I am going to look at a 2002 Superb tomorrow, the 2.8 V6 with factory fitted LPG, apart from the blocked plenum causing water ingress, is there anything else I should be looking at please?

 

It is the Elegance model, with a manual box and 123,000 miles on the clock, full service history, 2 owners from new, the first for 4 years and the second owner had it from May 2006 to September 2013.

 

I have done a history check and it has come up as clear.

 

Many thanks in advance

 

Aveton Gifford

Hrm. Are you sure it is factory fit? Do you have any proof? I didn't think this was ever an option on Superbs.

Hrm. Are you sure it is factory fit? Do you have any proof? I didn't think this was ever an option on Superbs.

My thoughts too.

Thought so, it's on the V5 as being a Bi-fuel, although I am probably wrong!

It will be bi fuel on the v5 if it was aftermarket converted and DVLA informed with proof of conversion for a whopping £5 off annual road tax.

I had the same on a previous car.

Make sure it is a reputable brand LPG system and in particular the injectors. Do your research.

Also make sure it is all working correctly and was serviced within the last year.

Be careful with this engine.

 

I had a 2.8V6 4Motion Passat. 

 

Old school power delivery (i.e.  none unless you screw it).  Problems with coilpacks and lambda sensors.  Was old technology in 2002 let alone today.  The 2.5TDI or even a 1.9 TDI 130 is a much better engine.

 

You need to run it on super unleaded.

It will be bi fuel on the v5 if it was aftermarket converted and DVLA informed with proof of conversion for a whopping £5 off annual road tax.

I had the same on a previous car.

Make sure it is a reputable brand LPG system and in particular the injectors. Do your research.

Also make sure it is all working correctly and was serviced within the last year.

 

OK then, I have never had a car with LPG before, is it a problem? and what is a reputable LPG brand? the garage selling it has already told me it needs a new LPG filter and that it will be fitted bfore I buy it, apparently it's a £30 fix.

 

I have to say, if it causes problems I will just run it on Petrol and not use the LPG at all, can the system be removed again?

Edited 31 January, 201511 yr by avetongifford

Sounds like a lot of hassle, when these cars are still available in pretty good numbers - with the sensible engine for which you can find a wealth of info on how to keep on the road for peanuts. Or you could buy a grenade with wheels...

Edited 1 February, 201511 yr by jimbof

They probably already had the MIL light on or something which made them think it needs a new filter.

But could be a bigger problem.  Evaporator not holding pressure, injectors worn, float in tank faulty, temperature sensor, etc etc.

I had a brand new LPG system installed on a previous car and I made sure I understood how the whole system worked and when it did go wrong I knew what to do with it.

There are many brands of ECU, injectors etc.  But unless you have it installed yourself and customise the installation it will either be an overkill and too expensive or not up to the job.  I went for a cheap polish brand ECU but good brand (Keihin) injectors and Prins evaporator because they are the best.  No point in spending a lot of cash on the ECU.

But anyway, if you check and see it is a BRC system or Prins system then chances are it will be OK, but even the best systems go wrong.  I don't want to put you off, just take it for a decent test drive and make sure it all works.  Drive it very slowly / gently for a good few miles, and also drive it hard for a good few miles.  When injectors get worn, they cannot control very small injection quantities, so it will be rich/lean and trigger MIL.

Coil packs/ spark plug related issues will be more apparent on Gas because running on gas you must have a very good spark.

I hope this helps a bit.

Buy a 1.9 diesel 5 speed manual. The AWX is the best engine. Absolute no-brainer.

 

rotodiesel.

Thanks for the replies everyone, I walked away from it, too many faults, no self levelling on the xenon headlights, rear parking sensors were faulty, it needed 2 front tyres, an advisory on the M.O.T. for the top arm and balljoint, it was due a cambelt, service history wasn't full, it only went up to 90,000 (the car was on 123,589) no headlight washers, the headlights had become cloudy and it hadn't had a clutch, so that would be due soon, and then there was the problem with the rough running on the L.P.G.

 

I know my way around cars, and most of these would be an easy fix, but he just wouldn't budge from £1695

 

I would still like one, this was my first time in one, and I was very impressed, it was a lovely place to be and drove well. Sadly there just isn't any for sale near me.

 

Maybe one day

Good 1.9 PD manuals are hard to find now unless they've been to the moon and back. I'm keeping mine for as long as it will run with sensible economics. Avoiding the VAG design blunders is a key to this. For example, rain water ingress will make a B5.5 not worth owning long term.

 

Avoid the 2.0 PDs at all costs and I don't recommend the V6 (Google VP44 problems). If you don't need an auto, don't buy one. The engine torque wrecks them well before the rest of the car is worn out. Petrol engines don't make sense at all now the car has banger status - especially as the 1.9 PD is such a good unit.

 

The rest of it is just VAG standard - flaky locks and windows, peeling trim cover etc. All fixable - but a major engine or transmission problem now makes these cars scrap, so it's essential to get the right one.

 

rotodiesel.

Edited 1 February, 201511 yr by rotodiesel

@Rotodiesel I dont know why you hate soo much v6?!

