Would you buy a VW?

[ViviTheMage]

I thought they were doing AWD (4motion) on the new Golf?

Was that just a tease?

definitely a tease, never heard this, would love it though.

 

[orenero]

I myself own a VW TDI, over 300k miles and runs like a champ. I will say when it expires with any car really a private reliable mechanic or shop, the dealer will always more than likely screw you with prices and gouge you any way they can. If you buy a VW TDI head over to tdiclub forums and there is trusted mechanic list for each area of the country. I live and die by mine and would get one again in a heartbeat and let me trusted mechanic work on it for any non-warranty work.

Also I am also mad they don't have a Tiguan TDI or AWD GOLF that would be sweet. The only thing close which is bigger and nice is the Audi Q5 diesel, rumour mills say the Q3TDi will be coming.

 

[Oric]

Americans asking if German cars are reliable ?

Good joke

 

[JulesMaximus]

Americans asking if German cars are reliable ?

Good joke

Last American car I bought was in 1996. Last German car I bought was in 1998.

Won't be buying either again anytime soon.

 

[Rezist]

I'd only buy a VW if a diesel is required, if not why even look? For most people if your looking for an economy hatch to be used as an appliance the amount of miles you have to drive to make it justifiable over say a Civic is massive. My own civic at over 150000 km has only need oil changes and a new set of tires at 80,000km cause I was too lazy to rotate them.

 

[inachu]

I just saw yesterday in D.C. an abandoned VW along the highway.

Would not buy one.

 

[Sulaco]

Americans asking if German cars are reliable ?

Good joke

By that logic, Turkish people shouldn't be able to ask about cars, period.

 

[inachu]

By that logic, Turkish people shouldn't be able to ask about cars, period.

It is true. Even BMW is not what they once were. I went to BMW and the sales floor guy told me I would be better off getting a mustang.

 

[Denly]

The two Passats were alternatively awesome and horrendous-both were plagued with frequent electronic gremlins that were expensive as heck to repair. One example - a faulty ABS sensor that has no effect on driveability but lit the dash panel up like a nuclear plant going through meltdown and cost $700 to fix (mostly parts cost). Another thing I hated about the more modern VWs is how horrendously unfriendly they are to owner-servicing. Simple things like changing the oil are a complicated, hour+ long project (unless you have a car lift). Even changing a headlight bulb is an exercise in frustration.

Agree, had 2 B5.5 passat 1.8T. Check engine light up at least a few times a year, from random sensor to air blower to crack tube somewhere. I always have a spare spark coil in the car as it kill at least 2 a year.

for the oil change, I got it down to science. roll it up to a 2x4, pan in and drain, move the pan over to the driver size, remove coolant tank, remove oil filter from above, drop it over to the pan below. done. 20min

 

[Excelsior]

Yes, because they've improved a lot from my Passat days. My B5.5 has been anything but trouble free however if you own one of these cars and you are having work done at the dealer or paying full price for parts you're crazy. Parts are actually quite cheap and plentiful for this car (new parts are even still manufactured in China for the same car). The brake last a long time, the styling still fools people who think it isn't 12 years old, doors close with a nice thud, it's roomy considering the size, and I actually like the engine. I've got six airbags, get 30 on the highway, and the transmission is bulletproof.

Re: Denly and Thump - I haven't had a coil pack go out on me in over three or four years and my B5.5 is a daily driver. That shouldn't happen anymore as there was a recall. I also had ABS trouble. I didn't pay $700 either....

 

[TheAdvocate]

definitely a tease, never heard this, would love it though.

Hmmm... maybe not...

"Golf Alltrack"

http://jalopnik.com/the-2015-volkswagen-alltrack-is-the-best-golf-for-the-f-1638498252

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/09/24/vw-golf-alltrack-paris-outback-rival/

 

[Midwayman]

Not all Germans are bad
http://www.cars.com/go/advice/Story.jsp?section=buy&story=topDependBrd&subject=most_depend

MB regularly finds itself in the top 25% or so. Though they tend to be streaky by model.

