Faults:

Key-less entry system stopped working at 50,000 miles.

Ground cables have come loose, just from hitting pot holes, causing the car to shut off.

Ignition coil was replaced at 60,000 miles.

Distributor cap replaced at 60,000 miles.

Paint has started to corrode on bumper, and at the bottoms of the doors.

Driver's side door, wiring was replaced for door locks.

Automatic transmission shifts hard.

Exhaust was replaced at 60,000 miles due to corrosion.

Firewalls have fallen down, causing annoying rattle.

General Comments:

I have had very bad dealership experience. They ask too much to do the simplest things. They also give false diagnosis and then charge way too much, just to look.

The car handles very well, and has a lot of go power.

I do think that the car looks awesome; I just wish I'd thought more of the cost rating than the appearance.

I have also come to the conclusion that most people that have drove a Honda or Toyota, don't like Volkswagens because of their reliability. They're not even close to Honda or Toyota in those terms.

Faults:

I have experienced only three issues with the car, and neither of them were covered under warranty, as the bumper to bumper initial warranty had expired. Firstly, the glovebox handle broke off. I still have not fixed it for fear of costs at the dealership. Second, the passenger seat adjustment handle broke. Both of these are simply due to cheap plastics. The driver side low beam daytime light has gone out, despite replaced bulb and checked fuse.

General Comments:

Despite the two things that have gone wrong with the car, I have owned the car now for over five and a half years and never has there been any maintenance issue with the mechanics of the vehicle. The 2.0 is a bit raspy, but I like its personality and despite a lack of torque, the 5 speed allows me to get going quickly. This car has been through college with me, and the only mechanics I have had to replace has been the brake rotors and pads at 72,000 miles (normal). I love my Jetta, although I do crave a bit more power. I have moved from apartments and have folded down the rear seats and have fit a lot of stuff in the car. The rear trunk is well designed and roomy! The highway noise can get a bit loud, but again, the Jetta personality overtakes its slight shortcomings. For the price, this has been the best vehicle I have owned, and I still have 20k miles left under the powertrain warranty. The suspension is set comfortably for cruising, but there is considerable body roll in turns. This makes it more "exciting" in the turns, but you must respect the limits of the Jetta's stock suspension to keep out of trouble. But sometimes, it wants to be driven like an M3. I will consider a VW again.

Faults:

When we bought the car in 1998, after about 3 weeks the tape deck stopped working. This was not a huge deal because we had the 6 cd changer installed.

We replaced the starter two times within a course of 2 years, which was extremely expensive.

We had to replace the exhaust after it nearly fell off the car.

We had to replace the emergency brake cables because they rusted away.

The catalytic converter fell apart.

Clamps holding on the exhaust system rusted right off the car, causing the exhaust to make this awful noise, and not to mention the bill that came with it.

Every time we go out in big rain storms the car stalls out.

The sound system has turned to crap, and I tried to replace it and the radio would not work at all.

The car seems to have lost its power over the years.

General Comments:

I love this car, when its not broken. I have had the car in the garage more than I have driven it, or so it seems. It handles very well around turns, or down any road for that matter, however it has shown me it is a bad car. I was not pleased with the bills from the garage either.

For the first couple of years the car was a dream to own. When we hit 90,000 miles it seems things were programed to default.

Style wise, I give it 1.5 thumbs up. Because Volkswagen could have done better, but did well. I looks sexy driving down the road.