Is 130,000 alot of miles for a VW Golf MK4 GT Tdi 150?

[Llamapup]

Hello All

This is my first post.

I'm looking to buy a diesel Mk4 Golf and I only have £3000 to spend. 130BHP cars for that money seem to have about 110,000 miles. I've found a great 2 owner 150 BHP model with FSH for £3,000 but it has higher mileage. Its due for a service, cambelt and weter pump, which will probably see me get £300 off the asking price. I quite like the idea of 150 BHP and 55 MPG, but is 130,000 alot of miles for a VW Golf MK4 GT Tdi 150? This will be my first Diesel VW. Are these engiens known for reliability?

Many thanks

Llamapup

[POORCARDEALER]

We recently sold a 139K 02 Gt Tdi 150, only prep it needed was an alternator due to noisy bearing..felt very tight

[Motorrad]

The 130 is reputed to be more reliable and given a remap just as powerful. I had a 150 when it was new so there were no real problems then- all I can think of is the usual MKIV problems- dual mass flywheel, peeling door trim lacquer, leaks from the doors and in the case of the 150 some diodes on the cooling fan which seemed fail on almost all of them.

Good luck- I'd probably go for the 130 myself.

[fuchsiasteve]

My bro has a mint 52 reg 80K black 130 GT TDI for sale. 5 door, sport pack, factory fitted Montreal alloys (as per 150 bhp TDI), new discs and pads just fitted. Cam belt done in 2008. He's after £2950. Near Blackpool. 2 owner car from new (me his brother and him).

You will not find cleaner (he is air traffic and has OCD with car cleaning!)

Edited by fuchsiasteve on Sunday 12th February 14:19

[B'stard Child]

My neighbour has a MK4 GT TDI 150 - goes like a bloody rocket even with 230,000 miles - doesn't use a drop of oil between servicing and he won't change it cos it's worth pence rather than pounds asa a result of the mileage on it - he just going to run it till something major breaks.

The front looks like it's been shot blasted it's just a mass of chips and large rust spots

He is however ignoring all the minor electrical issues it has (central locking intermitant and rear wash wipe sometimes stays on at random)

[Matt UK]

I recently picked up a 2004 Passat 130 tdi with 135k on the clock.

Took it for a full service and cambelt / water pump. VW specialist reckoned that if you keep on top of oil changes the engine is not even half way in.

Reckons that most are written off by service bills for wear and tear items being more than the car than the engines letting go.

[Onz]

I have a MkIV TDi Anniversary, have had it for nearly 6 years - bought it with 45k on the clock and it is now sitting at 157k.

I average between 50-52 mpg mainly motorway driving. Comfortable and quick enough to nip past anything dawdling along NSL roads at 40mph.

I've had the following done over the 6 years I've had it:

Climate control fans changed (common fault, look this up on uk-mkivs.net)
Cams and followers etc. changed at ~130k (common fault on 150 PDi engines, again, look up 'chocolate cams' on uk-mkivs.net).
New alternator at ~75k and 150k
Air con compressor changed at ~140k
New wheel bearings
New section of the exhaust including Cat.
New bushes/CV boots
New loom in top right hand corner of boot (design fault that wears away the wire over the years and blows the fuse that does central locking/electric windows/interior light).
Tyres - Front's every ~10k, rears every ~20k
Discs & Pads changed all round at 50k & 150k
Cambelt, tensioners, water pump etc. changed as per recommended intervals.
Servicing every 10k.

All in all it is a cracking car and I've been hugely impressed with it. I'd like something else if only for a change but until I drop my mileage down from 20-25k per year I can't really justify a change.

If you go for the 150PD engine then make sure its had the cams done - its a ~£1k job to sort.

Onz

Edit: Realised I didn't actually answer the question!! In response I'd say 130k should be fine but make sure the jobs I've listed above have either been done or check if they need doing.

Edited by Onz on Sunday 12th February 21:05

[Steffan]

Interesting set of answers.

I am no expert on Golf engines.

But in principle 130,000 miles on a modern diesel engine ought not to be a problem.

From the answers on here I am not so sure.

I would certainly check the cam repair recommended.

A good modern diesel should cover a much greater mileage. Without major failure.

On a Golf?? Good luck with your decision.

[J4CKO]

Always amazes me the daft money people will pay for these, unless you are doing mega miles get a petrol for a third of the price and spend the rest on fuel.

[Maximum Bobs]

J4CKO said:

Always amazes me the daft money people will pay for these, unless you are doing mega miles get a petrol for a third of the price and spend the rest on fuel.

But he'll get the extra back when he sells it. The second hand price will still be two thirds more when he sells it.

[Llamapup]

Onz said:

If you go for the 150PD engine then make sure its had the cams done - its a ~£1k job to sort.

I've had a look at the service history and it doesn't mention having the cams done. I'm not at all keen on spending £1,000 on fixing a design fault though. I'm getting rid of my SAAB 93 partly because of that sort of thing. How common is this fault? Ie: what are the odds that the car I am considering is affected?

The guy selling the car has offered to drop it to my local garage to let them spend some time looking it over to find any faults. I suspect my garage will be aware of this Cam issue, but what should I draw to his attention? Are there any apparent symptoms of an affected car like loss off power or rattly tappets? Do you have to remove the cam cover to see if the fault is there?

