2008 Volkswagen Passat
Avg. Price Paid:$10,832 - $17,344
Original MSRP: $23,990 - $38,000
MPG: 21 City / 29 Hwy
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Volkswagen Passat Recalls & Reliability

These scores and this review are from when the car was new.

Scorecard

Overall: 2008 Volkswagen Passat U.S. News Best Cars 8.5
Critics' Rating: 8.5
Performance: 7.7
Interior: 7.9
Safety: 8.6
Reliability:
How we calculate scores
Research analyzed for this review

Pros & Cons

  • A fun sedan to drive within its class
  • Comfortable, user-friendly interior
  • Excellent safety features paired with stellar scores in crash tests
  • A high price among competitors
  • Disruptive noise levels from suspension system

Research Other Years

Review Last Updated: 3/10/09

Recalls

There has been 1 safety recall issued from NHTSA.

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLINGRecall Date: 05/22/2008
  • Consequence: AN ENGINE SURGE CAUSED BY AN UNEXPECTED INCREASE IN ENGINE RPM MAY SURPRISE THE VEHICLE OPERATOR AND CAN RESULT IN A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
  • NHTSA Campaign ID: 08V235000
  • Potential Number of Units Affected: 4000
  • Summary: VOLKSWAGEN IS RECALLING 4,000 MY 2008 PASSAT AND MY 2009 TIGUAN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 2.0T FSI ULEV II ENGINES. THESE VEHICLES HAVE AN ENGINE CONTROL MODULE (ECM) CONTAINING SOFTWARE THAT MAY NOT PROPERLY CONTROL ENGINE IDLE WITH THE AIR CONDITIONING TURNED ON. IN RARE CASES, THE ECM MAY UNEXPECTEDLY INCREASE ENGINE RPM.
  • Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND UPDATE THE ECM SOFTWARE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ON OR ABOUT MAY 30, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT VOLKSWAGEN AT 1-800-893-5298.
  • Notes: VOLKSWAGEN RECALL NO. 24M9/R7. CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

Reliability

Our reliability score is based on the J.D. Power and Associates Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) rating or, if unavailable, the J.D. Power Predicted Reliability rating.

Dependability Ratings1 2008
Overall Dependability
Powertrain Dependability
Feature & Accessory Dependability
Body & Interior Dependability

1These scores come from consumer ratings of their vehicles after three years of ownership.

  • Key:
  • Among The Best
  • Better Than Most
  • About Average
  • The Rest

J.D. Power and Associates Power Circle Ratings do not include all information used to determine J.D. Power and Associates awards. See JDPower.com for more information on Power Circle Ratings. Your experience may vary.

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Warranty

The Passat comes equipped with a basic warranty covering four years or 50,000 miles, and there is a five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty as well.

Several reviewers raised questions concerning the reliability of the 2006 and 2007 Passat. "There's the troubling issue of reliability in some recent VW products," says MSN. "Reliability's the question mark," adds USA Today. "The previously Passat shows up as the very worse among family cars in Consumer Reports magazine's predicted reliability chart. The '06 is a new design. That can be good, or it can be otherwise."

 

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