I think I've bought one of NZ's rarest modern(ish) sedans

[Kees 594]

I decided to empty out my spastic car collection about a month ago, getting rid of my S8, S6 and GTB E-Tune. All three cars were interesting but the S8 was the only one I really liked, largely due to how insanely engineered it was, and of course the V10 thunder it produced. All three were automatics so were quite plain to drive. Since I have my E34 540i which is also automatic, the others had to go (insurance was also an absolute fortune, $6K a year for the three I sold which is rather unsustainable lol). 

My initial plan was to somewhat detox from the high power, yet largely mundane automatic sedans and get something quite the opposite that would complement my 540i. What I really wanted was a manual Z3, especially after coming across the photos of my Grandfather's manual 2.2 Z3 he had in the early 2000s. I was thinking; manual, light, roof down, straight six, hmmm that sounds like a-lot of fun.

In the depths of Facebook marketplace I found a rougher manual 2.0L Z3 for sale about 15 minutes from my house. The car looked like it had solid bones and was just suffering from some cosmetic flaws like clear coat peel on the boot-lid, missing interior trim, typical Z3 split seats etc which are easily rectifiable. Went and looked at it and was pretty put off not only by its condition in person, but also the way it drove. To be fair, I think that car specifically was just a bit of an underpowered dog that really, really needed some decent mechanical work done. Even the alignment was horrific, and was one of many things the owner hadn't "bothered" to sort. 

Feeling a bit disappointed I returned to trademe. I randomly decided to do a random search of a minimum 3.5L engine capacity and a manual transmission. I scroll through the various clapped Commodores when I stumble across a W8 Passat. I roll my eyes, here's another clown who has listed their W8 Passat Auto as a manual. (It's important to note: when I was younger I was fanatical about the W8 Passats. I have no idea why. I would always have a look at them for sale every few months but had only ever seen one manual one) I open the listing expecting to see people grilling the seller in the comments for listing it incorrectly. 

The first comment read something along the lines of "Can I please come view, I have an Automatic one, have been looking for a manual". I immediately go look at the photos. 

I scroll through the 3 photos of the car and see it is in-fact the super rare 6 speed manual. That's very cool I thought. I texted the seller to ask some questions and for some more photos. I got a response but never got sent any photos. I then couldn't find it on trademe so just assumed someone else had snagged it. 

Fast forward 3 weeks and I get a random text one morning asking if I'm still interested in the Passat. I replied and the seller sent me a walk around video of the car. He then filmed a short video of him driving it. As soon as I heard the W8 rumble I was very, very interested. 

I texted him heaps of questions (as W8s are not quite known for their reliability) and after a couple days made him a sight un-seen offer I thought was fair. We made a deal and I flew down to Wellington yesterday to go get it. 

The day started out a little less than ideal. About 2 minutes into the test drive I go to put the car in neutral from 2nd gear as we pull up to some lights and it shifted funny. I then go to release the clutch and the clutch is still sitting on the floor. Oh sh#$. 

We push the car to the side of the road where we see it dripping some fluids. Without a clutch we weren't going far. The owner and I decided the best thing to do would be to try drive the car to his workshop as it seemed some kind of line or hose had popped off. We push the car down the street in neutral and then jam it in second and set off to Lower Hutt. We get the car on a hoist and indeed a hose connected to the clutch master cylinder had disconnected thanks to a clip that had somehow wiggled its way back. The seller got everything connected up and then we bled the clutch so we could do test drive attempt 2. Car did well on the test drive, and although my confidence wasn't particularly high, I knew I probably wouldn't find another car like it for the price, so I bought it anyway. 

I then began the journey home trying to make as few shifts as possible incase a similar thing happened again. I cruised mostly in 5th as I could go through towns and on the open road in the same gear. Everything was going smoothly until I realised I hadn't been listening to the GPS and was in Whanganui. I started driving State Highway 4 out of Whanganui which I found to be an amazing road that was nice and twisty! It's just not that enjoyable when you have no phone service and you are petrified you are going to have no clutch because of all the gear changes you are making to go around the hairpins!

The car however continued to do really well and eventually I made it home. Was really impressed by how comfy and quiet it was at higher speeds, despite the car having some decent exhaust work done to it. The steering has a good weight to it and the car handles nicely. 

Not sure how many people will be interested in it but thought I would do a little write up and post a few photos. 

Its a car many people forget but I think its quite cool. Factory recaros, factory BBS wheels, unique engine and a 6 speed manual! 

From what I can find out online, I think my car may be 1 of 4 W8 Manuals left in NZ. 

It needs a really decent detail which I will hopefully start in the next few days. Only posting a few photos as the car is looking a bit grubby at the moment. 

[E28E30 335]

Wow Kees @Kees that’s looking good, thank you for the story too, good read

I have done that highway the other way, also picking up a new-to-me car in Auckland and driving it back to Wellington.  I missed the turnoff to the central plateau and ended up doing that long way too! Ha know the feeling.

