Need your opinion: VW

[st184]

Hey guys, just figured I would post this thread before I made a big monetary commitment to my first vw. I'm looking at buying a new(ish) vw jetta or golf with a TDI engine. I'm close to pulling the trigger but my cousin that works for Honda said VW is a very unreliable make. I just wanted to hear the beyond communities reviews from anyone who has previously owned one. Thanks.

[speedog]

My brother loves to see VW's in his shop, always making him money he says.

[AE92_TreunoSC]

VW owners will swear by them.

Ex-VW owners curse them.

VW Mechanics are the bravest of the lot.

The newer models are much better than the ones of yesteryear, but you still have backwards engineered cars that have unique problems that require unique owners to tolerate them.

Stay away from 2006 and earlier and you'll be ok.

[drtoohotty1]

Originally posted by AE92_TreunoSC
VW owners will swear by them.

Ex-VW owners curse them.

VW Mechanics are the bravest of the lot.

The newer models are much better than the ones of yesteryear, but you still have backwards engineered cars that have unique problems that require unique owners to tolerate them.

Stay away from 2006 and earlier and you'll be ok.

Dont forget unique tools to work on them

[J-hop]

To be honest I think a lot of the issues with VWs stem from either not maintaining them or cheap ass modding. I own a 2002.5 VR and although I may dislike it sometimes it hasn't given me any out of the ordinary problems.

On Mk4s the biggest thing people complain about are the ignition coils on the 1.8t and 24v VR and the coil pack on 12v VRand 2.0L (contrary to popular belief 24v VRs and 1.8t don't have coil packs) But really that is no big expense and if you do them once you probably won't have to do them again. Turbos going prematurely are 90% of the time due to thrifty tuners cranking them past their efficiency range.

The only advice I can give you on earlier ones Is stay away from autos. They tend to grenade and if you do end up with one don't think about tuning at all. That being said my brothers 01 passat with casual driving and regular maintenance is 250+k without a hint of issues with the auto tranny.

[asp integra]

tdi vw;s are more reliable than pos hondas. i would go vw any day over almost any other brand. make sure the car is checked out and inspected before purcahse and the rest of the decision is up to you

[muse017]

Nothing wrong with mechanical parts such as engine and transmission(TDI) as long as maintenance is done right. The most annoying part was electrical problem on these vehicles...man...you will hate it when you have to change your light bulbs every other week...lol..

[Xtrema]

Hondas are reliable because 2012 model is same as 1992 model mechanically, mostly.

When you don't take risk and improve, there is nothing to break.

When Honda take the risk to improve, everyone got broken trannys. Just ask anyone with a V6 and 5sp auto from 1999 to 2003.

[JRSC00LUDE]

Originally posted by asp integra
tdi vw;s are more reliable than pos hondas. i would go vw any day over almost any other brand. make sure the car is checked out and inspected before purcahse and the rest of the decision is up to you

lol

My buddy ran VW service here for years, shared building/ownership with Acura.....the VW service bay was constantly loaded while the acura techs twiddled their thumbs so to speak. A couple guys moved over so they could get more hours and do something other than routine service. The VW side was ALWAYS booked solid.

He left to run a Hyundai dealership and since then said he'd never go back to VW on the service side.

[garyb]

VW's are decent vehicles, they feel solid, comfotable, nice interiors, but maintenance is outrageous.

I own a b5 passat and engine wise its been great, its all the other parts attached to it that constantly need replacing. Control arm issues, subframe issues (alignement shop told me it will cost upwards of 400 to do a basic alignement as the subframe has shifted), ABS issues.

They look cooler than hondas though :nut:

[RNB11]

I also own a b5 passat, its been a great vehicle so far. Maintenance can cost a bit higher, but that is what you get for a more luxurious, solid vehicle.

With that being said, i have a stack of records/maintenance to back this car up. Turbo, ABS, Controls arm have all been replaced before. Major problems have been taken care of.

I'd say make sure to have it checked out and do not buy without any records.

[nismodrifter]

oh lawd how many times have we had this discussion?

inb4 "i heard they have electric problems"

[sillysod]

It's all maintenance. I don't know if I would buy a USED diesel, but I had a TDi Passat I owned since new that made it over 500,000kms before my cousin clipped a bridge with it.

