VW brand experience - good or bad? - READ ONLY

842 messages,  Last post on Sep 15, 2011 at 8:02 PM

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What is this discussion about? Volkswagen

#1 of 842 Shopping for a lemmon? Try VW. by ramcode

Aug 03, 2003 (8:58 am)

I have a 2001 VW Golf GLS, and a 2001 Passat GLS. Two lemmons. The Passat is somewhat less problematic. The Golf is a lemmonade.
For the Golf, at 36,000 miles, and two years old, I have already replaced: Battery - 20,000 mi;
rear brakes - 30,000 mi; two window mechanisms; A/C compressor - 12,000 mi; cooling fan - 34,000 mi; and lastly,
the AC evaporator at 36,000 mi, purchase price: $558.00 (Parts are priced like made out of gold, well, gold is not very strong, it happens). Warranty used to be 24,000 - 2 y, now it is 36, 3 y; but parts are very prone to failure.
Don't be lured by the powertrain warranty; it rarely fails in any car. it is the engoine accesories, the windows, the A/C, what fials pretty soon, and belive me, they will make money out of your missery.

#2 of 842 ramcode by fish8

Aug 04, 2003 (4:50 am)

Sorry to hear about your problems with your cars. Can I suggest using the spellcheck feature.
 
Lemon is with 1 m. Engine does not have an o....... and misery only has 1 s.

#3 of 842 lol fish8! by uga91

Aug 04, 2003 (7:35 am)

Seriously, though, the brakes are not worthy of mention on this list. It's not news to replace brakes at 30k mi, is it? Batteries are no big deal, either. I have had two cars have batteries die within 2 years of buying them--and I know others with the same issue. I hear it has to do with the cheap batteries some manufacturers use to save costs. Things like the window mechanism and A/C compressor should have been hadled under warranty, thus not costing you anything to fix. Lastly, just because you've had some bad experiences does not make the whole line a prime choice for lemons, now does it?

#4 of 842 VW by moparbad

Aug 04, 2003 (7:51 am)

Warrranty is now 4 year and 50,000 miles bumper to bumper, not 3 yr 36.
Window regulators had a flaw, VW recognized this, VW fixes the windows under warranty even if the car is not under warranty.
Brakes at 30,000 miles are not a lemmon issue, they are a maintenance item.

#5 of 842 vw=trash by steven39

Aug 04, 2003 (9:44 am)

i must admit that i have a golf gls that i purchased about 3 months agoand its been the worst car that i have ever owned. other people that i know who own vw cars like the new beatle and other jettas have had similar problems with thier vehiclesas well. regardless of how long the warranty is its simply not worth the pain and agravation as well as timeto keep going through these problems.i am in a pretty good financial situation to unload this car and get something more reliable. perhaps a honda civic, or the hyndai elantra, just a few examples that come to thought.anyway thank you.

#6 of 842 What's with disgruntled by zueslewis

Aug 04, 2003 (9:48 am)

VW owners and no grammar and spelling?

#7 of 842 LOL. by lancerfixer

Aug 04, 2003 (10:28 am)

I was wondering the same thing, zues...

#8 of 842 by fish8

Aug 04, 2003 (10:39 am)

I do realize VW has isues with reliability. But, I do hope that the new models coming out in 2004 as '05s get better. I am glad that I have had no problems with my 2002 Jetta GL. Other than an annoying dash rattle. Mechanically it has been VERY sound....BTW I have almost 19K miles.

#9 of 842 VW ain't no Saab, that's fer sure by bretfraz

Aug 04, 2003 (12:21 pm)

Sounds like a family members experience. Has owned 3 VW's since 1997, a Jetta, a GTI, and a Passat. The Jetta and Passat have been pretty good but the GTI was problematic. The window regulator failed several times and there were a few electronic gremlins and the various rattle.
 
Considering VW's poor showing in JD Powers recent survey I can understand the frustration.
 
Who was the #1 European brand in the latest CSI rankings? Yep, Saab. Finished 7th overall. BMW was 10th, MBz and Volvo tied for 11th, Audi was 20th. The 2003 J.D. Power CSI study focuses on experiences with the dealer service department during the first three years of vehicle ownership. The 2003 study includes 37 automotive brands, and is based upon the responses of nearly 106,000 new-vehicle owners and lessees. Saab's score of 892 exceeded both the industry average and the luxury average and jumped 17 points over last year’s score of 875.

#10 of 842 by kcram HOST

Aug 04, 2003 (4:37 pm)

No picking on spelling, typing, or grammar... they're not a requirement to post here, but civility and respect are.
 
kcram
Host
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