advice on buying a vr6.....

[jamest 0]

I am looking at buying a corrado for the first time having previously owned a mk2 8v golf for a couple of years. have had a few problems and had to spend quite a bit of cash on the golf and I am looking for some advice on buying a corrado vr6 at about £6k. I have looked at a few examples with fVWsh and 70-80000 miles and would like to know if there is potential for any big bills! any advice would be greatly appreciated... cheers

[vr6storm 0]

here's one i posted earlier this year :lol:

 

as for things to look out for(in no order btw)

1)make sure that the oil level is at/near the max and is relatively clean.......much lower points to careless ownership

2)it might sound a tiny bit tappetty(could be down to too thin an oil being used) and also have a very slight uneven idle this is normal,though through the rev-range it should be silky smooth and refined

3)make sure the spoiler rises at either 40/45mph(early cars) or 56mph(later cars)and that it can also be raised manually

4)make sure all the other electrics work too

5)check that there is no oil mixing with the water in the expansion tank....if it is it could be either the oil/water heat exchanger(£40ish part + fitting)or worse the h/gasket(£200++) also check the oil-filler cap...though don't automatically think that if there is a slight mayo on it that the h/gasket's failed as it could just as easily be condensation

6)all vr6's have abs fitted.....make sure that the abs light goes off within seconds of starting the car...if there is no abs light fitted or it doesn't go off then this points to either an expensive fault or that the abs has been removed

7)make sure the s/roof opens and closes without twisting as this can be quite expensive to fix

8)make sure that the tyres are wearing evenly if not this points to the steering geometry being out and could also be an expensive suspension problem

9)door handles are prone to breaking and can be expensive to fix....one of the signs is a stiff handle when opening the door

 

 

NBthe VR6 has a timing chain as opposed to a timing belt.......and there is no recommended interval for changing this......though if there is clutch or headwork being done some people just bite the bullet and get this changed at the same time as it saves a bit on labour

 

 

thats all from the top of my head

it might be an idea getting a vw-dealer or specialist to inspect it is so that they can also check the dtc's(aka fault codes) with the vag-com software............as these can be expensive to fix and can cause all sorts of future problems

hth

[jamest 0]

cheers thats helpful! one more thing, whats the score with a mileage of around 80000? am i liable to have a head gasket failure because i had one on my golf and it cost me megabucks! :mad:

[vr6storm 0]

cheers thats helpful! one more thing, whats the score with a mileage of around 80000? am i liable to have a head gasket failure because i had one on my golf and it cost me megabucks! :mad:

 

well tbh it all depends on the way previous owners have treated the car as i've heard of VR's having to get the head gasket fixed after as little as 50k miles and yet others with well over 100k miles still having the original head gasket on

[Kevin Bacon 5]

The head gaskets have been uprated now, so if it does go, ask for the newer steel one. Mine's on 84K and on the original gasket, still seems OK. Worry about it when it pops! Enjoy the car in the meantime :lol:

 

Kev

[jamest 0]

cheers! going to go and look at a few soon-yippee :lol: