I have a chance to buy a 2004 TL with only 35000 miles. My buddy inherited it from his father. It's pristine inside and out and I can't find anything wrong with it EXCEPT the gas mileage. My current daily driver is a VW TDI and I get 37 mpg with mixed driving so It's going to be hard to cut that in half. This TL is a whole lotta car and probably more than I need BUT it's practically new. I tend to keep cars longer than I should but if there's no reason to sell why have a car payment? My current VW has 250,000 miles and still runs great but you really can't compare the two cars.
What kind of expenses (other than gas) should I expect with this TL? I've read horror stories about transmission repairs/replacements.
Its fun to drive but I'm concerned about ongoing maintenance costs.
Any advice would be appreciated.

 

Like you said, 2 different animals. The TDI is a GREAT car. Daughter's 2002 Jetta TDU went 386k, and still ran well when she sold it. How much is your friend asking for the TL. Has the maintenance been kept up. "ie" I think the timing belt requires replacement every seven years, or 105K miles. If the timing belt has never been changed, expect to pay in the $750-$1200 range. While the 04-05-06 transmissions are suspect, if this car has been properly maintained, I would risk it. It's a comfortable, fun, beautiful ride, easily capable of 34 MPG, highway.

 

 

What kind of price he looking for? That would matter a lot in my decision. If you drive mostly highway, like frank said, its easy to get 30+, won't be too far behind the TDI at least in that sense. But then again you get the extra luxury, I personally think it looks better, better HP/TQ, etc.

 

FWIW: Fourteen year old tires, NOT SO GOOD. I would replace the tires immediately, regardless of tread condition. Those tires, are not SAFE! I'm confident, a little research, on your part, will substantiate my recommendation. Cheers

 

I was looking at a 2006 TL last year with only 20,000 miles on the clock; given the age, it was an odds on bet the tires, hoses (including brake caliper hoses), and belts would all have been needing replacement along with a full flush of the brake system. When the replacement of all of those components was added to the already high asking price, I took a pass. The car you're looking at is effectively three years older than the one I was looking at so you will definitely need to budget for all of the items I listed plus, assuming the car you're talking about has an automatic transmission, a 3x3 ATF change for the transmission is probably a very good idea at this point.