[atulanand13]

Hello fellow Bhpians,

I have been so much into Jetta since the past some months. Thanks to TeamBHP having such detailed content about it, I researched a lot on it.

Basically I want to buy a pre-owned Jetta for myself after being impressed by its drive quality (the refined engine, awesome suspension and good quality interiors). Now having seen many fellow BHPians already tread this path I though taking their advice would be very beneficial. I have zeroed down on a Jetta in the below link which looks like a steal.
Kindly advise if you all also think it to be good.

The ad says its only 25K km run (which I kind of doubt) but since its coming from cars24 I might believe it as well.

Let me know if you think there might be some other catch as well.
I want to go for a manual since I have heard many DSG kaput cases and which turn out to be very expensive. manual will save me from that pain in case it happens.

The car will do not more than 30km run/day.

https://www.cars24.com/buy-used-Volk...da-1052522557/

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by atulanand13

Hello fellow Bhpians,

I have been so much into Jetta since the past some months. Thanks to TeamBHP having such detailed content about it, I researched a lot on it.

Basically I want to buy a pre-owned Jetta for myself after being impressed...

The Jetta is a great car. I have purchased two used Jettas and both have been problem free. DSG performs well if you don't abuse it. I have a 2010 Jetta TDI DSG and a 2012 Passat TDI DSG and both have been driven across the country for years without any problems.
Coming to the car in question, the mileage is almost certainly rolled back. Try to check with VW and see if they can tell you what services were performed and at what mileage. Even if it has run around 70k, it would still be a good deal. However as it is now 6 years old, you can negotiate a better price. Something around 5 to 5.5 lakhs would be a good idea unless the mileage turns out to be genuine.

[atulanand13]

Originally Posted by Lobogris

The Jetta is a great car. I have purchased two used Jettas and both have been problem free. DSG performs well if you don't abuse it. I have a 2010 Jetta TDI DSG and a 2012 Passat TDI DSG and both have been driven across the country for years without any problems.
Coming to the car in question, the mileage is almost certainly rolled back. Try to check with VW and see if they can tell you what services were performed and at what mileage. Even if it has run around 70k, it would still be a good deal. However as it is now 6 years old, you can negotiate a better price. Something around 5 to 5.5 lakhs would be a good idea unless the mileage turns out to be genuine.

Hey Lobogris...!
Thanks a lot for your reply.
Since youve had not one rather 2 DSGs, could you guide me how to check the health of the DSG gearbox if I am checking a used Jetta. Are there any indications ?
Also I love to drive... Which one would you prefer in that case.. a manual or an automatic Jetta?

[Lobogris]

Originally Posted by atulanand13

Hey Lobogris...!
Thanks a lot for your reply.
Since youve had not one rather 2 DSGs, could you guide me how to check the health of the DSG gearbox if I am checking a used Jetta. Are there any indications ?
Also I love to drive... Which one would you prefer in that case.. a manual or an automatic Jetta?

I would absolutely prefer a DSG or any other automatic over a manual any day. The DSG is so quick that it is faster than any manual in gear shifting. It is truly a joy to drive.

As far as checking it on a used car is concerned, you can drive it and see if the gear shifts are smooth. Are there any jerks or hesitation? Try to suddenly accelerate and stop and see if there are any issues. In addition, you can check with VW to see if DSG service was ever performed. You can also take it to a service center and have them check the DSG filter. It is located in the engine bay just next to the battery and it is real easy to open a screw to remove its cover. Once open, you can see if the filter is in good shape. If it is squished or deformed, that indicates some problem in the transmission as excess pressure is present in the system. In addition, check the colour of the fluid. It should not be totally black as it is sort of red or amber when new. If it looks very black and dirty, that means the transmission has not been serviced for a long time. That doesn't automatically means it is bad. You can yourself get the DSG fluid changed but just be more cautious as it means the person hasn't cared for the vehicle. If possible, try to drive the vehicle in stop and go traffic for a while. After doing this, open the engine bay and see if you can smell any transmission fluid. That can also indicate transmission overheating. Finally, you can have a service center with a scanning tool test the car, The scanning tool will find any DSG related errors as well as other issues that the vehicle might have.

Another thing to look out for is the DMF {dual mass flywheel}. This often goes bad in VAG cars after about 70k kms and costs about 50k to change. If you feel any shudder during acceleration or worse hear noises then it could mean a bad DMF.

Since you are in Noida, we have a wonderful FNG here. The World of Service can scan the car. They can do DSG oil change and they can even repair the DSG at very reasonable prices. So negotiate a good deal and if you like the car and it seems good then don't worry too much about the DSG.