People treat diesels like gas vehicles here in North America and nothing is harder on a diesel than a cold winter morning not plugged in. Then they blow blue smoke for 20 minutes commuting to work while it tries to warm up.

[GT4rally]

Japanese cars are always gonna more reliable that German cars... the payoff is in the German driving experience.

[My_name_is_Rob]

For the tdi, the mk4 golfs or jettas are quite reliable. I have a mk3 tdi jetta that is currently around 4XX,XXX kms and still running strong. Havent had any major issues.

Like others have stated, stay away from the autos, a they are prone to issues. And as long as the maintainance is kept up on them, they are good, reliable, and efficient cars.

[Skrilla]

I have owned 4 VW's over the years, currently still have 2. I would take the driving pleasure of a VW over a Honda any day. Sure they have their share of electrical issues at times, and some days you curse them, but I would never switch to Honda just for the "reliability" side. They are boring to drive, boring to look at, and don't do anything for me :dunno:

My ex's parents and close relatives only drove TDi's, and swore by them. They have plent of power, insane fuel mileage, and are actually quite reliable. Maint., is obviously key as with any vehicle you plan on keeping.

Just my $0.02

[r3ccOs]

Originally posted by My_name_is_Rob
For the tdi, the mk4 golfs or jettas are quite reliable. I have a mk3 tdi jetta that is currently around 4XX,XXX kms and still running strong. Havent had any major issues.

Like others have stated, stay away from the autos, a they are prone to issues. And as long as the maintainance is kept up on them, they are good, reliable, and efficient cars.

I had a 2.0 MK4 and I hear the TDI were also quite realiable

I didn't like how complex it is to work on VAG cars and electronics were always an issue... I don't know how many bulbs I had to replace, and a few issues withe my power windows and cruse control had to be isolated and fixed

[Type_S1]

VW's are garbage vehicles...stay away...stay far far away...

[darthVWader]

I'm on my second VW and (knock on wood) no issues so far.
My daily is a 09 Jetta TDI and driving in every day from Cochrane to the core I'm thinking I picked the right car. I get from 890km to my record 1010km per fill. Depends on how hard I drive her.
For me the draw back was the cost of services at the stealership. Now that I'm out of warranty I take it to MidTown and save a lot of scratch.

[CanmoreOrLess]

Originally posted by darthVWader
I'm on my second VW and (knock on wood) no issues so far.
My daily is a 09 Jetta TDI and driving in every day from Cochrane to the core I'm thinking I picked the right car. I get from 890km to my record 1010km per fill. Depends on how hard I drive her.
For me the draw back was the cost of services at the stealership. Now that I'm out of warranty I take it to MidTown and save a lot of scratch.

Finally someone posts (most were just bashing) information the OP is looking for, real world experience with a later model VW TDI, as well the year and not some nerd/fetish code! What's with all the Honda hate and off topic?

This is rather interesting as an idea of how a TDI cuts costs:

http://www.vw.ca/en/models/tdi_clean_diesel/distance-calculator.html

[kvg]

I love vw's ever since my first car (vw bug), but between 2 friends I have seen in excess of 60000 in repairs:eek: The cars were 2.5 rabbit, 2.0gti, and a v10 tdi toureg. I also have friends with great VW/Audi cars, but the do admit the "matainance" costs are higher. If they were more reliable I'd be driving a a3 or gti right now.

[CLiVE]

Originally posted by muse017
...you will hate it when you have to change your light bulbs every other week...lol..

I swore I would never own a VW or Honda....and now have one of each.

My wife daily drives (highway) a 2006 Golf TDI - 200km/day. The golf has been very reliable, and one of the most reliable cars I have owned (out of 15+ cars). We put ~50,000kms a year on it.

The TDI has nice torque, and in general I feel that the TDI models when matched with a manual transmission are more reliable than most other VW models. Maintenance, regular oil changes, etc. are key though.

And as the quoted posted mentioned - I do replace a lot of lightbulbs, but at least they are cheap.

We replaced our E46 3 series with the MK4 Golf, and save ~$300/month on fuel due to the highway commuting.

I am not very brand loyal, have owned a lot of different cars....but will purchase another VW some day. I believe reliability improved quite a bit mid 2000s...in my opinion.

When you do need service out of warranty - it is nice that there is good VW support in the city and you can avoid dealerships. Concept1, Tunedub, etc.

