Faults:

Almost everything inside the car is horribly (cheaply) made. Looks nice! but...

There is a lock on the driver side door that will turn off the ability to open the trunk from inside the car. Used this feature a few times, and then one day the entire lock came out along with my key. Not covered under warranty.

Pop out cup holders above radio made of cheap, unsteady plastic. One side broke off. Not covered under warranty. Over $200 to replace.

Rear cup holders also pop out.. or did once upon a time. No longer pop out.

Drivers headrest stopped working. Tall person drove the car once and pulled it up a bit. Took 3 men to push it back down to my height. Not covered under warranty.

Seals on sunroof, rear windshield, and front windshield all failed. At separate times. Water poured in from behind pedals as well as through the latch for opening hood (next to drivers door). Floorboards were drenched and car smelled of mold for a good time after. Entire panel to the left of steering wheel sopping wet on a few occasions. Even after "fixing" the seals, this has happened over and over again.

Latch for center console snapped off. Not covered under warranty.

At 60k wiring had to be replaced (over $1000) because water would get under the hood in rain, causing shorting and making the car run sluggish until driven for a few miles.

General Comments:

Looks nice, drives nice. Also has a decent sound system. But every little thing that could possibly go wrong, has.

Faults:

Windows have dropped twice

Weird grease oozing from driver and passenger doors

A/C cools then heats then cools

Glove box latch broken on left side

Middle console latch broken

Cup holder springs popped off

Windshield wipers stopped working- in a snow storm in TX! Go figure!

Brake lights go out weeks after replacing

Rear bumper paint looks to be oxidizing.

General Comments:

I love this car when it is functioning properly!!!

Faults:

Usual maintenance for this vehicle includes a new timing belt, cleaning of intake manifold, and brake rotors. Nothing too out of the ordinary for any car.

General Comments:

This is a great car. It is fun and the diesel is definitely a novelty, and has great performance when on the open road (not so much under 50 MPH). I always get 43 MPG on the highway and love the sound it makes.

I would like to say for anyone dissing the TDI in these forums, or looking to buy a TDI, they are not for everyone. The high degree of engineering put into a VW shames the Americans, so if you expect to get an American car that anyone can work on and you can ignore little issues like idiot lights, etc... then this IS NOT the car for you. These cars do require the owners to be a little more alert to small things, and finding a good mechanic that won't rip you off like the dealer will can be an issue, but is recommended. Oh, and it does handle very well.

General Comments:

I recently purchased my second VW Jetta. My original Jetta (2001 White 2.0L GLS) was purchased new. I put 131,000 miles on it. The only repairs that I had to perform on the car were for a faulty turn signal switch and a mass airflow sensor. I didn't have to replace the front brakes until I hit 109,000 miles and I replaced the clutch at 128,000 miles. If this isn't quality, then I don't know what is.

This car was recently totaled and held up extremely well, as most European cars do. It was the best vehicle I have ever owned. I replaced it with another white 2001 Jetta GLX VR6.

I'm not going to deny the fact that VWs require a little more maintenance. However, after seeing how well mine held up in the accident and how well it treated me for 7 years, I think I can handle the occasional electrical issue or maintenance bill.

For those VW owners who claim that their vehicles were "junk" or "lemons," perhaps it was because they relied on the dealer for service (big mistake) or they are just taking their bad luck out on the manufacturer. Once my factory warranty expired, I had no need to take my car to the dealer. I performed most of the regular maintenance myself. Everything else I had done by a VW specialist in my hometown. I really feel that keeping it away from the dealer is what kept it running so well.

Every car company has a lemon--even Honda and Toyota.