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I have one very interesting question. I would like to purchase new Volkswagen Jetta TDI 1.6 2015-2016. I found new car in official dealer store. But there is one problem - These cars were constructed in Mexico for Turkey. For some reason they were denied in Turkey and moved for selling to Ukraine. This car is cheaper than cars constructed for Ukraine.

I heard that there is some difference between cars for hot countries and European countries. I mean special features like seat heater and engine coolant, etc. And here is the question. Is that true? Will this car's engine work fine in Ukraine climate at winter (may be -20 C degrees)? Will it be warm inside?

Is there Volkswagen support to answer this question?

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  • Does the VW TDI emissions scandal worry you at all? I'm in the US, so I don't know the details on all the international models, but you should at least check to make sure these cars are legal to sell in whatever country you live in. – JPhi1618 Apr 29 '16 at 15:26
  • It's legal car for our country. I think these cars were denied because of that scandal. – Nick Apr 29 '16 at 15:28
  • Cars manufactured for extreme cold parts of the world come with block and oil heaters from the factory. – Moab Apr 29 '16 at 19:16
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    Whether or not such as fuel heaters are an absolute necessity with diesels anyway will probably depend how appropriate local regulations are for the climate. Most colder countries regulate the diesel which can be sold during the colder months of the year at least requiring the addition of additives to ensure the fuel will not gel under normally expected climate conditions. For example in the UK the fuel sold in the summer months is allowed to have a gel point of -5C but it must be bellow -15C during the winter months. – MttJocy Apr 29 '16 at 19:48
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The engine will be fine - cars are designed to work in all conditions anywhere in the world. VW has a testing center that can theoretically test their cars and engines to work from -40 to 150C (saves on flying development cars to Finland and the Sahara)

There will be some differences in the car trim levels; for example, cars in hot countries probably wouldn't come with block heaters, while cars destined for cold countries wouldn't come with air conditioning (don't fact-check this, it's just an example!).

The biggest problem with a car from a different area could be lights - e.g if I was in the UK and purchased a car in France, all the lights would be biased to the wrong side, because the UK drives on the left.

In your specific case, I'd talk to the dealer, and make sure that the car has a full warranty. Ask them about a block heater if you feel you need one - and negotiate for it if one is not already fitted. I think with full dealer support, you have little to worry about.

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    At least a few years ago, a cold-weather-specific trim option on VWs was seat heat, side mirror heat, and an insulated battery box. – hobbs Apr 29 '16 at 19:19
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    Air conditioning is still useful for defogging the windshield, even in cooler climates. – 200_success Apr 29 '16 at 19:36
  • @200_success how do you use air conditioning to defog the windshield? in the UK I use the fan with the heater to remove condensation from the inside of the windshield. Air conditioning tends to have the opposite effect - in Singapore the buses have condensation pouring down the outside of the windows due to the air conditioning maintaining 20 degrees inside. Are you confusing refrigerated air conditioning (for hot countries) with the air blower (fitted in all countries)? – Level River St Apr 29 '16 at 20:26
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    @LevelRiverSt The air conditioner works as a dehumidifier.. – 200_success Apr 29 '16 at 20:30
  • @LevelRiverSt Many newer cars (in the US at least) will run the A/C almost full time as a way to remove and condensate moisture out of the air. This + heat really increases the effectiveness of de-fogging and similar. For instance, when I turn on the De-Fog in my Mazda, the light indicating AirCon is engaged turns on, even if it's -5C outside. – BrownRedHawk Apr 29 '16 at 20:31
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I'd imagine that just swapping the coolant and potentially installing a block heater would be good enough, even if there were differences. Like purchasing any other vehicle, though, it certainly wouldn't hurt to have it inspected, and make sure that it runs without issue prior to purchasing it.

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  • Note that OP is asking about a new, presumably factory brand new, car, of very recent model vintage. It's very unlikely that it has any serious problems when just driving off the lot, and if it does, those should be covered by the new-car warranty (which the OP hopefully would get). – user Apr 29 '16 at 22:16
  • You'd be surprised - up here in Canada, a lot of new vehicles that are imported from the U.S. often don't come with block heaters. For example, a vehicle which is sold to a destination in Florida will not likely have a block heater, yet the same vehicle, if sold in Michigan, might. Warranties are also often country specific. E.g.: Honda in the US covers seatbelts fore life, while up here in Canada, they are only covered under the regular warranty period. Warranties often don't transfer between countries. – Joel Bennett May 2 '16 at 19:32
  • Swapping coolant and engine oil I'd say. – John U Nov 11 '16 at 15:47
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As far as I know all car engines and features are the same, but different ECU(engine control unit) mapping. ECU mapping can be customized for different regional markets. Most people may not know the different ecu setting as it is not visible. e.g. the europe and export market version for (SEA) south east asia (tropical countries) is different. This also subject to respective regional dealers request. The main variable factors beside hot climate are the grade of fuel, quality and fuel additives are different in different countries. Some car manufacturers does a good job to get the right variance but some are not which may lead to longevity and reliability issues in future..

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New cars are good in hot or cold like others have said .Most old american stuff is good because the USA has big temperature extremes .Car manufacturers wanted the cars to go to Texas or Canada .Old British cars were primarilary designed for the British Isles .When they went to warmer climates like NZ and Australia there were overheating problems .Some British engines had smaller cooling passages which might have been fine in liverpool but not in Darwin .Such engines have been shown to be good in boats .Early BMC front wheel drive stuff had the rediators pointing at the front wheel which made overheating bad .

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