Faults:

The "clutch" started making a groaning noise after 1.5 years. I put clutch in quotes as it is not the clutch, but an undetermined and COMMON problem with these cars that has to do with one of many parts not related to the clutch. Dealer wanted $1,500 to 'diagnose' this non-warranty issue. A little Internet research showed this is a known problem with VWs, and is covered under warranty, but may or may NOT be fixed. Outrageous.

Endless software glitches. Dealer screwed up one repair and the car lost half its power.

Latest is a battery issue. A little over two years old and the car keeps dying on me. Of course, the battery is something not covered under warranty (more sleaze from VW), but one dealer told me it was not the battery. Then it happened again, took it to another dealer, and had to pay $240 for a battery and installation, since they found it was the battery and had to charge for their time. Total scam, and I could do nothing about it since it I was told it was not the battery at first.

Radio/CD/SD card player has frequent confusion, and always resets to an MPG or some other non-radio related display. Minor issue, and I have to admit this is without a doubt the best entertainment system I have ever had in a car.

General Comments:

When the car works it is fast, efficient and is very luxurious for the price. The car SEEMS to be quality built.

But...

The car is incredibly unreliable.

Warranty is a joke, since things fail AFTER they go out of warranty, and God knows what parts are covered and what not. The concept of 'bumper to bumper warranty' clearly is a verbotten in VW land.

Dealers are amazingly incompetent. One begged me to give them good reviews, even though they endlessly screwed up. They don't even know the price of things. The battery issue mentioned above had three separate prices each time I talked to the dealer (I luckily got the lowest, which was still 400 percent more expensive). During one service the dealer was looking for the answer to my problem on the Internet! They didn't know, and didn't even contact VW.

Would never, ever, ever buy a VW product again unless it came with its own mechanic and a free loaner car at my house 24/7. The gas, time and energy I have wasted with this crappy car are beyond outrageous.

One of the worst cars I have ever owned, and I have owned over 30 cars of various makes including 'unreliable' cars like BMWs and Mercedes. My previous Mini Cooper had ZERO problems, and came with a bumper-to-bumper warranty.

VW thinks its customers are suckers and CLEARLY designs its cars to fail once various parts go out of warranty. It's like they took marketing lessons from American car manufacturers circa 1979. I can go to my local parts store and get a QUALITY battery with a longer warranty than VW offers. Thank God I am leasing this car, since I could not fathom having to live with this nightmare for more than 3 years.