 

[natto fire]

After trying to help a friend fix wiring problems in his Scirocco, no. My aunt and uncle have an '01 MB CLK320 and a '96 Lexus LS400. The MB has had several fairly major problems, with the retractable top, and driveline, while the Lexus has never asked for more than regular maintenance items.

 

[nerp]

I have to echo this. My wife has driven one for 11 years. We had a carbon issue with the engine which cost us about $600. And the (pop out) cupholders in that older one were a joke and break constantly (we have found a way to replace them for very cheap - every 2 years or so - they dont use these anymore). Last year, we had an electric motor for one of the windows finally die. Glow plugs have been a little more frequent replacement than I would have liked. I won't lie about problems, but I still consider the car to be a very solid financial investment, and my wife loves it. She still regularly gets 42-45 mpg. My two young kids beat the hell out of it and it gets run in tons of stop and go traffic daily. It's been solid.

As a former VW owner, apologizing and accepting random things breaking and dead window motors and frequent replacements is something you have to do to not go crazy. I can relate. You realize the things you're messing with and OK with would be intolerable for anyone used to driving a car that is actually reliable with good build quality.

 

[skyking]

We have two diesel beetles in the 150K mile range. I scheduled the first repair by an outside shop on my wife's car yesterday, it is a front wheel bearing. $260
I do most things, like brakes, oil, etc.
I hear about all these gremlins and bad build quality things, and read about them.
So far here is the list:
The trunk latch on her car will not properly set up for closure if it is triggered by the remote or door switch, intermittently. It will work OK several times and then it won't latch when you close it. When it does this you simply put the key in the trunk lock and cycle it. I am not tearing into the hatch to investigate.
That is it for her car, no codes, everything works.
Mine has a bad microswitch in the driver's lock, and I have to use a key in the door.
It is an easy fix but once again, it is not a priority. Do you see a theme there ?
Mine does toss a code due to a harness that is also supposedly an easy fix. That is all, everything works.
For us, the nightmare service problems have not materialized. I will get quotes from the shop that is doing the bearing on my door lock and her hatch lock, and report back.
Other than that, we get 45 and 47 on our mixed commutes. Mine gets lower because I dabbled with a few things and can't keep my foot out of it now

 

[dtgoodwin]

I had a 2000 Jetta TDI. From the factory, the instrument cluster wasn't working, but they had caught it in pre-delivery inspection and already had the part on order. The injection pump sounded very noisy from the beginning. After 6 months of owning it, and 10K miles, I brought up the issue at my first service and it was promptly disregarded. Before it's second service it started becoming difficult to start - even in summer, and would buck and misfire under light load on the freeway. Eight visits to different dealers, including an over the weekend where the mechanic took it home didn't result in repair. I finally took the shop foreman for a 5 minute freeway ride and a new pump was ordered. I thought all would be right from then on. Broken cup-holders (very common issue), broken power windows (again, very common). Lovely feeling surfaces that peeled off showing the cheap plastic beneath, and the compressor wheel in the turbo breaking free of the shaft all occurred in under 60K miles. I was fortunate to not have a runaway based on the amount of smoke coming out the back after oil could freely make it's way into the intake.

I bought it as I was driving 100 miles each day (80% freeway). Diesel wasn't much more expensive, and I thought the mileage and longevity would save me money. Instead, it was more frustration than the 50 MPG it provided. Traded it in for pennies at 65K.

I owned an '81 Rabbit Diesel with 140K, and an 84 Jetta Turbo Diesel with 160K. Neither were exciting to drive, slow as tar, and rattled and shook like crazy, but I still loved them. My 2000 was wonderful to drive when it was working properly. Just far too many problems. My 2002 TrailBlazer that replaced it (some would also say was junk), has been the best vehicle I've ever owned. In 200,000 miles it's never left me stranded. I've sworn off VW and will stick with far less costly to maintain and repair American/Japanese vehicles.

