Volkswagen MK4 TDI Buyer's Guide | 1998-2006

The MK4 1.9L TDI is regarded as the "holy grail" of turbodiesel offerings from Volkswagen. At a time when emissions standards weren't so strict they had to lie, these cars were the perfect combination of simplicity, power and efficiency - but that was over 20 years ago. Here's what to look for (and keep in mind) when buying a 1998-2006 MK4 TDI.
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[firsttimediesels]

My father was dailying one, then my father passed away. Really gunning it for his car man... that's the last thing I can keep around of him. I miss you dad and if I get that car it'll be the coolest trailer queen you could have imagined.

[DELOS]

I own a 05 Golf TDI and it's hitting 344k+. Engine is bullet proof!!! Drives like day one

[eurodriven]

One note about the transmissions -
The 01M is in the ALH cars, a 4spd auto box that was also in the 2.sl0 gasser cars.
The 09A 5spd "tiptronic" is found in the BEW cars, this is the same trans as the 1.8T auto's iirc. It is generally looked upon more favorably than the 01M, but the 3 pedal config is always the right choice. Especially on a car like these, the motor will outlast the auto trans 3 or 4 times, no matter how well you maintain the trans.
That being said, to counter one of your comments, a TDI project with a bad auto trans and a good motor/chassis could be a great choice. Grab a 5spd (or 6spd from a GLI/GTI) and drop that in, saving a TDI that would have otherwise been scrapped/parted out!

[godfreyberry]

Jetta MK 4 even by todays standards is the most balanced beautiful designs ever conceived and has certainly stood the test of time with flying colours. The 2.0 l / TDI / limited edition VR 6 were and still are phenomenal.

[HalfassDIY]

I found a manual 6-speed and kit from overseas (Dutch-something was the name) to replace my 01m when it went bad...but it never went bad. Running at 255, 000 miles and the auto transmission still works great !

[metallicafu]

I found a bone stock 2003 golf a few years back, most amazing car ever! only thing done to it was a straight pipe, single mass fly wheel clutch, EGR delete with a stage 2 tune. I feel like this is all the modding this thing should get, super nimble and reliable car. GREAT video by the way!

[a_drewski]

Stage 5 ALH running 28psi and I have 350k miles on it now. Bought it in 2010 for $500 with a broken timing belt. BULLETPROOF!

[longhairedboi]

As an owner of both, both engines are remarkable for reliability. I had an 2004 BEW auto, that still got 39 mpg to the gallon that drove from north Carolina to Maine and back. amazing car, drove good 275k miles, and it snapped the timing belt, decided to throw a belt on and see what happens and boom she ran! sold it to a friend which is still currently driving it. And now I currently own a 2001 ALH 5 speed 403k miles, car is amazing, am currently averaging 48 mpg. And both cars just amazing to own, parts are pretty cheap and was able to do my timing belt myself. I would recommend these cars to anyone

[marquetteautomotivevwparts]

I delivered parts to a customer today with two ALH cars that have a combined 910, 000 miles.

[HowtoRestoreHeadlights]

Bro! Mad Quality video! I was like 60 seconds in and subscribed just due to that quality!

Keep it up!

[WhiteTiger]

My VW bora is at 192k miles, still going strong, of all of the cars I've owned and driven, this is my baby

[jruerph]

Thanks for the video. My commuter and highway hoopty is a 5 speed swapped 2003 Jetta Wagon with a Stage 1 Malone tune and updated with rebuilt injectors with Italian 7 Diesel nozzles. An easy 40 mpg in city but I always drive too fast on the highway to know the max mpg. Ultra reliable and has been cheap to maintain. It was originally a TX car (first 10 years) and the body has no rust but the interior plastics are deteriorating and headliner is falling. But I don’t care with the excellent economy, good handling and fun to drive quotient of the torquey diesel. One of the few times VW produced an excellent vehicle.

[dand]

I have an 06.5 MK6 TDI, it has had both the camshaft and dual mass flywheel replaced. They really made a great upgrade to the transmission with the DSG.

I normally drive 70mph and see mileage in the 40+ range. Love my TDI.

Great video

[youtubeleavemealone]

I've had an ALH Jetta for a while now. My first big scare was the knocking noise that it started to make about 2 years after I got it. I thought it was throwing a rod. It was just the duel mass clutch/flywheel gizmo. It got pretty loud & chattery. A single mass replacement worked well, I used the heavy one. My second big scare was a loss of power due to the turbo not spooling up. That turned out to just be a split vacuum hose. Vacuum controls turbo response in that engine. I had issues with the injection pump leaking. A seal kit was cheap enough, but then I needed to get Vag Com software & a dongle to talk to the brain so that I could set the injection quantity back into the correct range. MPG went from 47/39 to 51/42 highway/city. I've had to replace some door latches & put a repair kit into a door lock cylinder. I just got a full coolant hose set for it after the one on the bottom of the reservoir failed. I also just replaced the oil dipstick tube which got brittle from age & broke easily when I leaned against it. It was only a $10 part from some suppliers, but the local guy with one on the shelf wanted $25. Still not too bad. It was a 2 minute change. The thermostat was done recently. I was able to reuse the old housing, even through the tangs were broken off, so the housing would not hold the thermostat during installation. I had to put the O-ring & thermostat in place first, then carefully place the housing over it. The first AC problem was the classic blend door failure due to the foam material deteriorating. Several hours of disassembly/learning, & 10 minutes with some aluminum flue tape, solved that issue. A couple of years ago it got a new AC compressor & condenser. The aftermarket condenser fittings needed some hand fitting. The receiver dryer that came with the AC kit was trash. I ended up getting another from NAPA that was better quality. The new orifice valve from the kit is out of cal, it blows about 25 degrees F, which means that I get some icing in the evaporator after an hour or so & I then need to shut it off for a few minutes so that it can melt. OEM AC parts are better. I'm probably going to put the original valve back in when I get around to it. I've replaced a serpentine belt & tensioner. I recently replaced a tie rod end. I've replaced the alternator, which was a very tight fit & much more difficult to change compared to most other motors. I get about 5 years out of a set of tires, 2 years out of a battery, & 4 years out of a set of brakes. I went looking at new cars recently. I could not find anything that performed as well to replace it with, so it's getting refurbished. Right now, it needs a head liner & some plastic door parts. The head liner is looking to be a hassle. The car is also going to get a timing belt soon. Then I think I'll be good for a few more years. I'm at about 230K miles now.

[tylerbergeron]

Great video man keep it up …. Very helpful I have a 2004 jetta tdi wagon and I love it

[jacksonreid]

Awesome video, guy! Picking up a 2004 Jetta TDI tomorrow

[bobbaran]

We have a 2002 Golf TDI with the ALH and manual transmission.
Consistent 45 mpg and is a blast to drive.
230, 000 miles and counting.

[ssnydess]

I had a 2002 manual Jetta TDI that I kept for 15 years and about 175K miles and loved it except for changing the timing belt frequently and that expense.

[iosifd]

1.9 TDI's really solid units, with periodic change of oil and filters, and running premium diesel from time to time, they could last forever mostly built like truck engines . There is another slower brother for TDI which is called SDI, you cannot kill that engine it could be like a zombie if the chasis is destroyed :))))

[izodope]

i have a 1.9 tdi pd AXR with 357000 miles on the clock still running daily.