My gf just got a 2002 Jetta 1.8t. whats the opinion on them?

My gf just got a 2002 Jetta 1.8t. whats the opinion on them?

Never had either of those

1.8t a shit

She paid 3000 for it. It looks to be in amazing condition. Only issue that I'm trying to figure out is that somethings draining the battery while the car sits. So if it isn't driven in 3 days or so then it won't start. It has basically a new battery and alternator though

A tad boring but generally good. The engines are happy for a few hundred thousand miles if not abused or 320+hp with a turbo swap on stock internals but not normally both.

remove fuses until this no longer happens

Has it got an aftermarket alarm? They are the most common cause of battery drain. Followed by aftermarket radios. If not check the boot light, it may be staying on.

They're pretty mediocre. The engines are a pain in the ass to work on since almost any job above replacing spark plugs requires you to disconnect at least one of the 7,000 coolant lines.

Run a DMM in series with the positive terminal and start pulling fuses until the draw goes away.

It's got an aftermarket radio so that may be it.

Don't these have a tiny little turbo in them?

Saw a diesel that I was thinking now of getting for a day to day fun car

Yeah.
It's smaller than a small thing.

Small is an understatement. I have the bitch jacked up now and didn't know where the turbo was until my buddy pointed it out.

That's a great deal, you could have been stuck in a Shitrolla tin can for over double that, you should feel lucky your GF isn't a stupid vapid cunt and has taste in cars!

check for oil leaks.

The 1.8T has a lot of aftermarket and info available, so that's a plus I guess.

My wife used to have one.
Turbo will use oil. Check religiously.
Radio is most likely the drain. Wife's stock radio had a battery draw. Jumped the fuse to ignition power instead of constant power and never had another problem.
If you live in a part of the country with wide tempwrature swings the aluminum wheels will crack.
If you have bizarre noise on start up that goes away quickly check the secondary air inection pump. Rivets wear into plastic housing and then leak. Drill out rivets and replace with machine screws. Easy cheap fix.
Valve cover leak is most likely vvt selanoid. Mark the chain and sprockets when replacing because there are no timing marks.
Windows fall of track. Glue them into the sadles with silicone, another easy fix.
Battery fuse box will heat and melt. There is a company that makes a heavy guage wire kit to solve repeated failures.
Can't think anything else off the top of my head.

Had a vr6 having the same issue. Seems the tensioner and belt were bad. Quick replace and it was good as new

Her grandad picked it out for her. He's always had a great eye for vehicles and could smell a steal a mile away. He has a 2003 Malibu that was basically brand new that he got for only 700 fucking bucks. Got it from some older lady

Undersized oil pan is a problem with the 1.8t. Unless you are good on the oil changes with synthetic it'll shit itself.

they're nice. I had a 2001 5 speed 1.8t as my first car and I loved it but like some previous anons mentioned, you're constantly gonna have to check for oil leaks. mine had leaked a few times before I let go of it

As with any post-2000 VW (and most German cars in general, really): DO NOT NEGLECT.

That's about it.

so there seemed to be an issue with a fuse that was causing the power drain that should be resolved now. I'll let the car sit and see if it dies again.

I'm doing my best to resist the urge of dumping money into this thing. One vehicle is enough of a cash grab as is. I think I have a problem.

I have a 2001 with the 2.8 vr6 12v
I like it as an A to B cruiser. I have fixed a few things on this car and know a decent amount about them so ask me whatever I guess. I bought it for 3500 bucks in 2012