2003 Passat wagon, 1.8 turbo with tiptronic.

Check engine light - replaced secondary vacuum valve and hose at 43,000
miles, $250.
Vibrating warped rear rotors and lining $410.
Replaced dip stick (broken plastic pull handle!!!) $20.
Noisy left front wheel bearing replaced at 47,000 miles, $600.
And the wiper blades wear out about every six months and I can't find
the cheap refills at Walmart anymore, so I have to buy the full
replacement from the dealer.

Repairs aren't quite as frequent as on my wife's 2000 Beetle, but the
Passat seems to be working on catching up...

So David,
What do YOU want?  :-)
A Hybrid may give you the economy you want in mpg and is definitely
different than your Passat.  You may even get a rebate for buying one too!
I think more Hybrid owners drive differently than Passat owners though so
expect to change your driving habits.  <g>

You probably have a ways to go before your Passat gets "too expensive" to
maintain.
Expect:
....Brakes =Normal around 40K or a little longer depending on usage
....Timing Belt = not bad at around 100k miles but will include water pump,
thermostat and misc. items
....Front Suspension replacement = not cheap and maybe at 100K miles or a
little longer.
....Turbo maybe after 120-140K miles maybe
....CV Joint Boots

If you use the correct synthetic oil and let that turbo cool down after a
spirited run you can hopefully keep them both in tip-top condition.
I am trying to learn about these cars and engines, so these are just some of
my observations and opinions.  ;-)

Except for a misfire problem that Woodchuck solved on this newgroup and
which took the dealer service dept four visits to fix (needed two new
coils), our 2002 1.8T Tip Passat was pretty much trouble free until
about 61000 miles when BOTH front outer CV boots blew out.  Our
dealership servce dept is very friendly and accommodating and the repair
with the 60K oil service was "only" about $600 (ie, actually not too
bad).  But that was a wake up call for me. I contacted WarrantyDirect
for a quote on a 2 or 3 year extended warranty.  It was about
$1500/2000.  I was all set to get it when VW announced a $1500 Passat
loyalty rebate on a new one.  I did the math:  $1500 + 2000 = $3000
towards a new car.

So what I'm saying is that VWs are great cars but even Woodchuck (with
way over 30 years as a master VW dealer mechanic) says that if you're
going to keep a VW, you'd better get an extended warranty.  You might
make it to 100K with minimal cost, but don't count on it.  I suspect we
wouldn't have used the entire $2000 but I'm at a point in life where I
don't like living with uncertainly and can afford the alternative.

Here's my philosophy re: VWs:  If you want to keep them after the
warranty runs out and you want piece of mind, you either have to fix
everything yourself or get an extended warranty. I had my 95 Golf for 7
1/2 years and I did all the repairs myself.  It never went to a pro
except for tires. Same with my 82 convertible.  But the Passat - no way.  
Too exotic and too hard to work on.  I'm hoping that VWs will become
more and more reliable with each new generation. So far my MKV GTI and
07 Passat have been pretty much trouble free. But time will tell.

Bill

Don't forget a full timing belt/waterpump/tensioner change at 60-65K (go
longer at risk of a $3.5K engine rebuild) at about $800-1,000.