VW Scirocco: 2nd Hand and 6 months in ...

[BKKBike09]

Six months ago I found myself hankering for something a little more exciting than the CRV 2.0 I had at the time. I've always liked the Scirocco so I bought an officially-imported second-hand 2.0 TSI with the DSG auto, 49,000 km on the clock, for THB 1.2 million. It was registered in Oct 2012 but is actually a 2011 model. Since then I've put another 5,000 km on the clock, mostly in Bangkok but also with a couple of upcountry trips. I love the car almost without reservation. It's comfortable and engaging to drive, and it's pretty quick as well. It's also a genuine 2+2 with some usable boot space. It doesn't have cruise control but I've never found driving on highways in Thailand conducive to the use of cruise control.

The stock engine is 210 bhp/280 NM - I had the ECU flashed (THB 38,000) and now it's supposedly 240 bhp/350 NM. I say 'supposedly' because I've not had it dyno'ed and those are the claimed figures. It's certainly more responsive and I'd say has pretty much all the power you'd want in a small FWD car. The guy I bought it from had put on 19" rims, stupidly fat tyres (275 at the rear) and lowering springs; I ditched those the day I picked it up and put the stock 18" rims back on with new Pirelli Pilot Sport 3 (THB 6,000 each), as well as putting the stock shocks back on. I'd rather ride a little higher than ground the car on every speed bump in Bangkok.

The Scirocco imported to Thailand doesn't have Bluetooth fitted as standard. However all the buttons are on the steering wheel and it's possible to retrofit the factory unit. I couldn't have a car now without bluetooth phone built-in so I bought the unit from VW in Singapore when down there shortly after getting the car. It cost about THB 18,000 but to me is worth every baht. VW Ramintra fitted it.

Fuel consumption runs around 7 km/l in town and 10-13 km/l on the highway. Whenever I can I use regular 95 octane.

I've had one mechanical issue since buying - either an injector or coil pack started playing up (the VW Ramintra diagnostic guy wasn't sure which it was). This is a recognised issue with the 2.0 TSI engine. I changed all the injectors and coils (from memory something under THB 30,000). Seeing as how I was buying a three-year old European car I factored in a 'maintenance fund' of THB 100,000 before I decided to buy it.

Summarising, the good and the bad for me are:

GOOD

Fast, looks great, fun to drive - the DSG auto in Tiptronic is really nice

Love the tan leather seats (which are also heated - very useful in Thailand)

Love the glass roof (it only opens an inch but I like glass roofs for the sake of it)

BAD

Mirrors don't fold electrically

Not really possible to put the car in N if you have to double park

Doors are real long and heavy - not the easiest car to get in and out of in a tight spot

The boot can only be opened using the key fob or a button inside the driver's door

The stock head unit has good radio reception but doesn't have a USB port (you can however stream bluetooth audio if you put in the bluetooth unit)

All in all I think it's a great car.

[MolesterStallone]

Wow your paying too much.

I have a scirocco also, much cheaper to get it serviced and maintained at diamond at the end of ekamai / rama 9 interchange.

38k for software? that level of tune should be abt 20k, 38k would get you a dsg software tune on top of the engine tune. I guess maybe you got something else included? intake or down pipe?

I have converted to the K04 turbo from the Scirocco R with endless other modifications and 350 bhp. I use Autowerks they are part of GT car on Petchabury Rd

I cant recomend Autowerks for tuning and Diamond for maintenance enough on a vw or Audi.

[DavisH]

What would you normally pay for a regular service, eg. 20K, 30K km service? How about spare parts like disc pads? Are the costs reasonable?

[BKKBike09]

Wow your paying too much.

I have a scirocco also, much cheaper to get it serviced and maintained at diamond at the end of ekamai / rama 9 interchange.

38k for software? that level of tune should be abt 20k, 38k would get you a dsg software tune on top of the engine tune. I guess maybe you got something else included? intake or down pipe?

I have converted to the K04 turbo from the Scirocco R with endless other modifications and 350 bhp. I use Autowerks they are part of GT car on Petchabury Rd

I cant recomend Autowerks for tuning and Diamond for maintenance enough on a vw or Audi.

It was tuned by Autowerks … that's what they charge now for the Stage 1 … It's 800 something Euro in Germany so ...

I agree Diamond's a good place for VW/Audi.

[BKKBike09]

What would you normally pay for a regular service, eg. 20K, 30K km service? How about spare parts like disc pads? Are the costs reasonable?

Can't help you there I'm afraid. Dealer servicing is included for first three years - after that, since it's out of warranty, better off to go somewhere like Diamond.

If you want cheap servicing don't buy a European car.

[seedy]

Nonsense post - and Reply - Removed.

[robertthebruce]

Beautiful Car.......

[Srikcir]

This car's styling would make a great looking all-electric. Much better than VW's electric Golf.

[MolesterStallone]

It was tuned by Autowerks … that's what they charge now for the Stage 1 … It's 800 something Euro in Germany so ...

I agree Diamond's a good place for VW/Audi.