 

[A5]

My friend has a 2008 Jetta with 150k miles, no major issues. I wouldn't have any issues checking out the GTI and/or Passat next time I go looking for a car, even I don't think I'd end up with either of them.

 

[SniperWulf]

Lets see,

I've owned the following, all manuals:
A few 70's beetles
95 Jetta GLX
02 Jetta 1.8T
04 Jetta GLI
12 Golf TDI

All have been great to me. I did have to change the heater core in the 95, but the car was 14 years old when I bought it. Even at that age, it ran like a dream.

The 02 was totaled when some dbag failed to yield when making a left turn.

I had to get the coil packs replaced on the 04, but they were under recall. Inconvenienced, but it didn't cost me anything. Only reason I sold it was because I had too many cars sitting in the yard and wifey talked me into choosing 2.

The 12 Golf is now my DD. My first TDI. Boy is it fun. Picked it up at a year old with high mileage (38k at purchase) and no problems so far. Love the torque it makes. And the mileage is excellent.

I haven't had any of the issues you read about with any of my VWs. Just keep the maintenance done and you should be fine.

 

[thomsbrain]

owned a 2008 GTI, 2010 Jetta TDI, and now a 2014 Passat TSI with 0 problems so far.

Most people would say that you need to drive a car for more than one tank of gas to tell whether it's reliable.

 

[ChronoReverse]

The 12 Golf is now my DD. My first TDI. Boy is it fun. Picked it up at a year old with high mileage (38k at purchase) and no problems so far. Love the torque it makes. And the mileage is excellent.

You should be careful with this TDI though. The Common Rail ones can have the HPFP pop without warning, wrecking the entire fuel system (it's unclear what exactly causes this but there's supposed to be a filter kit you can keep it from wrecking your whole fuel system when it does go)

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Hahahahhaaa... this has to be a joke account right?

Yea European cars tech is so great that's why Ferrari uses GMs magnetic shock system, BMW has used GM transmissions, etc...

Also why Mercedes had to recall their cars to remove the entire brake control system and convert it back to the same hydraulic one most car makers use.

Let me guess the kind of auto knowledge you have, my tire pressure should be set to sidewall right? :sneaky:

You really want to get into the recall game? GM/Ford/Chrysler are the kings of Recalls.
I've had 3 vehicles in my life out of over 30 that never gave me problems.
1. 2006 Kia Sephia
2. 2010 Kia Sedona
3. 2012 F150 5.0 Screw

If you want to get into the quality game I'll play. My 2010 Mustang GT Premium with 800 miles on it had to be limped back to the dealership in the middle of summer with no electrical systems working in the cabin. No A/C, windows wouldn't roll down, no lights anywhere on the car worked. Radio was dead, basically the only electrical power in the car was running the engine in limp mode. Got it to the dealership and a completely new electrical system later I had the car back. Never had any other issues with it though, but that's a major problem to have.
My 06 Silverado had a bad wheel bearing the 1st week into owning it. Toyota Sienna threw CEL when we drove it off the lot, new exhaust system from manifold back along with sensors and about once a year it threw the CEL code again. Paint on the roof peeled off in a giant sheet. Auto sliding door would activate itself and not stop if something was in the way. Seatbelt hight adjuster broke.
Had a Oldsmobile Cutlais Calais as my 1st car and I could only drive it 3/4 of the way to school because no one could fix the fuel injector issue it had where one injector would get stuck dumping fuel at full bore into one of the cylinders. Replaced injector, harness and computer and had the same issue.
I have a 2013 VW CC now and aside from the dash clock being noisy when I first got it and it taking a week for me and the service department to figure out where the sound was coming from, it's been fine. I've put about 15K miles on it in 8 months. It's got plenty of get up and go, and for $700 it will get a 55-60HP boost with an ECU flash. It's fun to drive, it looks good, has a ton of space and I get 36-38 MPG average (though i do a lot of highway driving). It's also one of the only somewhat luxury cars I could find with a stick.