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Tag: Storm Grey Metallic

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Dwindling Supply: 1996 and 1997 Volkswagen Passat GLX VR6 Variants

The Volkswagen Passat has always been a bit of the odd-man out in the Volkswagen lineup. Not as wildly popular as the Golf or as trendy as the Jetta, the Passat has alternated between the smart choice if you wanted quiet and capable German luxury to the odd choice if you just wanted to be a bit different than the norm. Volkswagen also can’t seem to make it’s mind up on which platform it wants to utilize with the Passat; the B1 and B2 generations, for example, shared their DNA with Audis. But with the B3 and B4 generation, Volkswagen moved to its own bag of tricks and developed a new Passat which mixed items from the Mk.2 and Mk.3 Golf chassis. For the B5 and B5.5, once again Volkswagen turned to the upscale Audi platform and the Passat was more popular than ever – effectively, it was a budget Audi A4, right down to the same powertrains and all-wheel drive systems. As effective as the B5/5.5 was for sales, when the B6 launched it was once again a return to the Golf chassis for the new Passat – and now we hang in limbo with a U.S. specific B7 Passat. But if the B5 and B5.5 were popular as a smart and upscale choice for budget Audi fans, the B3 and B4 seemed a bit odd. First there was the B3, with it’s grill-less design. I always thought it was pretty cool, personally, but apparently it offended actual buyers so much that Volkswagen redesigned the car and in 1993 the car received new body panels and a normal grill. That didn’t seem to bring with it massive sales, though – the Passat was still quite expensive and effectively the same size as the Jetta it was sold alongside. There was really only one trump card that the Passat had – denied the Golf Variant in the U.S., it was the only Volkswagen wagon you could buy here at the time:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1996 Volkswagen Passat GLX VR6 Variant on eBay

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Double Take: Dueling Volkswagen B4 TDi Passats

As enthusiasts cars go, the words “TDi” and “Passat” don’t generally generate a tremendous amount of enthusiasm. Of course, that belies the entire subculture of Volkswagen enthusiasts that are diesel obsessed; but even amongst them the Passat TDi is rarely the first car they’d choose. Perhaps the exception to that is the wagon version of the B4, which offered smart looks and unbelievable fuel mileage. However, we looked at one on our Facebook fanpage, and people baulked as the price approached $15,000 on a high mile, 20 year old Passat diesel. So what’s here today then? Well, if you need a smart commuter, want to get 50 miles a gallon with a bit of sleeper style, the Passat sedan offers arguably better build quality than the Mk.2 and Mk.3 Jetta diesels did and can be had for a more reasonable budget. Today, there are two nearly identical mileage B4 TDis available on Ebay – let’s start with the older one:

CLICK FOR DETAILS: 1996 Volkswagen Passat TDi on eBay

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