Thread: What to look for when buying 98 2.5D

I would go for a auto tdi. Try to get good service history. Try to get one with excellent interior. Maybe you can get se tdi not sure.
Theyll prob be oil leaks because owners dont like spending money! Besides exterior appearences........ the following are my recommendations...
Ill start with the engine. No matter what vehicle i would buy i would change the radiator or at least get radiator rodded. Change hoses and belts and check all clams tight inc turbo hoses. Check turbo bearings side to side movement. Prefably change water pump or at least check turbine for movement. Check p gasket not leaking. If changeing water pump change the p gasket! Lap the water pump case so mounting will be superb to block. Pressureise cooling system with hand tool to make sure no leaks.
Purchase low water coolant alarm and install tm2. Change fuel lift pump and use delphi only. I would seriously consider changing timing case for the new fan bearing and change fan hub. Change belt tentioner. Check for oil leaks around vaccum pump, auto lines. Sometimes oil leaks from pas pump from reservoir...replace with high quality hoses on one connection.
After purchase take rocker cover off and check condition rockers not pitted loosing hardness. Replace valve stem caps with ones that have holes in the middle allowing oil to lubricate. Consider installing oil catch can.
Check panhard rod and all suspension bolts are tight.
Most of these recommendations are post purchase. You have to consider where your travelling with the vehicle and the age of the vehicle. With a vnt, v8 radiator and front mount intercooler you ould have a mechanical diesel that can keep up with traffic. Most that i have doest need to be done. But its good maintenance and good mods. You will know all your auxillaries have a starting point. Like a said if i bought any brand 4x4 i would do radiator, hoses, belts starter and alternator as a min before going anywhere etc vic high country. Even consider a second hand battery. Start with a solid platform. You never know what you buy. I dont think a pre inspection is money well spent.

Thanks for such a comprehensive reply, really appreciate it!

For me, buying any vehicle is a 'gut feel'.
Gut feel for the current owner. As you talk to them, you get a feel for things like .. were they '*******' .. speaking garbage about stuff you know is just rubbish.
Visual inspection of the car will show if the owner(s) cared about it, or just drive it, with zero thoughts to maintain it to a reasonable level.
Simple stuff like major oil leaks. brake pad wear, are tyres 4 different types?(major sign to move on).
If they can't spend minimal dollars, even on cheapo new tyres of a single brand, but instead cheap out on 4 different S/H tyres, then most likely will not have spent money on quality parts when they wear out.

if auto, you can do this yourself, then look for the large dipstick on the drivers side near the firewall, and check it for colour and smell.
If it smells like badly burned 'soy sauce', chances are trans oil hasn't been changed. trans oil should be fairly clear red fluid(usually red! but not specifically so) .. but whatever they used, it should be clear. And smell like normal oil.
Engine oil will be black. Look for oil leaks in engine bay.
Also look for just cleaned engine bay too .. could be hiding some issue if it's freshly cleaned.
I like to see clean engine bay area, but with a bit of a dusty layer, indicates none - minimal leaks over a few klms travelled.

But in saying all that, no matter how well the vehicle is checked over, there is probably going to be an issue of some type somewhere down the track.

I bought mine nearly 3 years ago now. Done 65K klms, 99% trouble free. But! when I bought mine, I went on 'gut feel', and my only major concern was that a previous owner fitted an electric brake controller.
Rang alarm bell in that the tdi was used to two something heavy. Chap that owned it said it came as he got it. He supplied the RWC too for me .
It just needed a good clean up on the interior. My headlining is draping a little(they all do it!).
I still worried about the brake controller, and for me that meant trans trouble down the track.
Trans oil was good tho, basically like new, but not obviously new.
So what happened 2 months later was that the transfer case sun a bearing. Scared bejeezuz out of me, as it jumped out of gear(high range) on a freeway and coasted, with engine revving freely!
Thought bloody trans stuffed! .. nup, just jumped out of high range with no load on it. Then back in high range, and headed home, and an abominable screaminging noise from the transfer case(the spun bearing).
Organised a reco transfer case, and while out check the trans fluid and change it's seal too. Mechanic said trans was looking in good nic!(60K klms later I reckon he was pretty much spot on).

Like matuesz said too .. very important that if this is what you want, you need to be pretty much all over the cooling system. Std rad is fine I reckon, just keep it clean.
Watch hoses, I personally don't like the design type of the main rubber hose, and I had one heater hose rubbing around the back of the engine rocker cover(impossible to see, unless it was checked for).
My main hose was delaminating at one of the joins, and that heater hose was going to burst due to the heat damage of the rocker.
So I got all new silicon hoses for it. At the least I now feel more confident with the cooling system, and that it sometimes runs quite hot(using A/C).

I have different personal preference for keeping an eye on the cooling, but at the least you want some other way(other than the useless dash temp gauge) to keep an eye on how hot it's running.
The other gauge of note will be EGT gauge to be sure it's not running to rich and blowing too much smoke.
They aren't the most powerful engine, so depending on your driving style, EGT can get to engine damaging levels if not 'looked after'.

The commonly accepted idea on smoke output from a tdi is that it'll puff a small amount of smoke on start up(normal) and then you should have nothing to very little. You may see a small puff on initial booting down of the loud pedal(eg. for overtaking .. assuming the vehicle ahead is slow enough to overtake! )