Hmm the tuning m market is super competitive here whilst i understand your happy with what you paid my advice if you choose to go further or for anyone else into tuning would be to play to tuners off against each other. Then go to the one you really want to do the work. I always play Autowerks against Revo and the price can fall by 5 digits.

The scirocco is cheap to own here out of warranty as the labor is so cheap, parts still easily available and the car and its pretty reliable. . After parking outside at the airport for a few days I had to get my entire headliner and sunroof screen replaced but was only 5000 BHT fitted. Replaced CV boot 1500 BHT, My major service including plugs and DSG service was 12,000 BHT. I also recommend updating your timing chain tensioner if you google gti or tsi timing chain tensioner failure its pretty mad. If you want the correct part numbers and pics of the parts PM me anytime. Same for any mk6 GTI owners.

Only thing im not excited about is the DSG clutch pack change. Ive heard crazy prices for this. 80k+ Also mine eats front tyres but that could just be me using the launch control too much ,

I have had air suspension on mine for a month now which i love, this has to be one of my favorite cars that ive had over the years and its a performance bargain here along with the GTI.

[technologybytes]

The Scirocco looks great, I would have thought the 1.2 million is a bit expensive, but the really important thing is to get a really good one that has been treated with respect and serviced properly.

I have always loved European cars and I currently run a Volvo turbo so I talk from some experience, though not VW experience.

All the time you are in Bangkok and use specialist dealers you will be Ok, but the value of your car will drop off like a lead balloon so my opinion is to treat this as a long term ownership, or but something Japanese instead.

[Caca4u]

VW did a great job w the design of this car. Rare to see one here. Great looking car!! This is probably one of the nicest hatchback cars today.

[thailand49]

Man the car and model has come a long long way!

I owned a number of VW, starting with the Bug 1300, upgraded to a 1971 Super Beetle with a sunroof, then a 1979 Scirroco, 1600 C.C. 4 speed manual Fuel Injected. You are a lucky man.

[BKKBike09]

The Scirocco looks great, I would have thought the 1.2 million is a bit expensive, but the really important thing is to get a really good one that has been treated with respect and serviced properly.

I have always loved European cars and I currently run a Volvo turbo so I talk from some experience, though not VW experience.

All the time you are in Bangkok and use specialist dealers you will be Ok, but the value of your car will drop off like a lead balloon so my opinion is to treat this as a long term ownership, or but something Japanese instead.

Thanks. You can get them for less than 1.2M for sure - I looked at two others on sale at the time but this one was one owner from new, hadn't been heavily modded, and it turned out a Thai friend of mine also knew the Thai owner vaguely (he's a director of a listed company, not that it means much). Plus I wanted to buy one and not <deleted> about endlessly waiting for a perfect one to come along

There was a minor face lift in 2010 and the pre face lift models (2008-2010) are a lot cheaper. If you want to retro-fit the factory bluetooth unit however it doesn't integrate so well with the older models. For sure anything that's not Japanese, Benz or BM will drop value like a lead balloon … I paid 1.2 M for a 3-year old car that cost 2.6M when the seller drove it out of the dealer. Crazy price.

Volvo's are good cars … I did give some thought to buying a V40 T5. That's a nice-looking car and 'reasonably' priced for Thailand - 1.9M new for 213hp / 300 bhp.

[BKKBike09]

Also mine eats front tyres but that could just be me using the launch control too much ,

I have had air suspension on mine for a month now which i love, this has to be one of my favorite cars that ive had over the years and its a performance bargain here along with the GTI.

350 bhp FWD will do that for you! I agree it's a performance 'bargain' (for Thailand). Thanks for the info on the chain - I'll PM you for the details.

[f0xxee]

Hey BKKBike09,

Great report and very timely too, as I was looking at selling my BMW R1200GS (2012) and buying a hot hatch with the proceeds plus a little cash. (Figured a war chest of 1.2m was appropriate).

Enjoyed the post and its probably persuaded me to go down the Sirocco road. I will keep one big bike (I have a 1995 Ducati custom cafe racer) but for long distances with the missus think the Sirocco sounds ideal.

Would also back up the reports on Autowerks. Had a BMW 330i that they did some work to. Happy enough with the results.

[BKKBike09]

Hey BKKBike09,

Great report and very timely too, as I was looking at selling my BMW R1200GS (2012) and buying a hot hatch with the proceeds plus a little cash. (Figured a war chest of 1.2m was appropriate).

Enjoyed the post and its probably persuaded me to go down the Sirocco road. I will keep one big bike (I have a 1995 Ducati custom cafe racer) but for long distances with the missus think the Sirocco sounds ideal.

Would also back up the reports on Autowerks. Had a BMW 330i that they did some work to. Happy enough with the results.

You're welcome. If you have any other questions PM me. Good to keep a bike … Yamaha FZ09 for me ...

[Phaeton]

Thank you for your review. I owned a Scirocco in the 80's and really liked it. And this modern version, looks great, but was not available in my home country, so I moved to Thailand...555. Just joking.