How was economy,  not  bad?

 

 

[Kees 594]

6 minutes ago, E28E30 said:

Wow Kees @Kees that’s looking good, thank you for the story too, good read

I have done that highway the other way, also picking up a new-to-me car in Auckland and driving it back to Wellington.  I missed the turnoff to the central plateau and ended up doing that long way too! Ha know the feeling.

How was economy,  not  bad?

 

 

Economy was pretty average. My 540i I have had as low as 9.8L/100km which I thought was pretty decent considering its done almost 400,000km. I was hoping to get under 10L/100km but the lowest I got was 10.5L/100km according to the car. The car has a few quirks and features being an early 2000s VAG product. One of its nice features is the fuel gauge doesn't work so the fear of running out of petrol was also on my mind 😂

I didn't fill it up completely in Wellington as I was hoping to score some cheaper 95, but it was around $3.40 the whole way up so I didn't get a chance to work the fuel economy out myself as I was hanging out for some cheap fuel the whole way up but I didn't find any. 

Been driving it round today and the economy has jumped up to 15.5L/100km, and its probably going to get worse because I'm addicted to how it sounds lol

[E28E30 335]

You only live once

[Braydon 40]

That's very unique and really cool. 
Reminds me of a baby phaeton, especially with that engine.
Stupidly really want a high spec phaeton...

[KwS 2425]

Saw that on TM, it was even on my watchlist but even with my car history im not that brave/foolish. IIRC it had receipts for some major work done? 

[Kees 594]

1 hour ago, Braydon said:

That's very unique and really cool. 
Reminds me of a baby phaeton, especially with that engine.
Stupidly really want a high spec phaeton...

I saw a V10 TDI Phaeton a while ago for 7.5K. So tempting… also so much to go wrong but yolo I guess 🤣

[Kees 594]

1 hour ago, KwS said:

Saw that on TM, it was even on my watchlist but even with my car history im not that brave/foolish. IIRC it had receipts for some major work done? 

Yeah that’s fair enough I think occasionally the fear of impending disaster will keep me up at night with that car. Most crack-pipe era VAG cars are like that. Was petrified everyday I would walk out to my S8 that it would be slumped in one corner with failed air suspension, or the timing chains for the V10 would fail. 
 

The car has had a decent bit of work done. The seller is a euro mechanic and owns his own mechanic shop so did all the work himself. I believe he got the car as part of a deal as it had been sitting with a blown clutch. He did the clutch, clutch master cylinder, fuel pump and filter as well as engine mounts in the 18 months he had it. I’m going to have it serviced soon as he can’t remember when he did the oil last. Oil looks ok but the coolant is very grotty and old so it definitely needs a flush ASAP. 
 

From what I’ve read if you service them regularly they can be alright, although only time will tell. Dumb stuff like o2 sensors are an engine out job on these…

[KwS 2425]

8 minutes ago, Kees said:

The seller is a euro mechanic and owns his own mechanic shop so did all the work himself.

Ha sh*t, in my experience that means you are doomed. Some of the worst cars i've bought were from mechanics.

Good luck, you may need it!

[qube 3570]

I like it! 

[Eagle 1662]

4 hours ago, Kees said:

I then began the journey home trying to make as few shifts as possible incase a similar thing happened again. I cruised mostly in 5th as I could go through towns and on the open road in the same gear. Everything was going smoothly until I realised I hadn't been listening to the GPS and was in Whanganui. I started driving State Highway 4 out of Whanganui which I found to be an amazing road that was nice and twisty! It's just not that enjoyable when you have no phone service and you are petrified you are going to have no clutch because of all the gear changes you are making to go around the hairpins

Haha i did the same thing driving a E34 540i back from Christchurch. It wasn't that fun either with many k's of 30kph limited unsealed roads, traffic lights and 12am in the morning.

[Kees 594]

2 hours ago, KwS said:

Ha sh*t, in my experience that means you are doomed. Some of the worst cars i've bought were from mechanics.

Good luck, you may need it!

Yeah I have the feeling its going to be very hit or miss. 

The guy did seem like a really nice person though, he was very honest about the car's flaws when I first enquired about it. He had an e32 735i, a DS Safari as well as a manual E28 with a 2.8L in it sitting on M-Contours and with E34 leather sports seats. I complemented the wheels and he asked me how much I thought they were worth which made him drop his jaw as he only paid $300 for the whole car! 

We got along really well I thought, I think he was happy I was super chill about the car breaking down as I thought it would make for a cool story, plus it was a bit of fun to help him fix it. Got to have a decent look under the car too!  

[Palazzo 477]

I looked at a dark coloured one (black?) years ago, think you’re right, 1/4. Got scared off by the reputation, can’t remember the list of potential problems, but it wasn’t short or cheap.