This car looks to be in great condition with FSH and practically one lady owner from new. Should I really discount this car purely on the basis that it may be affected by the cam issue?

Thanks

Chris

[Hoygo]

No it isn't,mines at 222,500 miles Tdi 110 and still no problems.

[Ynox]

Got to second the chocolate cam issue. A mate of mine had one and had to get a top end rebuild due to that.

They're good cars, relatively quick (especially with a remap) but the engine is a little agricultural.

[NadiR]

I've been in a couple of GT TDI's and they all had 150k+ on them, and I can tell you that if its been serviced and looked after well, these cars will easily exceed the 200-250k mark.

I would buy the car that's in best condition if I were you, because its better to get a lower mileage 130 that's been cared for rather then a thrashed/tatty high miler 150.

[djglover]

You could get a much lower milage Seat Ibiza, its a bit smaller, but you should be able to get a 130bhp 1.9 with 2/3 that milage. The engine may be solid but at 130Kmiles some bits are bound to start falling off/failing....

[Llamapup]

Maximum Bobs said:

J4CKO said:

Always amazes me the daft money people will pay for these, unless you are doing mega miles get a petrol for a third of the price and spend the rest on fuel.

But he'll get the extra back when he sells it. The second hand price will still be two thirds more when he sells it.

I disagree that I can get a similar spec petrol car with simmilar miles for £1,000. I'm sure you could find some piece of crap Vauxhaul for not alot of money, but thats not really the sort of car I'm after.

The car is listed for £3,000. I'm guessing that he will take £2,600 for it if I make an offer. Somehow, the guy has agreed to give my £500 in trade for my SAAB 93 with a blown head gasket and cracked bulkhead. So I'm epecting to pay about 2,100 in cash for what looks to be a very clean and well serviced Mk4 GT Tdi 150 with 130,00. Frankly, I'm just pleased to get rid of the SAAB.

I'll wait to see what my local garage say when they have a look at it. But if it doesn't need much doing, that sounds like a pretty good deal.

Thanks

Lamapup

Edited by Llamapup on Sunday 12th February 22:56

Edited by Llamapup on Sunday 12th February 22:57

[Drive Blind]

the engine could well be bulletproof, but I'd be more closely looking at the turbo and the clutch/dmf. Either of those go and that's a bill for 500-600 quid.

[Onz]

Llamapup said:

I've had a look at the service history and it doesn't mention having the cams done. I'm not at all keen on spending £1,000 on fixing a design fault though. I'm getting rid of my SAAB 93 partly because of that sort of thing. How common is this fault? Ie: what are the odds that the car I am considering is affected?

The guy selling the car has offered to drop it to my local garage to let them spend some time looking it over to find any faults. I suspect my garage will be aware of this Cam issue, but what should I draw to his attention? Are there any apparent symptoms of an affected car like loss off power or rattly tappets? Do you have to remove the cam cover to see if the fault is there?

This car looks to be in great condition with FSH and practically one lady owner from new. Should I really discount this car purely on the basis that it may be affected by the cam issue?

Thanks

Chris

From what I remember at the time the fault seemed almost exclusive to the 150 PD engines, not the 105 and 130 engines. To check you just need to remove the rocker cover and you can see if there is wear - its fairly obvious. The followers that were affected were silver in colour whereas the replacement items are black.

Symptoms were tappety sound and poor fuel consumption (struggling to make 40mpg when I had the issue).

My car was/is in great condition - full VWSH to 80k and FSH to present 157k and never wanted for anything.

It's a great car but if I was spending £3k on one with 130k on the clock I'd be getting my garage to take the rocker cover off and check for this - like you say, you don't want to spend £1,300 repairing it when it cost £3k.

[Mikeyplum]

Buy a Bora. You get more car for your money and its the same car, albeit with a boot and different headlights and you get get one with the same engine (PD150).

You could probably get a Bora PD150 Highline, which has all the toys, heated leather seats, climate control, in-dash cd changer, cruise control etc for £3000 with less mileage that 130k.

FWIW I bought a PD130 Bora with 122k miles and its about to tick over to 150k. I had the cambelt done and it needed a new alternator but apart from that, its been good as gold.

RE the cams, IIRC it's the cam followers that go on the PD150, I know as my FIL Gold GTI (PD150) suffered this fate and it cost him near as makes no difference £1500 to repair!

If it's just the engine you like, I would tend to agree with others though and opt for something like a Seat Toledo, Skoda Octavia Etc.

[stackmonkey]

Mikeyplum said:

Buy a Bora. You get more car for your money and its the same car, albeit with a boot and different headlights and you get get one with the same engine (PD150).

If it's just the engine you like, I would tend to agree with others though and opt for something like a Seat Toledo, Skoda Octavia Etc.

I have a Seat Toledo with the PD150 engine and it's running fine with 88k on it, averaging 47.5 mpg over the 37k miles I've had it. It's cheaper to buy than the other cars with the same engine, and said to be a better handler than the Golf due to a stiffer bodyshell. Rare as hen's teeth, though.