VW Phaeton 2004 reg

Robisere

The advice given by GolfBravo is spot on.

Yes, as all VW cars they have tremendous build strength and quality. However, this was an experimental model, a one-off vehicle, whilst all other VW's you can think of, are high-volume cars, They sell in huge numbers, which is why the VAG group is the world's biggest-selling car and commercial manufacturer.

It will lose at least another £500 the moment you drive it away. It may suffer wear to any parts within the period you own it, which means it will cost you. It will cost even more to run.
Why not buy a Jag or Merceds? Better still, a good big Audi?
If you buy the Phaeton, you might have a good year with it, except for your frequent visits to the pumps. And the hefty Insurance costs. And the tyre fitters, if that is you can find tyres for it.

andygb

Well here we go, a list of what I believe to be relevant points.

An eight year old luxury car for £5K

Luxury cars have big maintenance bills attached to them.

You want to get 100K miles out of it, in addition to its existing mileage, then prepare yourself for some very big bills - SOON!

There are lots of electrics on that car, and they will go wrong at some time (if they haven't already started to go wrong).

As others have pointed out, even the basic servicing costs/parts are megabucks compared to ordinary cars.

oldtoolie

Unflashy luxo-barge? It would have to be a Lexus for me.

worried_jim

I would go for it!

Here is an example of a review I found-

Buying a Phaeton is a bit of a step in the dark; it is a lot of money for a mainstream manufactured car, and it doesn't always get very good reviews these days (although it did when it first came out - remember Jeremy Clarkson's comments?).

I can only say it is well worth while taking that step. The car is every bit as good as you would expect and is a pleasure to own. It is good to drive and be driven in. The engine is superb, the chassis excellent, the brakes faultless, the interior a pleasure, and it looks, well, rather nice too. It has a big boot, loads of legroom front and rear (literally loads), and the seats are excellent in the front and good in the rear.

Downsides? No rear heated seats, the doors don't sound quite perfect enough when they shut, and the SatNav could be better. Oh, and it is still only a car so you will still get stuck in traffic...

I won't talk about running costs as you really should buy a Passat if that is your concern, although the A8 is in fact cheaper to run, which seems odd.

It is a big vehicle, so you drive differently to the young blood in his Astra GTE; but this is what motoring is all about - there is a car to suit everyone, and this one suits me.

If you need a decent car without wanting to be ostentatious, buy one. Happy motoring!

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-reviews/volkswagen/phaeton/25315

gilbert_and_sullivan

oldtoolie wrote: »

Unflashy luxo-barge? It would have to be a Lexus for me.

Agreed, in this class of car you need durable and reliable to make up for them liking a drink unless you're made of money and like throwing it away, Lexus brought this to the table from day one.

fivetide

worried_jim wrote: »

Downsides? No rear heated seats, the doors don't sound quite perfect enough when they shut, and the SatNav could be better.

Can't believe they sold any hah hah. Presumably this reviewer is comparing to something like an S-Type Merc or something else to get driven round in. Personally, I tend not to sit in the rear of my car. Makes the steering tricky!

Sat Nav is a good point though. If it is CD based it could be well out of date now.

Anyway, I think Jim's post makes a good point. It is a gamble. If you get a good one and you don't mind it having the running costs of a £50,000 car then it is likely to be a nice place to be.

If you want luxury on a budget then it probably isn't the car to go for.

sunshinetours

Most older luxury models will have severely depreciated after 8 years. Personally I would look at 7 series BMW's as they were massively underrated and more options for independent servicing.

As others have said though you may get some seriously wallet damaging bills

GolfBravo

Just had a look at the latest German TÜV 2012 quality report for VW Phaeton:
- generally very well build, no major disasters, they recommend buying a 4 to 5 year old car, however running and servicing costs significantly higher than equivalent BMW or Merc. They praise VW after sales support (in Germany) "provided you can afford it".
- common problems after 3 years with the following: electrics (including auto transmission electronics), fuel injection, electric handbrake
- common faults in cars over 5 years old: exhaust failures, front suspension problems (especially stabiliser), electrics

Tables below summarise Phaeton's reliability. For a 8-9 year old car 47.9% had minor faults, 29.8% average faults, 22.2% significant failures, and only 0.1% experienced mechanical disasters. That is for German market where there are significantly more Phaetons on the roads than in the UK.

markelock

should it have had it's cambelt/chain changed by now? if not, it's due. I have no idea how much it will cost, but I suspect quite a bit!

skivenov

fivetide wrote: »

Can't believe they sold any hah hah. Presumably this reviewer is comparing to something like an S-Type Merc or something else to get driven round in. Personally, I tend not to sit in the rear of my car. Makes the steering tricky!

Sat Nav is a good point though. If it is CD based it could be well out of date now.

Good point. it's got to be said though, anyone who's ever used Mercedes satnav will love the VW one, even if it is 8 years out of date

They've fared well in customer satisfaction surveys (where Merc generally get slated).

I'd probably have a Pheaton to be fair. To me, the understated thing is cooler than a "look at my badge" car. There's nothing else in it's class really manages it.