New 'USED' Car ideas....

[barnabaas]

Soooo, our TDI jetta's transmission won't engage into reverse after 5-10 min. of driving. When it's cold it engages right away, after it warms up it won't engage - makes me think maybe it's the tranny fluid but our shop says it's just a bad transmission and is on it's way out. They suggest a new Tranny or a rebuild. A new transmission or a rebuild doesn't seem worth it at this point. Car has 120k on it, engine is good IMO, but another transmission or rebuild may only get us another 60k maaaaybe, not to mention other things breaking down in the meantime due to the high mileage. SO, wife wants to just get another car.

Not sure what to get so looking for suggestions.

AWD is a plus but not THAT necessary
Roomy is a plus - we'll be starting a family fairly soon I hope...
Gas efficiency is a plus but not a deal breaker unless it's a complete gas guzzler

Figured I might try and find something 1-2 years old, CPO even. Would like to keep it under 30k for sure. The car's mainly for commuting but with that said it should be a 'family' oriented car...could still have pep like a 3 series BMW....but that's about as far as i think i could get with the MRS's. Also can't do a manual transmission due to the wife not being able to drive stick and her not wanting to learn on a 'new' car. So yea, I feel very overwhelmed with all the options out there so just curious what you guys think and or suggest?

[Disrupt]

is the jetta manual or automatic? When was the last time you changed the fluid or checked it?

Check out the subaru forester, awd+roomy+4 cylinder-pep=almost everything you want. If you could get the manual the 4 cylinder turbo would have added some pep, but from what I have read they are very reliable.

[markwest]

Just my opinion here but I think you are nuts for replacing this car.... Get a transmission from the wreckers and change it yourself.

TDI vws are good for way more than 120k.....Its not uncommon here in canada to see them with well over 400k and still original engine. Even if you pay someone you will still be way further ahead than spending 30k on a steel box that won't last half as long as a diesel vw.


And just think of all the money you will have in pocket to spend on your Triumph.

[barnabaas]

It's an automatic transmission. Which i heard is the weakest link for this car. If it was manual it'd be pretty solid and an easier replacement IMO. They checked the fluid last time i was in for an oil change, which was maybe 2-3k miles ago. I might take it back in for another oil change and insist they change the fluid just to see if it helps any.

I agree, i don't think we should just sell the car! It's just making the wife very uneasy at the moment. I feel like it may only be fluid as the other gears engage fairly well for 120k miles on the tranny, it's only when it heats up that the problem occurs, i could be wrong of course but i'm going to insist they change the fluid and see if it helps. I've had to get out and push the car a few times so it's not be all that fun and like i said, freaks the MRS's out. If it's not then I'll have to consider other options.

Thanks for the Forrester rec. i'll look into them regardless.

Thanks guys

[nthngwthout]

Get a WRX hatchback and never look back.

[Noodles]

Change the tranny fluid, sounds like it's losing viscosity as it warms up. Cheaper to try that first.

Nuno!

[stickem189]

nissan altima or maxima. great cars that are kind of sporty but still are practical. They are not the cheapest but if you are buying something a year or two old staying under 30k would be easy. They have good mpgs and are safe.

Honda accord is another good option for the same reasons above.

Im not a ford guy but the new fusion looks pretty cool. You can do brand new and stay under 30k for that.

your possibilities are really endless when it comes to mid size sedans.

[barnabaas]

Originally Posted by Noodles

Change the tranny fluid, sounds like it's losing viscosity as it warms up. Cheaper to try that first.

Nuno!

Have an appointment to have them do that this monday! Fingers crossed.

Originally Posted by stickem189

nissan altima or maxima. great cars that are kind of sporty but still are practical. They are not the cheapest but if you are buying something a year or two old staying under 30k would be easy. They have good mpgs and are safe.

Honda accord is another good option for the same reasons above.

Im not a ford guy but the new fusion looks pretty cool. You can do brand new and stay under 30k for that.

your possibilities are really endless when it comes to mid size sedans.

Awesome, thanks for the suggestions, i'll look into those for sure. Had a Nissan as my first car and it was solid.

Originally Posted by nthngwthout

Get a WRX hatchback and never look back.

I do love those, however they're all manual aren't they? Good for me, bad for the Wife. =\

[Graham M.]

Yeah, I laughed when I saw your VW shit the bed. A buddy has a Golf GTI, and that thing was more costly to maintain then my M5. My dad bought a (new at the time) '03 Jetta TDI, and it was a hopeless shit heap.... just brutal.
VW is a brand I'll never touch ever again... hopefully you learned from your mistakes after this ordeal. I dont know why people buy VW's, honestly I dont.

Originally Posted by markwest

Just my opinion here but I think you are nuts for replacing this car.... Get a transmission from the wreckers and change it yourself.

TDI vws are good for way more than 120k.....Its not uncommon here in canada to see them with well over 400k and still original engine. Even if you pay someone you will still be way further ahead than spending 30k on a steel box that won't last half as long as a diesel vw.

really? I've never seen a single VW past 200k myself. Our '03 was developing serious issues at a whopping 100k. yeah, great cars aren't they? Incessant Failing electrical issues, just.... fuck, it was endless with that car, about the only thing good about it when we sold it was the engine still ran like a top, although it should since it had 110k km's on it when we sold it.


For car suggestions: You may want to take a look at a Pontiac G8 GT. 400hp LS2 powered, yet still a family sedan. Yes they come in auto's as well. With the 6 speed tranny, their surprisingly good on gas, as the RPM's are at 1500 in 6th on the highway.
Basically its just a re-badged Holden Commodore as sold in Australia and other parts of the world.

You may want to look at a newer Cadillac CTS. My uncle just bought one and its seriously bad ass, mind you he got the CTS-V, but even just the regular CTS is a damn good car.

Those Ford Fusions are great cars as well.

[nthngwthout]

Originally Posted by barnabaas

I do love those, however they're all manual aren't they? Good for me, bad for the Wife. =\

Well, hopefully the fluid change fixes the tranny. But up until very recently (I don't know the exact year, 2011 maybe) the WRX did have an automatic option. It was only the full blown STI that was solely a manual. The autos might be rare though, I've only owned two in manual. Good luck, either way.