[atulanand13]

Thanks again..!

I am not going for the above Jetta now and have zeroed in on another one (2014 manual comfortline model, 70k km mileage, single hand driven, direct purchase from the owner) for Rs.5.5L/-.

1. However m a bit double minded between Octavia and Jetta now. I like Octavia for its looks and the brand image that it carries.
Do you think that Octavia is a better option?
A 2014 Octavia costs around 7.5L in NCR although in the mechanicals it's same as Jetta just that it has not been discontinued. What would you suggest? On a lighter note I would not want to spend 2L Rs premium for the same quality.

2. If I opt for jetta would there be any problem with its spare parts etc. since it has been discontinued now? How has your experience been especially post 2017 when its production was halted by VW?

P.S. could we talk over phone if it is alright? It would be really helpful.

[nerd1200]

Originally Posted by atulanand13

1. However m a bit double minded between Octavia and Jetta now. I like Octavia for its looks and the brand image that it carries.
Do you think that Octavia is a better option?

Rule of thumb on the forum is:
Petrol - Octavia (1.8 TSI)
Diesel - Jetta

Simply because the ride quality of these two are unparalleled due to the rear independent suspension. Personally, I felt the Jetta to be more confident in higher speeds (PQx vs MQB platform's effect maybe)

However topend Octy offers you a few more features like memory seats (may not seem important, but believe me they are. Powered seats w/o memory is useless per my view) and sunroof (crowd favorite)

Originally Posted by atulanand13

2. If I opt for jetta would there be any problem with its spare parts etc. since it has been discontinued now? How has your experience been especially post 2017 when its production was halted by VW?

Don't believe so. Engine and drivetrain of the Jetta are bread and butter for the VW group, they'll be available. Body parts may take some time if needs to be imported but shouldn't be a problem.
I have a '10 Laura and seldom face any issues sourcing parts.

[Redline6800]

It has been a fantastic ownership experience with my pre-worshipped Jetta 2.0 TDi.

I purchased the car, when it was 4 years 8 months old and had run a little over 98,000 km.

The car is now just over 7 years and three years old and at 109,680 km. If not for the pandemic, it would have run another couple of thousand km.

The car is driven very carefully, speedbreakers and bad roads are normally tackled only in 1st gear.

The car comes into its own beyond 80 kmph and is an absolute joy on open roads. I normally do Sat/Sun drives to the airport and back from my home in Jeevan Bhima Nagar. Last full tank involved a couple of these drives and rest in city, with AC on all the time, for a tank to tank mileage of 14.25 kmpl

Reliability till date has been excellent (touch wood!), but was not able to take the car for service - as it is driven down to VW Mysore showroom and got delayed for a number of reasons. Now planned for next week.

Considering that Jetta is parked outside, the paint, plastics, lights and interiors have held up very very well. No interior detailing has been done, just occasional wash and vacuum at Feynlabs MG Road.

This pic was taken on November 7th @ approx 109,550 km on the odo and the car at 7 years 3 months old



Interiors may be slightly dated by today's standards, but quality cannot be faulted.





Exterior plastics and lights haven not faded after more than 2 years of roadside parking. I do use a TPH cover, but when the car gets dirty, the cover goes back on only after a wash (which sometimes takes weeks )

[vasanthjn]

Originally Posted by Redline6800

Extra Goodies with White Stallion


Touch up paint pens

Is your car colour is Pristine White?? If so can you please let me know what is the color code? I believe the code will start with L.

Also can you please mention the name of the manufacturer of the paint pen?

[MADMAX111]

@Redline. Try and park your car in shade most of the time to prevent roofliner sagging over time.

[Redline6800]

Has taken a bit too long for an update on my Jetta.

She is now approaching her 10th year with over 1,16,000 km on the clock.



A very impressive car if a little boring but built like a tank. A great highway cruiser but not a corner carver.



Frankly, the whole experience appeared to be too good to be true. The car appeared to be as a reliable as a Japanese car ! even the battery had lasted around 5 years!

I have always driven the car carefully and treated with a lot of care. This is also simply because of the perception of German cars and expensive spare parts. My 23 year old Honda City gets the rough treatment, 1st gear wheelspins, etc!

However, if something is too good to be true, it usually is!

I would drive it all the way to Mysore from Bangalore for Jetta's service, cause the same service advisor was there from when the car was 1 day old. This was a time consuming endeavour - but since I planned to keep the car till the end of the decade, I was happy spending two days every year on its service.

Despite the showroom folks knowing me and the car - these are the incidents I have faced. In summary, I will never buy a new VW/Skoda ever!