[st184]

Great feedback so far, there seems to be a pretty big rift in opinions on these cars. I'm having a really hard time deciding on a civic or jetta and its driving me insane. Obviously the input helps a ton, thanks guys!

[sillysod]

If you don't know what to get then a civic is the perfect car for you.

[max_boost]

Originally posted by sillysod
If you don't know what to get then a civic is the perfect car for you. LOL!!

That's so true and what I tell almost everyone who is looking for a car haha

[JRSC00LUDE]

Originally posted by st184
Great feedback so far, there seems to be a pretty big rift in opinions on these cars. I'm having a really hard time deciding on a civic or jetta and its driving me insane. Obviously the input helps a ton, thanks guys!

There is a rift, more than any other brand I know lol

I have some pretty negative opinions as you noticed and they're based on (what I believe to be) hard evidence but still.....more than once I've considered getting one in spite of all that - some of them just have an appeal for the price range that a lot of other cars do not.

If you go with a VW, just think of it as a woman....no matter how good you take care of it, it's GOING to piss you off and cost you money but, it may still be worth it in the end.

And if not, you can trade it in for a better model. :poosie:

[btimbit]

Originally posted by JRSC00LUDE


If you go with a VW, just think of it as a woman....no matter how good you take care of it, it's GOING to piss you off and cost you money but, it may still be worth it in the end.



Sounds about right:clap:

Personally, I love mine. If you treat it right, it'll treat you right. If you abuse it, it'll stop just short of exploding....
When they're great, they're the best. But when they're giving you crap, they're the worst thing since Saturn.

You said you'd be interested in a new-ish one, so grab one with a warranty and you're set. If not under warrenty, just get it serviced at tunedub. Cheaper than dealer, and George will keep it reliable.

If you're not willing to keep up on maintenance, then get a Civic. You won't enjoy it as much, but it'll probably treat you better.

[ddduke]

Originally posted by nismodrifter
oh lawd how many times have we had this discussion?

inb4 "i heard they have electric problems"

Obviously your didn't read the thread because that came up before you posted.

[Mitsu3000gt]

I'll just throw in my $0.02. I personally don't believe they are any less reliable than any other car on the road, if you follow routine maintenance (which goes for any car).

I had a 2000 Audi S4 and it has ZERO problems outside routine maintenance for the 8 years before I sold it. It was chipped since day 1 as well.

I had a 2006 Audi S4 which had zero problems for the 5 years before I sold it.

I have several friends with Jettas and Golfs, none who have had any problems. One friend with a 2000 Jetta VR6 that has only done routine maintenance. A friend with a 2005 Golf TDI which has been flawless for the 7 years until he sold it. Neighbor has a 2006 Jetta, and it has caused him zero issues.

And if you do have any problems, give George & Tune Dub a call and he will fix you up for way less than the dealer.

I would buy a VW in a heartbeat again if it was the car that suited me the best.

For every "horror" story or lemon, there are far more satisfied people with zero problems. There are lemons in every make & model of every car. Abuse them, and they will cost you money, just like any other car on the road.

[r3ccOs]

Originally posted by Mitsu3000gt
I'll just throw in my $0.02. I personally don't believe they are any less reliable than any other car on the road, if you follow routine maintenance (which goes for any car).

I had a 2000 Audi S4 and it has ZERO problems outside routine maintenance for the 8 years before I sold it. It was chipped since day 1 as well.

I had a 2006 Audi S4 which had zero problems for the 5 years before I sold it.

I have several friends with Jettas and Golfs, none who have had any problems. One friend with a 2000 Jetta VR6 that has only done routine maintenance. A friend with a 2005 Golf TDI which has been flawless for the 7 years until he sold it. Neighbor has a 2006 Jetta, and it has caused him zero issues.

And if you do have any problems, give George & Tune Dub a call and he will fix you up for way less than the dealer.

I would buy a VW in a heartbeat again if it was the car that suited me the best.

For every "horror" story or lemon, there are far more satisfied people with zero problems. There are lemons in every make & model of every car. Abuse them, and they will cost you money, just like any other car on the road.


you gotta wonder if there were specific model's that were worse than others...

