docmirror

I should clarify For VWs sold in the US, there are only two plants that supply this market. Wolfsburg and Mexico. Some of the early Beetles in the US were from Brazil, but they got seriously bad press, and Brazil production imports to the US were replaced with the Mexico build. The OP is from Kansas. Kansas is the exact middle of the US.

bill d cat

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/c...-used-cars.htm

Stop by your friendly bookseller and pick up whatever used car guide Consumer Reports is currently selling. CR tallies questionnaires on some 1.3 million vehicles each year so it might have more statistical significance than Rennlist anecdotes. It's well worth the $10 or whatever.

In the April 2011 issue the "Used Cars to Avoid" list was 10 lines long for VW, 7 lines for BMW, and 5 lines long for Mercedes.

The list was 2 lines long for Toyota and 1 line long for Honda.

I like the way Eurocar seats fit my Eurobutt but the maintenance and repairs just aren't worth the headaches.

The BMW will be my last (new) Eurocar, ever.

Toyota or Honda, there is no substitute. (There will always be Porsche but definitely not new, definitely not as a daily driver, and I don't expect Toyota-like reliability.)

michaelathome

My 2001 GTI has had it's problems but it has never left me stranded. 138K miles. Averages 22.5mpg over past the 6yrs.

Ignition switch failed, wouldn't read key. Fortunately I have aftermarket flash that bypassed immobilizer. Just couldn't turn on any lights.
P/S rack seal failed dumping PS fluid in a parking lot.
Coils failed under recall, just ran rough.
Headliner is falling.
Sunroof gasket got old and rotted and started leaking.
Headlights yellowed with age, replaced with NOS off vortex for $100+ cost of bumper removal.
E-brake cables rusted wouldn't release calipers fully.
Lower engine covers ripped off in 5in of snow/ice. Replaced with a Panzer plate for about what new lowers would have cost.
Wheels are soft and I have replaced all 4 due to bends. My style was known for it's problems.

Most of the above are just normal wear and age related so I would say that I haven't had any real problems on my Brazil made dub.

Oh... LOTS and LOTS of replaced marker and turn signal bulbs! More than I would expect normal.


Michael

Baptizo

I agree with bill_d_cat - you can't go wrong with a Honda and I miss my EM1.

I sold it, regretfully, after 99k miles and it never needed anything except fuel, tires, and oil changes. I drove it like I stole it - that little Civic Si rocked.

IXLR8

Don't believe everything you read. Forums are a very small percentage of the total owners of any marque.

They say the same thing about BMWs yet in the four years that I owned one, I didn't have a single issue with it. Same for my 20 years of BMW motorcycle ownership so far...just lubes and filters. My friend's BMW is in its 26th year and nothing out of general wear items has needed replacing.

Hell, if I believed everything I read on forums, I'd have billet valve covers on my 993 to solve leaks when all I really needed were new valve cover seals.

BTW, my next daily driver will be a new VW TDI, but I have to wait another 6 years; my Honda is only 12 years old and just won't quit.

docmirror

Yeah, it's funny. I have two of them and it's like two different cars. One has been quite reliable and is a good runner. The interior appointments aren't my favorite but they're ok. The other has been a nightmare in one way or another.

Hard to figure on the basis of two cars. I've had some Hondas and Toyotas over the years and they might be marginally better but the safety aspect outweighs buying a Toyota.

hoggel

I have driven a watercooled vw daily for 11 years (three cars). I got tired of the color of 2000 cosmic green GTI but loved the sound of the VR6. No reliability issues with that car. When I sold the cosmic I bought a used 2002 Golf TDI. Not a single problem with that car. My former girlfriend took it with her when she left. She really knew how to hurt me. Since then I have been driving a 2004 Jetta TDI. Also during that time I owned a couple mkII GTIs for hobby car's. I swapped a 2003 1.8t into one. What a blast that was to drive. The other was a 16 valve. I couldn't get the oil to stop leaking from that engine/trans. I must have had the engine out 5 times.

If you are considering Jetta/Golf/GTI I suggest you avoid the mkIII years, 92-98, and the early mkIVs, 99. The mkIIs are pretty hammered by now and the mkIs are either rusted out or hobby cars. I have no experience with the mkVs, 2005-. The turbo motors are less reliable but more fun. Maintenance on the turbo cars is critical. Did I mention that I love the mkIV TDI? I get ~50 miles per gallon and they are very comfortable. I have replaced a coolant hose twice and one fuel hose, all in the same area near the fuel pump. If my current 2004 Jetta ever wears out I'll get another TDI.

autobonrun

I really appreciate all the comments. Doing research on the Jetta, I never realized there were so many engine options for these cars. For maintenace reasons, I'll stay away from the turbo and try to find a NA car instead. The less torque for a teenager the better. Should lower insurance as well.

I actually like the body design of the Jetta; not a sports car, but not a box either. It seems as though many here have hands on experience with VW and that's what I was looking for. I get frustrated when people talk about how much maintenance a car requires and they've never actually owned one. I get that all the time on my Porsche and M5 and I have had no major issues. It helps that I can do some of my own maintenance and have a lift if I need to access the drive train.

As far as Honda's and Toyota's, I did price them first. The prices I'm seeing for 160k mile Honda's is the same as a 120k mile 325. At that mileage any car is going to require some work; and if I'm going to have to do maintenance, I rather it be on a German engineered car. My first car was an Opel GT and I was often working on it at college. There's just something about German engineering that I can understand.

Thanks again. Especially the hint to check for origin of manufacture.

By the way, I have located an 04 GLS for about $8k with 112k miles that's fully loaded that I'll take a look at. I'm in no hurry. I'll just take my time.

speedbump2

There is also an assembly plant in Bratislava, Slovakia that ships to the U.S.
My '04 R32 and it's 4,999 U.S. market siblings were built there.

--Chuck--

Imo000

My wife and I both have '00 Jetta TDI, 5-speeds. Between the two cars, we have over 1 MILLION Kms. Each are just a bit over 500K (300K MILES). The more you drive them, the longer they last. Some had issues with them but we had very little and those were expected wear and tear parts. Both still have the original turbos, inection pumps/injectors and the wife's transmisson oil is still original oil and the axles haven't been touched either. I do zero preventative maintnance. Change the oil once a year (50K kms or 30K miles) and yet, the inside of the engine is spotless.

GuyIncognito

I had an '02 Jetta 1.8t and an '07 GTi DSG.

I'll never buy another VW.

Renaud Bizet

2003 GTI 1.8T and just over 100K with no issues FWIW

Mark Dreyer

My last 4 daily drivers: 04 Golf TDI, 06 Jetta TDI, 09 Jetta TDI, currently 10 Touareg TDI. I have been very happy with the VW brand.

Frino

My son has had his 2004.5 Jetta GLI since 2005. We bought used with 3K miles. It's been trouble free for six years. 1.8T motor with 6MT still going strong...gets 30-35mpg on the highway. Got the GIAC flash four years ago and has not thrown one CEL. Most importantly, my son still loves the car after six years.

Check out a 07/08 Jetta GLI...you can probably pick one up for between $10-$15K

87 944 C

silly question, but whats the difference between giving him a 7k passat and a 7k BMW? honostly bmw is more reliable than VW, VW is almost always classed in the lower half on scoring of reliabilty per 100 customers, while BMW is in the top 10. i have a joke about VW, if you light a match behind it while driving and then do a satalite image of the world, there will be a big VW symbol burning on the ground from all the oil they've leaked out