The incidents below while unacceptable are palatable because I did not pay the INR 25 L new for the car. If I had, then this would have been an even sorrier experience.

April 2021
Accident repair on the roof and doors, following a tree falling on my car. The cars excellent build quality was evident from what happened though.

Repair work- roof repaint and RHS doors and quarter panel repaint was done well and Tata AIG insurance was excellent transferring the insurance amount to my account 72 hours after the claim was approved !

During the same service, VW service broke my RHS power mirror knob - they accepted it was their fault and said would replace it at their expense.
I assumed that the replacement would be the same as what was broken and accepted without any written documentary proof.

March 2021
The roofliner, which had never had an issue till then, started bubbling within weeks of the repair work. Shared a picture with the service advisor, he said he would sort it. But due to COVID-19 couldnt go back.

I accept it was my fault not going back there as soon as I could to this fixed. But based on my Honda experience, I assumed VW would do the right thing and fix the issue.

The whole of 2022 was quite hectic and with the car running having reduced, I delayed the service, but the roof liner was now sagging more and more.

Jan 2023
Went for service and accident repair. A biker had hit my parked car and again RHS doors were damaged and RHS mirror lens was broken.

Another important lesson, if you are buying a used car, try to make sure it had garage parking!

The VW service guys now said the roofliner was not their issue and said sagging of roofliner was a common issue with all Jetta cars. Would cost INR 50,000 for new one.

I was willing to accept some portion of the blame for delaying taking the car back sooner for the roof issue, but I doubt their response would have been any different. A local repair was offered at approx half that cost but it would be white headliner in a beige interior car. Since i had taken a decision to only have original spares on Jetta, I went ahead with the VW option.

I had a chat with the Service manager and asked extra care be taken for my car, as I was coming all the way from BLR. I felt having met the service manager, the work would be done properly.

I received the car with the following issues - the inside of rear RHS door paint was chipped during the repair, they had replaced the power window knob with one that looks its from Taigun and feels very cheap to use compared to what Jetta came with.

The original RHS power mirror knob the car came up. felt very premium to touch.


Replacement RHS power mirror knob fitted by the showroom. looks cheap and definitely does not feel premium to use :(
I dont know how to check if the part they used is an aftermarket replacement.





The SA I had now known for 4 years was now acting very shifty when I would meet him.

When I got home and tried to fold the RHS mirror it got stuck and would not fold completely, I immediately passed on this message to service team. Said SA said they had tested it before giving it to me and could not understand, why this had happened.

I was pissed off - but again kicked myself for not checking the car even more thoroughly. Both mirrors were open, when I took delivery the car and I only checked them for tilt/sideways and not folding. Since I had not had an issue with mirror folding then. I only needed to fold the mirror, when I got home and parked.

Saving grace was excellent drive on new BLR-Mysore expressway - mileage returned was 24 kmpl at an avg speed hovering around 100 kmph. Car felt as good as new!



I was stupid enough to go back to them to get the roof liner sorted and they gave me a 5% discount. Yeah, I know am a sucker for punishment. My 23 years with Honda had made me realise the value of authorised spares and wanted my roofliner to be from VW and not a local one.

Regarding the mirror, VW Service now said the whole RHS mirror mechanism was damaged and would cost INR 10,000 to replace the entire mirror casing !
If this had been checked and done during the accident repair, then insurance would have taken care of some portion as it was a plastic part. Now it would be a separate claim and deductible.
Again they acknowledged their mistake and asked me to come back and they would fix it with some discount on the part.

The inside of rear RHS door was repainted FOC.

Regardless to say, I wont be going back to them again. I hope my roofliner lasts 5 years. though honestly I have no confidence in their work.

I have a strong suspicion that the RHS power mirror knob replaced was sourced locally and it feels really terrible to have a sub-par part in such a high quality cabin. The Service Manager said he would check on the matter and revert - which never happened.

This is the level of service for a 9.5 year old car that cost 25L new.

Having experienced both Honda and VW Service. Honda service is on another planet. Any customer complaint was treated very seriously. I never had an instance of my car being damaged at the showroom, when left for service or accident work.

I have deep respect now for VW Tiguan and Passat customers who plan to hold onto their cars for a long time.

In my last two services, I was constantly checking the car for new damage caused during the service, which was a very new experience for me.

Images of the car after her last service

[Chethan B G]

Very sorry to hear Atul. ��

Real test of service quality and commitment with be known during accidental repairs. Delay in availability of spare part is one thing, but lack of responsibility and poor work is another.

VW has really failed in this regard. What is the use of going so far, if this is the quality of service they offer?

Our attempt to support rural dealers in order to have a win-win experience has obviously not worked. ��