I think that the larget marketshare in the VAG market were the MK4's and the affiliated Audi B5/B6

and its like you said, its a situation where you hear horror stories, and yet others who vouch stellar reliability

of the offerings from the MK4's, the 2.slow, VR6 and 1.8t, I actually have yet to hear anything specifically terrible about any of them..
but I think its like anything where I've seen more often than not, issues when people have had upgarded the KKK turbo and chipped it without taking into concideration the internals, the tune and the fuel

I think that electrics were never VAG's forte, and as the cars have become more complicated since... fuel mapping, LED lights, nav, DSG etc.. I'm not sure whether I would be more cynical about buying a modern VAG vehicle.

IMO nothing quite like a simple MK2 wiht an 18v or a MK3 GTI w/ a VR6

I wish we could get these here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volkswagen_Citi_Golf

[Klobi-1-Kinobi]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by r3ccOs
[B]


IMO nothing quite like a simple MK2 wiht an 18v or a MK3 GTI w/ a VR6

QUOTE]

I've owned several vdubs and found the best (reliable) were the earlier ones. Mk1's and mk3 vr6 were great cars in my experience (haven't had a mk2 "yet") and my mk4 1.8t not so much. Nothing major but it started to add up pretty quick for all the little stuff and this was well before the 100 000km mark.

It's hard not to like most of the new vw's for anyone who has driven them. Initial ownership satisfaction would be very high and like others have said you'll find lemons with any brand/model.

[r3ccOs]

Originally posted by Klobi-1-Kinobi
[QUOTE]Originally posted by r3ccOs
[B]


IMO nothing quite like a simple MK2 wiht an 18v or a MK3 GTI w/ a VR6

QUOTE]

I've owned several vdubs and found the best (reliable) were the earlier ones. Mk1's and mk3 vr6 were great cars in my experience (haven't had a mk2 "yet") and my mk4 1.8t not so much. Nothing major but it started to add up pretty quick for all the little stuff and this was well before the 100 000km mark.

It's hard not to like most of the new vw's for anyone who has driven them. Initial ownership satisfaction would be very high and like others have said you'll find lemons with any brand/model.

agreed... any new VW or Audi feels about as good as any car you could buy

GTI is an amazingly refined machine for its purpose (fun practicle people carrier) and the whole offering from the beetle, GTI, Passat, A5, Q5, Q7 TT, they are great cars off the lot

[Graham_A_M]

^ I can understand the view point from any hardcore veedub lover.
There will always be the people who just eat them up, or the other crowd that have personal experience with VW and now just fucking despise them.

Im one of the latter group. My dad bought a new at the time '03 Jetta TDI. He bought it on the premise that it would do these 1k km highway fill ups. Which it did, more or less... but VW stated it would get 60mpg, No it actually got 52mpg, and thats as good as it ever got. More like 50 average.... and those are on Sask roads so you know its about as flat as possible.

Then you have the splendid electrical problems which never ended. It was constant, CONSTANT issues.... with any given area of the system. serious ECU problems, gauges not working, Windows & power locks that just would stop working out of the blue, it would never fucking end... :banghead: 2nd worst handling car I've ever driven, 2nd only to a base model '72 Chevelle 4 door.

The following year after he sold that shitbox, before it was out of warranty; My old boss bought a '00 Jetta VR6.... much the same issues, but at least that thing handled decently. I remember sitting in the passenger seat and seeing his whole indicator lights flash consistently like a Christmas tree.
I asked "WTF is up with this thing"
"Oh they all do that, its either this with the random flashing lights or the much more serious problem with the ECU completely shitting the bed... and thats about a $2-3000 fix".
me: "wow.... and you buy cars like this knowing that before hand"
him: "...... (no comment)"
That thing was a complete lemon too. Finally it took the rad blowing up to make him consider selling it. Only he didn't; and several thousands of dollars later with other repairs...... :facepalm:

Lastly; my best friend bought a '08 GTI Golf. Also a shitheap.... but with insane maintenance bills. I've mentioned that one before so I wont get into the details yet again but...

Yeah man, fuck VW.... seriously. Save your money and stess levels.
There are SO many other cars and makes out there that are well worth your money. Im continually amazed VW is as big as they are today. :nut:

I know people are going to quote this and try to rip me apart for hating VW as much as I do, but after all these personal experiences its hard to have a decent opinion of a car company when this is all you've experienced over many years.

[st184]

Ended up with a 2012 black TDI Jetta sold to me today with the multimedia package. Thanks to all for their input, it was very much appreciated and carefully considered.

[sillysod]

enjoy it.

just make sure you plug it in and let it warm up in the winter and let it cool down after highway driving and it will last your forever.

