After my transmission went in my old VW (following a host of other issues the previous owner had let happen), I decided to get another VW despite how many problems I had with the last one (a 95 jetta gl).

I've had this 03' Jetta for just under 3 months now, and just saw my engine light go on. Now, I have a silver warranty package on the car, but I'm about fed up with dealing with cars and having to plan my life around how they fail. I was planning on coming down to NC this weekend to see friends, but instead I get about 100 miles down the road and the left front starts bumping bad enough that I had to call it off. So now I'll have to pay 100 dollars towards the deductible on a car you would THINK could go a while without engine trouble.

Anyone else have VW gripes?

5/28/2007 6:18:30 PM

i drove a convertible air-cooled Bug home from the shop for this chick from Meredith one time (she was in her other car, or her friends car, or something, and let me drive the Bug home). I don't remember what it was in the shop for, but a week or two later, it caught on fire and totally burned up.

the fuel lines on those cars basically just slip on to a fitting, if i remember correctly...probably just slipped off and sprayed raw gas everywhere.

5/28/2007 6:26:29 PM

^ahaha, i know her. christi jones...

[Edited on May 28, 2007 at 6:56 PM. Reason : gotta be the same one...]

5/28/2007 6:56:01 PM

well it sounds to me like you should have had the light checked out before you went anywhere. perhaps it had nothing to do with the bumping in the front left but who knows what that is since there are no further details.


sounds more like you should take care of the car so it can take care of you rather than expecting nothing to fail ever, that holds true for any car though.


it is a vw after all, but on a side note ive got a 95 jetta and have literally never had a problem with it i didnt create myself...

5/28/2007 7:00:17 PM

^^^ they are bad about that. easily the most common killer of the type 1.

5/28/2007 7:20:48 PM

^^^ yeah, what's she up to these days? i saw her on a relatively regular basis in college, but i've been gone for a few years now.

^yeah, seems like a bad design. i bet there's some simple fix that most people did years ago, but apparently hers never benefited from.

[Edited on May 28, 2007 at 7:22 PM. Reason : asdf]

5/28/2007 7:21:56 PM

not sure, i haven't seen her in a few months or so. she's been doing various things with commercial real estate since college. she did finally get a decent car, got rid of the integra (what replaced the bug) and got a g35 sedan 6m.

i remember ragging the hell out of that bug in high school/college.

5/28/2007 7:34:50 PM

so we both had a hand in its demise?

5/28/2007 7:42:31 PM

probably.

5/28/2007 7:49:36 PM

Quote :

"sounds more like you should take care of the car so it can take care of you rather than expecting nothing to fail ever, that holds true for any car though."

I totally agree, but nothing noticeable seemed to be going on and the dealership I bought it from said it would be fine until they could 'fit me in' wednesday after the busy holiday (another annoyance). But after driving it for a while I began to really notice a problem.

I realize I'm being stubborn but after dropping a considerable amount of money on a much newer car and knowing people who've gone YEARS without ever having to do anything but routine maintenance my faith in my own car has slipped and I'm not happy. Was just wondering if there were others out there

5/28/2007 8:27:40 PM

if all you want is an appliance, you need a honda or toyota. normal cars don't take care of themselves. bad luck doesn't help either.

5/28/2007 9:21:40 PM

I've got 3 VDubs and an Audi.
Never had any problem with the Jettas, one has 40K on it (a 2006 TDI) and one with 150K on it (2002 TDI).
The Audi has had some electrical issues, mainly window motors and alternators (2000 TT with 120K).

5/28/2007 9:41:15 PM

^they are all turds

Oscar Jr.

5/28/2007 9:55:31 PM

^^^^yeah i can understand that, a buddy of mine is more or less having the same type of experience...he bought the car used, then one of the ICM's goes bad, then the problem coolant sensor had to be changed out, now the AC has died...


all within a year

5/28/2007 10:08:54 PM

I saw a new Beetle on the side of the road on 40 last week. The car had crazy smoke coming out of the engine compartment. Seems like the water pump or radiator failed, and it overheated. The funny thing is that the driver was running out of the car like it's about to explode.

5/28/2007 11:14:58 PM

Years ago I had a '98 GTI VR666 I kept five months. In that time, I took it from 85k to 96k miles, and it needed a cooling system overhaul, a new hydraulic clutch, a driver's seat mounting bracket, the dealer took 3 weeks to supply replacement parts to my repair shop after a wreck, and the stereo nearly caught fire before being stolen in Durham. Might as well've kept my '89 16V which leaked a qty of oil each 800 miles & needed motor mounts at 160k. Great cars, painfully shitty parts. My Toyotas since then have no soul but at least don't break.

5/29/2007 1:33:22 AM

4 A-series VW's in the family/past

Parents had an 86' Golf (German built) manual trans. - from 30k-~110k then sold - just required normal maintenance.

I had a '90 Jetta (German built) manual trans. - took it from 78k miles to ~130k miles before it was stolen - only required routine maintenance and some electrical wear units (alternator, distributor)

Family still has a '96 Jetta (Mexican built) manual trans. - from 50k to 148k - mechanically it has been great - usual MK3 trim issues though - some brittle wiring, failed window regulators, and my brother never conditioned the leather so it looks a bit ragged on the inside.

I currently own an '00 GTI VR6 (German built) manual trans. - from 104k-111k miles so far - no issues to report. Records show regular mile interval service and a replaced oil pan seal, but that's about it.

From a summary of other VW owners I know - the mid to late 1990's had their fair share of electrical and accessory issues, but overall they're solid if you keep the maintenance up to date.

[Edited on May 29, 2007 at 7:35 AM. Reason : asfd]

5/29/2007 7:33:50 AM

I had a 98 Jetta 2.0L that I drove from 76K miles to 130K with absolutely no problems (that weren't self-inflicted ). The cruise control didn't work though.

I now have a 95 GTI VR6 that had old car problems (leaking gaskets, nasty coolant, rear brakes, bulbs blown, worn serpentine belt). But I replaced/repaired all of that and it is running as good as new at 110K.

None of my VWs have left me on the side of the road.

5/29/2007 12:48:15 PM

my 91 jetta gl has been my daily for about a year now.. only left me hanging twice, both of which could have been avoided...

once was a coolant hose that was old and busted shortly after i replaced the water pump (had the hose out, should have replaced it)

the other was a leaky fuel injector o-ring that could have been a lot worse than it was.. it still drove, but i had to fix it at the muffler shop.. i had the fuel rail off a couple days before that, and i actually thought to myself that i should maybe change the o-rings, but didnt have any handy.

other than that, its been great.. cheap ins., no car payment, and my last tank was 30.7mpg mixed driving (on 87)

that said, i've done a LOT of maintenance (timing belt, tune up, misc suspension stuff) on it to keep it reliable b/c its got 183k miles, parts are cheap, and i'm anal about that kind of thing

i expect it'll still be running strong for a few years and tens of thousands of more miles.


to the OP, i dont know how you can claim you're "plan[ning your] life around how they fail" when your car's MIL comes on and you dont get it fixed and the it runs like shit

5/29/2007 1:53:39 PM

Quote :

"it caught on fire and totally burned up. "

ha magnesium block

5/29/2007 1:55:49 PM

anybody know if this ad is real?

5/29/2007 2:38:26 PM

03 GTI 1.8t here.
Got it at 14,xxx and it is now 45,xxx.
The only minor problem was a coolant leak that was fixed under warranty.

Now I just need people to stop hitting me.

5/29/2007 8:00:56 PM