I realize Scotty isn't a fan of VW and they are often described as "money pits" but could it be an OK car under certain conditions? Sure some get lucky, but thats not what I mean.
Lets say you get one cheap enough, <$3000, its a TDI so its a diesel engine older than 2006 so the federal emission junk isn't there, it has relatively low miles (100-150k miles) and its a manual transmission.
In such a case, could one last a couple years? My logic is if I pay 3 grand for a car I want it to last 3 relatively reliable years. I know for a fact Car Wizard recommends the early 2000s Jettas with the diesel engine but I also know VWs especially in North America are absolute money pits. Once, Scotty said a VW would be a terrible car if its an automatic, but quote 'an okay decent car' if its a used manual transmission.
Of course you could get a nice Camry and have it be more reliable than a VW, but considering VW, would this scenario make a decent car assuming it passes mechanical inspection, you do good maintenance, and you have alright luck. Another thing is VWs look and drive better so thats already a plus;)
Keep in mind that the Car Wizard also put the Neon on his recommend list.
The rest of the car & electronics are still over engineered..
With that said, it’s your money. Do as you please..
Ok thanks, just wondering if they were any better. I guess bad choice... Man VW has to make their cars so much complex, I heard that they are putting cheap ecobox quality into complicated Porshce and Audi technology.
If you had access to relatively cheap labour costs & good quality aftermarket parts like in Europe, German cars are not much different to own, compared to the Japanese. However, in the USA, parts are exorbitant, labour is $$$ & a lot of VWs are made in Mexico. So apart from the reliable Diesel engine, you’re still left with an endless money pit.
If you’re prepared to keep up with the maintenance costs, sure they’re a pleasure to drive & ride in. You’re absolutely right when you said they look & drive better. They have great understated styling.
Thanks man;) I've decided to stick to more reliable cars Toyota, Lexus, Honda, Mazda for now as I don't care to deal with burning my wallet on German engineering.
I know in the part of Europe I went everyone has Renaults and VWs and they are seen as reliable cars with a ton of parts. In fact, there are 3 times as many used VWs for sale than Toyotas in said country. If I were there, I probably would get my hands on a manual+diesel Passat as those are seen as the best A to B car there but I'm in the US and Corolla is my best bet here I think. Thanks for your feedback
Indeed, I’ve seen pictures of diesel Skoda & VW taxis in Europe with well over 500,000 kms. Renault diesels are very robust, too. Outside Europe, parts cost a fortune, hence their money pit reputation. All the best.
A maintenance guy I know at work bought a 2016 civic a few years back as a big upgrade to his 20+ yr accord. The new civic had a turbo but also CVT and felt unresponsive during acceleration. He recently bought a 2005 VW manual trans rabbit for $1500 from another coworker and has alot more fun driving it on his normal commute. It was up there, around 220k miles when he bought it but it is still running fine a year later. Mind you, he does all of his own maintenance and repairs. JDM and domestic car mechanics are a dime a dozen in the US but finding a decent labor hr/$ for german cars is rough, they usually all focus on BMW and Mercedes-Benz. There are repair nuances to each make and general repair guys will be hesitant to take on a German cars for diagnostics/repairs since they may end up going over on their estimated labor hours.
If you live in california and want to save money you should go for an older corolla or civic, those have sold well here these past few decades and any maintenance or repair parts can usually be found within a day or two. There are plenty of people who know how to work on them also, they were designed for easier DIY repairs until about 2008
Short answer: not really.
One of these Volkswagens would make for a decent car:
The only decent Volkswagen is the 1971 Beetle.
Had a 1999 VW Passat 1.8T. Bought it new and kept it 20 years and 220k miles. No major failures. Donated it as a registered/drivng car as my daughter moved. But like many here, I do religious maintanence including the trani's. Life time trani fluid clause I thought was a joke....changed it at 70k and 140k with never an issue. My answer would be yes I would consider.
Short answer, no. If you're going to buy a Volkswagen the pre 2007 TDI manual transmission is the best combination, but even then it is still not a good car. You said that it is $3000.00. Why would you spend it on that when $3000.00 will get you a nice Camry. If the Camry isn't sporty enough for you then get a Mazda 3. They have a very sporty drive and any Mazda 3 is going to be way more reliable than a Volkswagen.
I am driving VW Jetta 1.4t, I would say it could, but Toyota and Mazda are the better choices.
Is 1.4t zoom zoom? No, it has no power and very slow.
Is the labour high? Yes. Changing VW oil is $100+ everywhere, including Valvoline.
Is TDI better? Diesel is more expensive most of the time, and doesn't get much better gas mileage than gas
When you own a VW, you have to really take care of it to the points you can become a little mechanic. When comparing to other brands, you can find better gas mileage with more hp, you can also find better built and quality, so there is no point to get VW. What I see in VW is the bigger the engine, the worse in terms of quality.
Are they as reliable as Toyota, no. But I think a lot of the criticism of VW is more of a pile on than anything else, particularly here.
VW's over the past 5 years seem to be more reliable than the previous years. I bet Scotty's experience with VW's are mostly older rather than newer VW's (less then 5 years old)
