Quote from: ducatiz on March 05, 2012, 08:11:00 AM

The interior on all VWs is cheapish.  It's a VW not an Audi.  Some things are really terrible, like the rubber coating on everything that rubs off after a while, but I looked at a 2012 Jetta and thought the interior was pretty nice.

Sometimes when I'm driving mine (07 rabbit) I feel like it's kinda cheap. But then if you look at other cars in the same price range (15-20k), the VW interiors are amazing. maybe not all the bells and whistles (ie, no nav), but the dash is soft touch, and everything feels solid...not bendy like some of the other cars I've looked at (talking to you hyundai sonata  ). Though, the new jettas have evened the playing field, and not in a good way....

Quote from: bevel on March 05, 2012, 08:00:22 AM


Aside from fuel, tires, and oil, I feel like I've been through a ton with my Golf. Just put a new control arm, bushings, and ball joint this past weekend. I had some turbo internals blow back in November that resulted in a new turbo and a handful of pipes being thrown in. Last year my "in-tank lifter pump" failed. The turbo and lifter pump both took 4 trips to the dealership to sniff out and resolve, with bills over $1k range.

I'm at 123k on mine, and it's trouble free still. The other two we own have been the same way. Mine is a gasser though, not TDI. The TDI in the family is pretty new, so we'll se how that goes. I've been super impressed with VWs....haven't seen any of the gremlins other people talk about...I'm not sure why mine are different...


Now my '65 bug...all that damn thing knows is trouble....hahahaha

It may help when I get all the parts out of the boxes and back on the damn car, though 

I mean, looking back and aggregating everything together, it feels like a lot of work, but I'm also up to 126k on the clock. In the end, its only taken about $3k aside from regular maintenance to keep her on the road. I'm just hoping that I'm at the tail end of a cycle and won't see any more troubles until after my next timing belt.

Quote from: The Mad King Pepe' on March 05, 2012, 08:33:42 AM
Oh, Roger... 2010 Audi A3 TDI ($28900):  http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/cto/2876980291.html   

Well thanks there, Pepe! Sweet A3!

The wife has something against wagons.....she wants a sedan.  She drove an SE TDI and sat in an SEL Premium gasser.  She wants the SEL TDI, aye aye aye!

I will never ever buy a VW again.  My 2000 VW Passat has always had electrical problems and i know friends that had VW with similar issues.  Expensive to fix VW's whenever something goes bad.

I will tell you what my rider friend and mechanic says - Buy Toyota or Honda. 

Kia, Hyundai are nothing but headache garbage according to him.  He used to work in Kia dealership.  They used to stock tranny a lot because lots of the cars would have tranny problem.  They got to do so many that he could replace it instead of 3 hours in like 1 hour and half.  They are just horrible.

He was telling me that in about 3 or 4 years from now, the GM success will come back to bite.  All the parts for GM are coming from cheap Korean factory and that is why they are cheap now and the company making money. 

Hopefully you knowledgable members hear can chime in and clarify this points for me.

Quote from: ab on March 05, 2012, 05:54:54 PM
I will never ever buy a VW again.  My 2000 VW Passat has always had electrical problems and i know friends that had VW with similar issues.  Expensive to fix VW's whenever something goes bad.

I will tell you what my rider friend and mechanic says - Buy Toyota or Honda. 

Kia, Hyundai are nothing but headache garbage according to him.  He used to work in Kia dealership.  They used to stock tranny a lot because lots of the cars would have tranny problem.  They got to do so many that he could replace it instead of 3 hours in like 1 hour and half.  They are just horrible.

He was telling me that in about 3 or 4 years from now, the GM success will come back to bite.  All the parts for GM are coming from cheap Korean factory and that is why they are cheap now and the company making money. 

Hopefully you knowledgable members hear can chime in and clarify this points for me.

Five VWs and now an Audi, hardly a problem with any of them.  My friend's 92 GTI didn't make it to 400K miles on the original powertrain.  A crash killed it.

Quote from: rgramjet on March 05, 2012, 02:11:32 PM
Well thanks there, Pepe! Sweet A3!

The wife has something against wagons.....she wants a sedan.  She drove an SE TDI and sat in an SEL Premium gasser.  She wants the SEL TDI, aye aye aye!

but, but, but.... you can'd do this with a sedan!!!



unpacked and assembled:

Quote from: ab on March 05, 2012, 05:54:54 PM
I will never ever buy a VW again.  My 2000 VW Passat has always had electrical problems and i know friends that had VW with similar issues.  Expensive to fix VW's whenever something goes bad.

It's only expensive if you decide to buy original VW parts. Sites like germanautoparts.com are really helpful.

I've had a fair amount of things to fix on my '94 Golf. But it's so much easier than working on most Japanese cars (lot more space in the engine bay).

Case in point: putting in a new front engine mount on my golf required moving the power steering hose.
The same thing on my friend's Accord required (emptying and) moving the radiator and related bits, and even then it was a tight fit... 

IMO  the Subaru Legacy is far superior car and depending on where you live is more practical. The gas mileage is not quite as good but if you purchase the gt version the performance makes up for it.

Quote from: ab on March 05, 2012, 05:54:54 PM
I will never ever buy a VW again.  My 2000 VW Passat has always had electrical problems and i know friends that had VW with similar issues.  Expensive to fix VW's whenever something goes bad.

I will tell you what my rider friend and mechanic says - Buy Toyota or Honda. 

