Faults:

Clutch at 140,000 miles.

Injection pump at 239,000 miles.

General Comments:

One of my friends bought this car new, and has had it until I bought it off him recently. I love it. The 1.9 turbo diesel engine only has 90 HP, but 155 pounds of torque. It moves reasonably quick, I don't have trouble keeping up with anybody. This car has had no major problems, and is in perfect running condition.

One word of caution... DO NOT GO TO A VW DEALER FOR SERVICE... Go to a private TDI guru, especially for timing belts. They do it right. And cheaper.

Handles like a German car should. Very crisp and tight, while being somewhat forgiving as well. Steering with one finger is very easy to do.

The 5 speed manual transmission shifts super smooth into each gear, and the clutch is very predictable and forgiving. Great car to learn how to drive stick. A good tip is to avoid the automatic transmission like the plague. Do some research on that. You won't believe the failure rates.

A/C, heat, cruise, everything works as it should. I knew the previous owner very well since he bought the car new, and there have been NONE of the major problems that every other VW owner claims to have had. I believe they fail to maintain it properly. For instance: timing belt at the first 60,000 miles (replaced with a belt that lasts 100,000 miles), fuel filter every 10-20,000 miles. Oil change with Shell Rotella t6 5w40 every 10,000 miles.

These diesel engines are very quiet, clean, and efficient. I frequently get 45+ MPG, even driving aggressively. Driving like Grandma Moses gets me into the 50+ range. Getting 750 miles on 14 gallons of diesel is simply astounding. No smoke either (for all you diesel haters).

Great car. Just do your homework!!!

Faults:

Cost estimate is parts + labor, and work was never done at stealerships.

1. Almost hoses were falling apart, which needed to be replaced periodically. After market hoses are much better in quality than stock ones. $500.

2. A few of the stock plastic connectors, resulting in massive coolant leak. $200.

3. Expensive oil leak in the engine due to faulty gaskets and sealants. Fixed for $400.

4. PCV valve and a few other types of valves and connectors. $400.

5. Windshield wiper motor. $300.

6. Coolant temperature sensor. $100.

7. O2 lambda sensor. $200.

8. MAF sensor. $150.

9. One of the rear brake calipers seized while a front one broke apart while driving. $500.

10. Plastic impeller blades of water pump failed, causing major heating of the engine. Replaced by after market water pump. $700.

11. Both head lights failed along with a few brake lights. $100.

12. Trunk lock failed. $100.

13. Driver side door lock sensor (part of the door lock) failed. $350.

14. Preventative timing belt replacement. $600.

General Comments:

I got the car in 2007 and I was under impression that VWs make excellent cars. I was wrong. The only things good about VWs is that they look good, are a joy to drive (when they work), have an amazing zing to them (turbo) and their paint job is excellent if it was metallic.

VW cars are highly unreliable, expensive to maintain and poorly designed. The quality of their parts and components is extremely poor! As a result, they have one of the worst warranties, 3 years - 30,000 miles, which only cover very few and the most basic issues, which does not get transferred when one buys a used VW, even if the car was under warranty.