My family has owned this car for about 2 years now. We've only ever had minor issues with it. Things that can attributed to 14+ years of wear and tear. Overall I would highly recommend this car to someone looking for something they can keep repaired themselves. We have the wagon style.

It's been a reliable car overall, has a very comfortable interior, and rides well. Seats are comfortable for long road trips, and we haven't had any major problems with the engine. Fit and finish are nice on this car, doors close well, and the body feels solid. However, the electrical systems overall have constant problems, and we've had numerous and constant repairs to fix some several of the electrical systems. One of the reasons we purchased this model was because it has seats that automatically adjust, based on which key was used. This feature has continued to break or work sporadically, and now both keys move the seat into a random position that is not what had been programmed. As far as ongoing maintenance, the car burns oil really quickly, requiring oil to be added regularly, which I've never experienced with any other car. The Passat would be a solid car that I would gladly recommend if the electrical issues were solved. As it is, I will not buy a Volkswagen again in the future.