Kia, Hyundai are nothing but headache garbage according to him.  He used to work in Kia dealership.  They used to stock tranny a lot because lots of the cars would have tranny problem.  They got to do so many that he could replace it instead of 3 hours in like 1 hour and half.  They are just horrible.

He was telling me that in about 3 or 4 years from now, the GM success will come back to bite.  All the parts for GM are coming from cheap Korean factory and that is why they are cheap now and the company making money. 

Hopefully you knowledgable members hear can chime in and clarify this points for me.

I'm on my second VW post 2000 and have had zero issues, over 300k miles together. 

My wife's 2011 Kia Sorento is excellent.  They build them in Georgia, and Kia/Hyundai has massively changed and retooled since 2008 or so.  The Kia Sorento has repeatedly gotten award after award. 

We have 30K + miles on it now (we bought one of the first ones made) and it has proven to be an excellent purchase.

GM?  You mean that company that just shut down a line because they can't sell their cars?  Meh.

I don't know where your mechanic gets his information, but the parts GM is getting from Mando of Korea are 1000% better quality than the Brazilian sourced parts they were getting until 2010. 

Hyundai has nearly eaten Toyota's lunch worldwide for a reason.

Quote from: rgramjet on March 04, 2012, 04:35:35 PM
The Sonata and Optima are loaded with bells and whistles.  The turbo versions acceleration was surprisingly nice, albeit with a premium fueled requirement.  Paddle shifters, really?

The vws interior is straightforward, understated and nice.

It might be my biast opinion but Korean cars entered the market to be the cheapest option to the Jap/Eu/American cars, now their prices match/exceed the prices of Japanese and American cars, while they do not have the history of long term reliability as more established cars.
Another reason that fuels my doubts about Korean cars is that a lot of models has been direct copies of other cars, which I can point to a few:

Hyudai Sonata: Jaguar S type Look.
Hyundai Sonata: Honda Accord Look.
.......
and then there is a ridiculous Kia that looks like a chinese replica of a Mercedes...

Oh well everybody has their own opinions...
I would go with an Accord or TDI, you can expect nicer and quieter interior from them. I have been a Toyota fan all my life but Toyota plays is VERY cheap when it comes to the cars interior.

Quote from: ab on March 05, 2012, 05:54:54 PM
I will never ever buy a VW again.  My 2000 VW Passat has always had electrical problems and i know friends that had VW with similar issues.  Expensive to fix VW's whenever something goes bad.

I will tell you what my rider friend and mechanic says - Buy Toyota or Honda. 

Kia, Hyundai are nothing but headache garbage according to him.  He used to work in Kia dealership.  They used to stock tranny a lot because lots of the cars would have tranny problem.  They got to do so many that he could replace it instead of 3 hours in like 1 hour and half.  They are just horrible.

He was telling me that in about 3 or 4 years from now, the GM success will come back to bite.  All the parts for GM are coming from cheap Korean factory and that is why they are cheap now and the company making money. 

Hopefully you knowledgable members hear can chime in and clarify this points for me.

You never see a Kia/Hyudai used with more than 200K miles in them, I have had friends with Tranny problems with Hyudais, another with drivetrain problem after a few sessions of offroading....

Quote from: DucatiKabul on March 06, 2012, 09:52:45 AM
It might be my biast opinion but Korean cars entered the market to be the cheapest option to the Jap/Eu/American cars, now their prices match/exceed the prices of Japanese and American cars, while they do not have the history of long term reliability as more established cars.

So... they are doing the same thing that Toyota did..

Or am I the only person who had Toyota Carina.. in 1970...  ?  (well, my parents did...) 

Korean makers have indeed tried to "borrow" from established designs. 

Kia "stole" the design director from Audi.  No wonder the current model of Kias look like Audis...

I hear they are good cars, and I would be tempted by the diesel (cue Jeremy Clarkson's voice).

But I think they are just boring/bland looking. Sad that the Hyundai Sonata has much better lines than a VW.

Quote from: Autostrada Pilot on March 06, 2012, 12:20:51 PM
I hear they are good cars, and I would be tempted by the diesel (cue Jeremy Clarkson's voice).

But I think they are just boring/bland looking. Sad that the Hyundai Sonata has much better lines than a VW.

VW has tried to play catchup with Toyota, esp in the US.  That means they are appealing to people who think a car is essentially a kitchen appliance (hence, the Camry's success) and care more about price and efficiency than styling and performance.  When the new Jetta came out, my first reaction was that it looked like a Camry.

Hyundai and Kia have tried a dual route -- building performance (i.e. Genesis) and interesting looks.  I prefer Kia's less angular approach (i.e. Kia Optima vs Hyundai Sonata) but they have the same engines for the most part.

If only Hyundai would bring their diesels to the USA.  They would smoke the competition. :-)

http://www.kia.co.uk/new-cars/range/mid-sized-cars/optima/specification/technical-specification.aspx

Tracking down a Passat.....closest one that the Mrs likes is in freakin Jersey! 

Yesterday, the d-bag salesman said the owner of his dealership insists that all cars go out with pin stripes and door edge guards.........to the tune of $995!

I howled with laughter right in his ear! 

He called me today to let me know they are making a special exception since I'm coming from MD.

Quote from: rgramjet on March 06, 2012, 01:24:25 PM
Tracking down a Passat.....closest one that the Mrs likes is in freakin Jersey! 

Yesterday, the d-bag salesman said the owner of his dealership insists that all cars go out with pin stripes and door edge guards.........to the tune of $995!

I howled with laughter right in his ear! 

He called me today to let me know they are making a special exception since I'm coming from MD.

that's such garbage.  so typical.