B3 Passats,...clarification.

[monkeytennis]

Well I'm slowly beginning to really REALLY want a B3 passat, and am pretty taken with the B3 1.6td variant,... so far it ticks all the boxes for what i'm after, spacious (the boot area on these is humongous!) cheap insurance, indestructible vw diesel engine (if well maintained) and of course,.. just about fitting into the retro scene.

but the one sticking point so far for me is finding reliable evidence of the rumoured 'close to' 60mpg... I have heard it banded about on here a fair bit, but on other forums there is more of a consensus of doubt about this?

so i ask you RR elves,... What' the deal? First hand experience please! If these big old tug boats can do 50+ mpg then I'm committed, hook line and sinker!

Also, feel free to post up pics of your B3 passats!

[trevorbrady]

I averaged 45mpg in my 1.6TD passat. Since the engine curse word itself and I replaced it with a 1.9D it's still been averaging 45MPG. The best I've seen has been 49MPG over long distances and the worst has been down on 37MPG, pulling a trailer. I've lived with one daily for 4 years now and there's buckets of room inside. With the back seat folded down it's like having a van. With a set of roof bars you can carry all sorts of stuff up top too. Having a tow-bar increases your capabilities too.

They're a cheap to buy, cheap to run eminently practical semi-retro daily smoker. I do all my maintenance myself, no need for computer diagnostics. Plenty of spare parts in the aftermarket, there have been very few parts I've had to go to the main dealer for. I can't see anyone getting 60MPG out of one though, they're just too heavy

[monkeytennis]

45mpg isn't too shabby i suppose, though i was hoping for something closer to 50mpg, Obviously driving style and condition of the engine are both factors that come into this also...

anyone else have experience?

[ben711200]

I had a 1.9 AAZ B4 Passat that was doing between 45 and 50 depending on driving style. I'm sure RobinJI has reported 50mpg+ figures from his B3 1.6 td when he had it. 60 is ambitious though..

[monkeytennis]

Thanks for chiming in on this Ben, I appreciate your experiences.

I am upgrading from 1043cc Polo <the passat is cheaper to insure LOL> and have my heart set on a VW estate of some sort,... these passats just seem too practical and different to turn down if you ask me!

The wheels on this one aren't to my taste,... but the ride height is all sorts of lovely!

though i imagine it makes a practical car slightly less practical hehe. I think with some very carefully chosen wheels, they can look superb.. for instance:

[mdw]

I consistanatly early 40's out of my 1.6td b3 but it got driven hard everywhere!!!
Brillant car and look brillant once they've been hit with the stick!!!

[craig1010cc]

If you can live with the later b4 shape, the 1.9tdi will easily do 55mpg and 60+ isn't unusual either

[monkeytennis]

couldn't possibly live the B4 shape! just not the same lol. sorry! great cars an' all, but the B3 has a nicer front imo

[gary1998]

here be mine i love it bit rough but always ready to rock
45mpg be about right have seen close to 50mpg

[monkeytennis]

Nice to see the B3 lovers crawling out from under the floorboards of RR! they're great great cars by the looks of things. Practical, hard working, different, and look fantastic with a slight hit from the stick! (

[craig1010cc]

Mar 27, 2013 20:53:12 GMT monkeytennis said:

couldn't possibly live the B4 shape! just not the same lol. sorry! great cars an' all, but the B3 has a nicer front imo

I know what you mean, the B3 does look a lot nicer.
You can always put the B3 front onto a B4 You'd need to take the swage line out the wings, but other that that its a bolt on swap