But as above, you only live once, enjoy.

[KwS 2425]

Really cool engines though. Sound like a cross between a V8 and a raspy VR6.

[Kees 594]

5 minutes ago, Palazzo said:

I looked at a dark coloured one (black?) years ago, think you’re right, 1/4. Got scared off by the reputation, can’t remember the list of potential problems, but it wasn’t short or cheap.

But as above, you only live once, enjoy.

There’s a black one I saw with the plate VUUUU8, may have been that one? Quite a clever plate I reckon.

Yeah there’s certainly a list of things to fail like timing chains etc. Also, a lot of easy jobs are so much harder thanks to the W8 design. I wonder how many times the engine has been out of my car 😂

 

[Kees 594]

3 minutes ago, KwS said:

Really cool engines though. Sound like a cross between a V8 and a raspy VR6.

Is a very interesting sound. Engine revs in such a linear fashion too. Is very very bassey at low rpms almost like a Subaru but it doesn’t throb it has a constant hum. Becomes quite raspy as you rev it out. Redlines at just over 6K. 
I have an exhaust clip from when I showed my mate the car: 

 

 

[TLH 45]

I was obsessed with wanting one of these when I was first getting into cars, never did see a manual one when I was looking but that was always the dream. I'm glad I didn't get one as a first car because that would've most likely been a bad idea, but I still always look out for them on the road and have definitely seen the one with the custom plate before. I still think I'd be into one if I didn't have my 540i manual 😀

[Kees 594]

1 hour ago, TLH said:

I was obsessed with wanting one of these when I was first getting into cars, never did see a manual one when I was looking but that was always the dream. I'm glad I didn't get one as a first car because that would've most likely been a bad idea, but I still always look out for them on the road and have definitely seen the one with the custom plate before. I still think I'd be into one if I didn't have my 540i manual 😀

I drove the W8 and my auto 540i back to back yesterday and I couldn't help but think how amazing a 6 speed in my e34 540i would be! Would love to get one but they are so good no one wants to sell them! 

I love E34s, a manual 540 would be one of my ultimate cars. 

 

[TLH 45]

@Kees They are amazing that's for sure and you are 100% right about no one wanting to let there's go, I know I don't plan on selling mine anytime soon. I love the E34 too, have way too many parts for them now. Here's mine, both manual 😁

 

[Kees 594]

37 minutes ago, TLH said:

@Kees They are amazing that's for sure and you are 100% right about no one wanting to let there's go, I know I don't plan on selling mine anytime soon. I love the E34 too, have way too many parts for them now. Here's mine, both manual 😁

 

Wow! That 540 touring with a manual is probably the ultimate all round car imo. Just a tiny bit jealous 😅

What a cool pair to have! 

[TLH 45]

@Kees Very cool indeed and I'm lucky to have them, don't worry lots of people say they're jealous and want to buy it including me before I brought it off my mate 😂.  

If you need any E34 parts for yours let me know as I have a lot stashed!

[Kees 594]

37 minutes ago, TLH said:

@Kees Very cool indeed and I'm lucky to have them, don't worry lots of people say they're jealous and want to buy it including me before I brought it off my mate 😂.  

If you need any E34 parts for yours let me know as I have a lot stashed!

Haha I bet! 

That would be great! That's my 540i, has been off the road for a couple months waiting for a windscreen moulding to arrive from Germany. New glass hopefully goes in today which I'm very excited about. 

 

[TLH 45]

@Kees Wow your car looks so clean! Love the colour and the wheels 😍, I keep missing out on throwing stars. (Good to see you have the covers the correct way haha)

That will be good, mine has been off the road since mid last year and hopefully will get a wof soon. Parts orders have been a huge delay for sure, one order of mine didn't even ship for 2 months.   

[Kees 594]

7 minutes ago, TLH said:

@Kees Wow your car looks so clean! Love the colour and the wheels 😍, I keep missing out on throwing stars. (Good to see you have the covers the correct way haha)

That will be good, mine has been off the road since mid last year and hopefully will get a wof soon. Parts orders have been a huge delay for sure, one order of mine didn't even ship for 2 months.   

Thanks! She looks decently tidy in photos but up close its definitely an original car but hasn't done too bad for almost 400,000km, has tidied up pretty nice though. Yeah I was pretty lucky to score those wheels, I may be just a tad bias but I think they are the best looking wheels on e34s.  

Wow I don't think I could last that long without being able to drive my car, the two months my car was off the road was a struggle enough! Did you get a big haul of parts? 

 

[TLH 45]

@Kees That's an amazing transformation even so for the km's, mines half that but has had a hard life with some previous owners. I do think they're a great wheel for the E34 and would be perfect for my touring (going for M5 look), but my pick will always be the style 5 RC035. 

It was a decent order, mostly out of stock so hence the long wait. But most of the delay was with the upholstery as I got the headliner and boot carpet re-covered.