But great write up. By the way, on the basis of a friend's almost lifetime with an old volvo (740 or something??), I bought a 2005 AWD S40, and there many things I loved about that car. It was incredible in the snow for example. But, I had a lot of maintenance expenses with it. So I hope you will be more fortunate with the VW, and good choice.

Also, I think the way you have yours set up is perfect. One problem I had with the Volvo was the low profile tires, and sporty rims, got destroyed in New York City driving. I imagine it would be about the same here. So good job on reverting to the stock rims for example.

That's annoying about the inability to put in neutral. Good to know about. But not a deal breaker.

[JaiLai]

Nice car for sure.

I looked online ( taladrod / one2car ) and for a 2010/11 model the price range ( depending on specs ) was about 1-1.2M.

Where is it in BKK that would have all these 2nd hand, near Praram 9 hospital, i forget the name of the road, Rama 4? Are the places along there reliable?

Thanks.

[sandyf]

Thank you for your review. I owned a Scirocco in the 80's and really liked it. And this modern version, looks great, but was not available in my home country, so I moved to Thailand...555. Just joking.

But great write up. By the way, on the basis of a friend's almost lifetime with an old volvo (740 or something??), I bought a 2005 AWD S40, and there many things I loved about that car. It was incredible in the snow for example. But, I had a lot of maintenance expenses with it. So I hope you will be more fortunate with the VW, and good choice.

Also, I think the way you have yours set up is perfect. One problem I had with the Volvo was the low profile tires, and sporty rims, got destroyed in New York City driving. I imagine it would be about the same here. So good job on reverting to the stock rims for example.

That's annoying about the inability to put in neutral. Good to know about. But not a deal breaker.

My wife got a Scirocco in 1983, 1.8 model, absolutely superb.

[BKKBike09]

Nice car for sure.

I looked online ( taladrod / one2car ) and for a 2010/11 model the price range ( depending on specs ) was about 1-1.2M.

Where is it in BKK that would have all these 2nd hand, near Praram 9 hospital, i forget the name of the road, Rama 4? Are the places along there reliable?

Thanks.

There are quite a few car tents in Ratchada and Pattanakarn. That said you really need to call the seller and ask if it's a private sale or a car tent. As for reliable, I'd say buying a second-hand car in any country is a gamble if you don't know what to look for.

As I mentioned earlier there was a facelift in 2010. Very minor and I don't think the exterior changed at all. You can tell the older cars because the display between the speedo / rev counter is red LCD, not white. Also the A/C controls are slightly different.

The TSI models are nearly all official imports. The more powerful R variants are all grey imports and can be harder to insure. Not all companies will insure the Scirocco anyway, and some have rules about not insuring cars more than 3 years old. Get some quotes before you buy.

[BKKBike09]

That's annoying about the inability to put in neutral. Good to know about. But not a deal breaker.

It's a pain in BKK. One other thing that irritates me, which I forgot to list, is that the driver's seat is electrically adjustable but doesn't have a seat position memory function. The CRV I gave to the missus was the same and I find it a real pain. Frankly I prefer manually adjustable seats to non-memory electric ones because it always seems to take ages to get an electric seat set back to how you like it when the car's been valet parked etc. But the irritation fades away pretty quick when you put your foot down ...

[Isan Farang]

Another contender for the 2 door models available in Thailand

[BKKBike09]

A quick update ... 70,000 km on the clock now and still very happy with the car. There've been a few minor issues but I believe these are quite common, namely:

 

1. Sunroof curtain and roof head liner came unstuck. These can be sorted out by Diamond, around 3,000 or so per item and takes a couple of days (curtain on mine went about a year ago and roof head liner followed last month).

 

2. An ABS sensor failed. Replaced by Diamond. Forget how much.

 

3. Petrol filler cap lock failed. Replaced by Diamond. Forget how much.

 

Have to see how things go now that the car is 6+ years old and getting into "things go wrong" territory. The biggest 'problem' is that I really like this car and it's great fun to drive (fast enough but not crazy), and I have no idea what I'd change it for, for the same sort of price 1-1.5 million, that would offer the same combination of looks, performance and relative practicality (it being a genuine 2+2 with usable boot space).

[madhav]

I spent ages looking at all the options about 6 months back (within the 1 million price range). Seriously not much out there to compare that has comfort, power, euro quality and the ability to modify to go faster should that be your thing.

 

Ended up with a mk6 GTI. Have since spent a bit more on buying a hybrid K04 turbo from the UK, intake and exhaust and also a Cobb accessport etc to tune it to about 380whp on the stock fuel system which will make it a very fast hot hatch. Obviously going to need some decent tyres on it.

 

I recently saw a few nice used Audis for sale, S and RS models, but prices so damn high. 

[Will E Vormer]

Nice car and def a little jealous!
I missed a black 'R' version at a great price 2 years ago, which I think has a different engine, without the dreaded tensioner issue.

Sent from my SM-G950F using Tapatalk

[Just Weird]

On ‎4‎/‎5‎/‎2016 at 6:48 AM, seedy said:

Nonsense post - and Reply - Removed.

Just out of curiosity how can you remove someone's post unless you're Admin or a mod?  Can the rest of us do it also?