I have one and I would never buy 1.9.

As these cars get older, any expensive repair job will finish them off. I have tested enough faulty VP44 pumps (fitted to the V6) never to want to own one. The rotary pump is old technology and gives low fuel pressures at the nozzle compared with PD or CR equipment. The engine SFC suffers as a result.

 

Routine maintenance on the V6 takes twice as long. The cambelt(s) are a pain, the water pump and thermostat are expensive and time consuming to replace.

 

The V6 has the same gearing as the 4 cyl diesels - so the extra torque is largely pointless. The horrible nose-heavy handling of the B5.5 is even worse with a heavier engine overhanging the front axle.

 

In the UK, the V6 is more heavily taxed for vehicle excise duty - especially with an auto transmission. An auto V6 has about the same performance as a manual PD. There is a huge difference in the fuel consumption.

 

Very few V6 engines make it to 200k miles because they need an expensive repair which writes them off. If you look at the thread on this Forum detailing high mileage cars, nearly all are 1.9 PDs. There's hardly a V6 amongst them.

 

The older these cars get, the more these problems matter - the scrapyard beckons with a major engine or transmission problem.

 

You're right - I don't like the V6.

 

rotodiesel.

Edited 2 February, 201511 yr by rotodiesel

One misfuelling with water containing diesel in heavy winter is enough to finish off a PD engine, requiring multiple PD injector unit replacement... happened thousands of times before. Much harder to end the life of an injection pump, especially on later (BDG) V6 TDI engines. It seems also that the number of rattles in the car might depend on the engine, apparently V6 engine owners suffer e.g. from dashboard rattle far less than the PD owners. Just teasing you roto 

 

Anyway, while 1.9PD is the sensible option road tax and fuel cost wise, 2.5V6 is the comfortable and powerful one, and given current range of VAG engines I am not swapping my manual 2.5TDI V6 for anything else for as long as possible, currently at 130k+ miles and aside from consumables and rust proofing, no extra work required. Fuel got cheaper for the near future, one more reason to keep the V6. Handling is excellent with Bilstein B6 monotube shock absorbers, and anyone who has not replaced factory shocks at current age/mileage of their Mk1 Superb frankly has neglected it. Service wise, once you get the car front out to service position, both engines' belts are easy to replace, other than there are more locking tools and an extra belt on the V6 it really is not rocket science (makes you wonder how dealership workshops still manage to mess it up). In fact, on a V6 any turbocharger related work is much easier, as the turbo sits on top of the "V". 

 

Also, both engines suffer when bought used at high age/mileage, as there is nearly always a reason to sell a used car other than the owner being bored with it. In case of 1.9PD these are usually head gasket replacement or a very costly PD injector unit replacement. Put simply, PD engine was indeed very good when new, so anyone selling it now must have a good reason to dispose of it.

 

Water ingress affects all engines in Passat chassis.

Edited 2 February, 201511 yr by dieselV6

I dont look that way.

My country is very poor, but if I dont have money to maintance v6 I woudnt have money also to maintain 1.9. Simple as that.

For now(and tnx God for that) I didnt have any problem with my V6. And they are my favorites. I just like big lazy motors

I respect your opinion tough.

Hey Diesel could you explain what mean:"...neglected it"? I didnt hear that word before, and Im learning english

Just swap the shocks Milan   :p  , you'll like the handling with new ones.

I read you loud and clear B-)

Off topic from the original post; but are all the factory shocks really that bad - or is it particularly noticeable on the heavier v6?

I've never thought of my car as being particularly bouncy or wallowy - and it has 137K now on the factory units.  But then again, I'm not really a driver's driver, if you know what I mean.

I thought my rear shocks were ok until my tyres started turning octagonal... And very noisy at that. Then an independent specialist recommended new shocks. Put a set of B6 on the rear (fronts were already on B6) and the tyres have been good since. I think ageing shocks will allow a bit of high frequency bounce on the tyre which will wear it.

Off topic from the original post; but are all the factory shocks really that bad - or is it particularly noticeable on the heavier v6?

I've never thought of my car as being particularly bouncy or wallowy - and it has 137K now on the factory units.  But then again, I'm not really a driver's driver, if you know what I mean.

 

I had 3 Skodas from new, Mk1 Octy, Mk1 Superb, and the Roomster. All 3 started rolling in roundabouts after around 15k - 20k miles, nothing scary just very noticeable. My view is that factory shocks are just about adequate but not durable enough. So if they need changing that early, I might as well change them for better ones.  

 

In case of the Superb, yes, it is a barge and as such requires premium shocks for good handling, especially the V6.  B6s fit the bill, my unscientific measure of driving A507 Buntingford-Baldock (hills, turns, lots of motorbikes on weekends) shows a definite 10mph+ improvement, and as a bonus they seem to last forever (~120k miles on mine, lots of B roads, as well as motorway). This year I'm fitting B6s also to the Roomster, so long as it shows no more fuel in oil (2nd engine block under warranty, still under observation over winter).

Edited 3 February, 201511 yr by dieselV6