Satisfactory service

摘要

Just over five years on, Bob Blackhurst reflects on more than 80,000 miles of satisfactory service from his B5 Passat TDI 4Motion... DURING THE last week in November 2003 I eventually opened my wallet and purchased a new Passat Estate 4Motion, an SE with the 130 PS 1.9 TDI engine. It wasn't an impulse buy, but the culmination of 12 months vacillating about the replacement of my 12-year-old Audi 100. I wanted to buy a new car with a view to keeping it for at least 10 years, something I had done with my last three cars and found to be very cost-effective. From the start, the Passat was superb to drive, the engine immensely powerful for such a small capacity unit, and the 6-speed gearbox means you always have the correct ratio available.