Got a 2009 GTI for 4k.

[Harrod]

So my sister who has had a VW GTI six speed for a couple of years has gotten sick of some of the problems that she has had with the car, replaced the intake manifold, water pump and some other minor crap.
Currently it needs another intake manifold replaced 150 for the part and I would be doing the labor, its my understanding from forum posts on VW sites that this is normal due to the thing being made out of plastic.

I was wondering if you all think this is a decent deal for a car with 120k miles on it? Thoughts are welcome, is there any huge issues that I should be aware of if I end up getting this?

 

[pauldun170]

So my sister who has had a VW GTI six speed for a couple of years has gotten sick of some of the problems that she has had with the car, replaced the intake manifold, water pump and some other minor crap.
Currently it needs another intake manifold replaced 150 for the part and I would be doing the labor, its my understanding from forum posts on VW sites that this is normal due to the thing being made out of plastic.

I was wondering if you all think this is a decent deal for a car with 120k miles on it? Thoughts are welcome, is there any huge issues that I should be aware of if I end up getting this?

Wow,
Sounds like GTI ownership mandates buying intake manifolds in bulk
http://www.golfmk6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26092

 

[Harrod]

Ya, I know, fortunately you have to take that part off of the car before doing the water pump on it, so I am familiar with the procedure. The funny thing is, when I helped my sister out 2 years ago changing the water pump, I told her I would never own a GTI unless I got it cheap enough, looks like that day has come.

 

[Triumph]

I think you should not buy it. Because a 2010 GTI should not be that cheap. It hurts my resale value.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Buying a vehicle with a known history from a family member is awesome IMHO. That's cheap for only really needing minor routine maintenance work.

 

[Ns1]

browsing CL for 5 seconds, 4k is less than half what that car's worth.

 

[Harrod]

Thats the problem, if you aren't willing to do the repairs yourself 800 dollars every 20 to 30k miles gets expensive.

 

[amdhunter]

Damn! That's a steal. I'd deal with the issues at that price.

 

[Triumph]

Thats the problem, if you aren't willing to do the repairs yourself 800 dollars every 20 to 30k miles gets expensive.

What is your basis for these numbers?

 

[Harrod]

150 for the part and labor if taken to the dealership. This will be the 3rd time the car has needed this repair in the past 4 years.

 

[Triumph]

i didn't even realize that you were the OP that i was replying to.

i had one intake flapper thingy go out at about 40,000 miles. haven't had a problem in the 90,000 miles since then.

 

[BurnItDwn]

Every car is going to need some maintenance, even a Camry.

The TCO of a GTI may not be the least expensive out there vs other cars, but its far from the most expensive.

4K for a 210 GTI with 120K miles on it is a fantastic deal.
If you want a GTI, then get it.
If you do not want a GTI because of the maintenance costs, then dont get it.

 

[Triumph]

And if you don't want it, for $4k I'll fly to you and buy it.

 

[HitAnyKey]

4k is very cheap. Your Sister is being very generous. I will echo similar comments that every car needs maintenance and while this may seem annoying there is much worse out there. Take the car and expect further repairs so put some money aside for it.

Or you could drive it for 6 months and then sell it for 8k.

 

[Meghan54]

Currently it needs another intake manifold replaced 150 for the part and I would be doing the labor, its my understanding from forum posts on VW sites that this is normal due to the thing being made out of plastic.

I don't think it's simply because the intake is plastic, it's more likely that VW used crappy plastic in their intake.

I've owned a few vehicles with plastic intakes and none have ever needed replacement. This includes a 2002 Chevy Blazer that we put 248K miles on in 9.5 years and it never needed its plastic intake replaced. Now, what killed it was the rear main seal giving out while towing near its max load capacity from GA to MA...it blew out just after crossing into RI from CT, 150 miles from our destination.

But the intake....still intact. My Silverado has a plastic intake, no problems so far nor anticipated.

So, it's not just because the intake's plastic, it's VW's fault for using crappy suppliers and materials.

 

[Harrod]

I'm going to look at the car tomorrow, supposedly there is a butterfly type valve in the runners, and the arm that controls it is also made of plastic, I'm hoping it's just the arm thats messed up, since there is a metal part made by a company to fix that issue.

 

[XavierMace]

The intake on my 135i is also plastic. No issues with it at 80k and I haven't seen any complaints of that being an issue. If it's failing that often, I'd be looking for an aftermarket one that doesn't suck.

 

[NutBucket]

There's plenty of issues with metal manifolds too. No qualms here about buying cars with plastic manifolds.

 

[Harrod]

I checked the car out today and pulled and reset the codes.
The only thing it's throwing is the p2015 code that I already knew about it, so I will be picking it up next week.
The crappy thing is my wife and I are in the middle of selling our house, so it's going to stay at my brothers house for the next several months so our driveway doesn't look like a used car lot. I didn't feel like getting out and taking pictures of the other side, there isn't a huge dent or anything that I'm hiding.

I'm going to end up keeping this, I'm well aware of the maintenance involved with anything with a turbo on it, I can thank my old Saab 9-5 Aero money pit edition for all of the experience I picked up.

 

[Triumph]

Um that's not a 2010 GTI...

 

[cardiac]

Looks like one to me; but I'm not a V-dub guy...

 

[NutBucket]

Um that's not a 2010 GTI...

Then what is it?

 

[Harrod]

I think there is supposed to be a Douche in the picture with a baseball cap and sunglasses on. I am curious to know what he's talking about also.

 

[Triumph]

Because that's a 5 generation GTI, and 2010 was the first year of the 6th generation.

 

[Harrod]

Thanks, for some reason I thought it was a 2010.