[CanmoreOrLess]

Originally posted by st184
Ended up with a 2012 black TDI Jetta sold to me today with the multimedia package. Thanks to all for their input, it was very much appreciated and carefully considered.

Excellent! Please keep us updated on any developments, the good and the bad. I am looking at the same vehicle or perhaps the Passat or one of the SUV models, all diesel. Wondering if I want to creep into the Audi and MB area of the map.... Mazda coming out with a diesel later this year. Still undecided but I do know I need a diesel sometime this year.

[CanmoreOrLess]

Originally posted by Graham_A_M
^ I can understand the view point from any hardcore veedub lover.
There will always be the people who just eat them up, or the other crowd that have personal experience with VW and now just fucking despise them.

Im one of the latter group. My dad bought a new at the time '03 Jetta TDI. He bought it on the premise that it would do these 1k km highway fill ups. Which it did, more or less... but VW stated it would get 60mpg, No it actually got 52mpg, and thats as good as it ever got. More like 50 average.... and those are on Sask roads so you know its about as flat as possible.

Then you have the splendid electrical problems which never ended. It was constant, CONSTANT issues.... with any given area of the system. serious ECU problems, gauges not working, Windows & power locks that just would stop working out of the blue, it would never fucking end... :banghead: 2nd worst handling car I've ever driven, 2nd only to a base model '72 Chevelle 4 door.

The following year after he sold that shitbox, before it was out of warranty; My old boss bought a '00 Jetta VR6.... much the same issues, but at least that thing handled decently. I remember sitting in the passenger seat and seeing his whole indicator lights flash consistently like a Christmas tree.
I asked "WTF is up with this thing"
"Oh they all do that, its either this with the random flashing lights or the much more serious problem with the ECU completely shitting the bed... and thats about a $2-3000 fix".
me: "wow.... and you buy cars like this knowing that before hand"
him: "...... (no comment)"
That thing was a complete lemon too. Finally it took the rad blowing up to make him consider selling it. Only he didn't; and several thousands of dollars later with other repairs...... :facepalm:

Lastly; my best friend bought a '08 GTI Golf. Also a shitheap.... but with insane maintenance bills. I've mentioned that one before so I wont get into the details yet again but...

Yeah man, fuck VW.... seriously. Save your money and stess levels.
There are SO many other cars and makes out there that are well worth your money. Im continually amazed VW is as big as they are today. :nut:

I know people are going to quote this and try to rip me apart for hating VW as much as I do, but after all these personal experiences its hard to have a decent opinion of a car company when this is all you've experienced over many years.

One wonders if the last five years have VW building a better vehicle after all the horror stories on these older models? One cannot compare a 2008 Ford or GM to the vehicles they make of today, can VW change as Ford and GM have? Impossible to accept the VW rep when one comes from the Japanese end of car land, my sister's Acura drives and is as reliable as the day she bought it in 2001. My Honda is a half decade of blandness and problem free as well. How does VW control and thrive in most of the world yet have a record of crap?

[danno]

I've owned only Hondas and vws, I'd much prefer to own a vw as it is more refined and more fun to drive. I've never had a problem with my wifes civic, the problems I've had with my gti are all related to me getting the apr program. Either way it's fun to drive for a fairly affordable car.

[Graham_A_M]

Originally posted by CanmoreOrLess


One wonders if the last five years have VW building a better vehicle after all the horror stories on these older models? One cannot compare a 2008 Ford or GM to the vehicles they make of today, can VW change as Ford and GM have? Impossible to accept the VW rep when one comes from the Japanese end of car land, my sister's Acura drives and is as reliable as the day she bought it in 2001. My Honda is a half decade of blandness and problem free as well. How does VW control and thrive in most of the world yet have a record of crap?

Its a fanboyism that I dont understand, and probably nor will I...
My buddies GTI is a helluva fun little car to drive, handles great and fast. I think its a really cute smart little car, and quite practical too.... but I've seen the maintenance bills and know about the problems it has.
Dont get me wrong some people have had very good experiences oddly enough as what was stated in this thread, so with that my hats off to them; and wish them all the best...
For me at least it will be a blizzarding cold day in hell before I ever touch a VW. Everybody I've known personally has had abysmal luck with them so thats that. :nut:
Nice cars when they're new, but not so much there after in my experience.