the A6 2.7T is a good 1/2 second slower to 60 than the W8 and feels like a Buick doing it. Suspension is too soft and steering is over-boosted at low speeds. I really like the A4 more than the A6 but it's too small for me. I'm 6'3" and the drivers leg area of the A4 is too narrow although the A4 feels, rides and handles beter than the A6. Both the A4 & A6 with 3.0 / Quattro came in at least $80/month more than the W8 on similar lease terms. In addition, Audi charges 0.25 cents/mile for excess miles whereas VW only charges 0.12. Furthermore, you can't get daytime running lights on an Audi or rain-sensing wipers, both are standard on the W8 and all Passat GLX models. The Mercedes is a very nice car but also too small. The drivers area is OK but it has virtually no back seat. I also like the styling of the Passat (especially the W8) better. The best lease deal I could work on the C320 4-Matic was $90/month more than the W8. The Infiniti G35 is a beautiful car on the exterior but left me cold on the interior. I just don't like the way Infiniti styled the interior and I felt the materials were not up to the price range. Furthermore, I test drove the Infiniti during a 3" Milwaukee snow fall and the car could not start moving on a reasonable hill once stopped. The lease on this car with similar terms was $50/month more than the W8. By now it should be evident why I leased the W8. Features, design, build quality, 4-Motion and wow - that engine! The W8 is so much fun to drive I find myself taking the long route to and from my office. I find it interesting that W8's are not flying off dealer lots. Probably because people do not think of VW in terms of $40K cars. IMHO this is a mistake! VW's engineering, design and construction are right up with Audi, BMW & Mercedes. Granted, the W8 doesn't look much different than lessor Passats but this is not important to me. The driving experience and knowing that the car is well built, safe and durable are more important factors. With the W8 you get a nice mid-sized sedan or wagon with AWD, lots of standard features and an incredible power train. The improvements in structural strength of the new Passat and the added weight of the W8 compared to the 2000 model is noticeable in how quiet and substantial the car feels. It's like driving in a bank vault. If you are looking in the $35 ~ $40K price range and the driving experience is truly important to you then check out the W8. If status is more important, then you'll probably do better with another make. Yes, Audi, BMW and Mercedes drivers may thumb their noses at my $40K Passat but they won't be laughing when all they can see are my tail lights.

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Passat GLX, Audi A4 & A6, Mercedes C320 4-Matic, Infinitie G35.

FUN TO DRIVE Well designed, roomy interior HUMONGOUS trunk Great Sound System (Monsoon) Very sexy lines, especially the curve where the trunk and roof come together

Volkswagen dealerships (in general) and Metro Volkswagen (in particular) (in 2000 model year) Cup Holders...a travesty, an after thought, a joke (both front and back)

A stimulating drive with a (for today's standards) value price. It is the same price or lower than it's class competitors and more fun to drive. The earlier models from the 20th century were known to have quality defects, but VW seemed to fix that pretty much, starting with the 2000 model year. I have a red V6 with a tight 5-speed transmission that is a BLAST to drive. Sitting in a traffic jam is fun in this car...and it translates to the 2003 model (which I've tested, but the 1.8t...no dealers have the 5-speeds anymore, you have to order them). Since the body style change, the car turns heads, but you don't see all that many of them. The quality of fit and finish seems good. Mine is garaged and washed once a week, the leather is S.O.A.G'd once a week, so much like anything else, if you take care of it, it will last (my mother was right about that!). From model year 2000 thru to current, with few exceptions, this is a great car.

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Honda Accord Acura Vigor

German ride, quality interior, fun motor (get 200hp, and 230lbs of torke for 600$ update)

a little light on the steering with stock suspention, but nothing major and so comfortable on long trips

I don't know what the fuss is about. I've had a coil problem that was fixed the same day ubder warranty. Even out of waranty, the coil is worth 16$. Otherwise the car is just fantastic. I would not trade it for anything else. What I adore about these VW is that they keep there initial quality, ride stifness for a very long time. They are a pleasure to own. I understand that some people have had problems, but not that serious to me. Camrys Accords also have problems but their owners are so anal about reliability, they don't brag about them. My friends and family can't hide them though...

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golf, Jetta, GM Alero, Accord 6cyl, Camry, Celica, Infinity g20, Altima, maxima, Audi A4

perfectly proportioned 4 dr body responsive engine best silver paint in the business feles more expensive than it is

Could use spotier wheels on the GLS Small trunk compared to competition

For 25 grand you cannot beat the vaue if you are someone who actually enjoys driving. I've had a lot of Japanese cars and there is nothing wrong with them, but for this type of car the Passat has no equal. I have the 1.8T - 5 speed and it is a blast to drive. Roomy, comfortable, very classy interior (get the leather) - very supple suspension, but what's weird is the harder you push it the more it responds as far as handling. Great balance, rock solid on the freeway (would love to drive it on the autobahn) - it has every luxury feature you could want. If you want the BMW/Audi feel for a ton less money, you will not be unhappy with the Pasaat. One last thought - If you are going to buy the manual transmission, I actually prefer the 1.8T engine. It's more fun thena the 6 cyl. and sounds better too with a very pleasant exhaust tone. Fit and finish are flawless. It make you want to take the long way home.

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My engine keeps up the good work, as long as my family stays home. Weekend trips means I have to consider the limits of the engine, so I would recommend you to try more than one alternative for engine in this car, and bring your family with you. The interior is exceptional. At night it felles like the cockpit of an airplane. Leather gives it a luxurious feeling.

The engine.

Once I got family I had to trade my sport saloon for something more sensible. The most popular cars in my area of the world are Ford Mondeo, Skoda Octavia and others. I got to know the new Passat and thought it had the most stylish cabin of them all, the ride was fine, and VW certainly showed me that they had no problem keeping up with their relative, Audi. Today, two years later, I am still very satisfied with this car. The wagon has much space, and on top of that I have put an roof top box on my Passat. It has the advantage of beeing a very large family car, as well as being very good to drive - and it looks good.

Runs great, powerful engine for a 4 cylinder. First gear kind of short but 3rd is excellent and can go all the way to 65mph

read summary

How can this car be voted best sedan when it has so many problems???? We have not experienced mechanical problems but mainly electrical problems. The right front window does not work properly anymore, the back door lock does not close automatically anymore, some of the dashboard's light don't work anymore. Also we have ignition problems, the key does not go back to the correct place and light don't go one...have to do it manually. And the worst, one time the driver's seat got disengaged and was pushed backwards, making my husband lose control of the steering wheel. That's what I call critical.

handling and ride quality

customer service

I had a bunch of problems with the check engine light for the first 12k miles, and a lot of little quality problems. Then the car was very reliable until 85K miles when the wheel bearings went. The car drives so nicely that I was thinking about another until I read about all the coil problems. Then VW's lousy customer service all came back to me. In 1998 I ended up calling the US home office and talked to a glib non-caring ass. I tell you they really do not care once they have your money. Too bad, the cars are a pleasure to drive when they work.

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loved my acura until they got pricey