Faults:

Passenger's side window motor failed at 77,000 miles.

Stereo developed faults at around 80,000 miles before finally packing up at 86,000 miles.

Tyres wore very quickly.

Interior trim started to crumble during my final year of ownership.

General Comments:

The Golf was a very reliable car except for one or two electrical problems.

Build quality was initially very good, but the car's interior eventually started to show its age.

The best thing about the Golf was its swift performance and dynamic handling.

It was also very comfortable and practical.

Faults:

Airbag failed to work in a head-on crash after 76,000 miles.

Power steering started to fail soon after the car's crash damage was repaired.

Stereo stopped working after 90,000 miles.

Window motors failed after 106,000 miles.

General Comments:

The Golf VR6 was a dream to drive and generally reliable, apart from a few electrical faults. It was worth every penny of the £6,000 that I paid for it.

I liked the VR6 because it was great to drive, good value for money, comfortable and well equipped.

After three years of excellent motoring I sold it to a neighbour for £2,500 and it's still going strong now after 12 years on the road.

Faults:

The only fault is being a two door version, the drivers door is dropping a little.

General Comments:

Stands up to all the kids can throw at it.

Its met blue with alloys, even though it's only a 1.4 it looks the biz.

The only let down is it's a 4 speed.

Utterly reliable, needed new brake discs in the summer as the old ones were warped, the pair cost £8.00, things like that you don't forget in a hurry.

Go and look at a similar age fiesta or escort, call and get some rust treatment on the way.

Faults:

Weeping head gasket since purchase (94k miles) - common fault it seems - was leaking oil down the side of the engine at the pulley side. There was no cylinder pressure loss or water-in-oil or oil-in-water - but replaced the gasket nevertheless. Did it myself - gasket kit is expensive at £100 and you need new head bolts and antifreeze etc for the rebuild.

Weeping sump gasket - replaced and re-sealed.

2nd gear synchro-mesh is weak - another common problem. On hard acceleration, trying to change into 2nd gear at speed is causing the gear to grind. You can get the gearbox rebuilt for £250 if you take it out yourself first.

Front wheel bearing failed. This is a hard job to do yourself - you need a hydraulic press to get the old bearing out and the new one in. Costs £45 per bearing.

Constant velocity joint boot failed. Bought new joint - cost £50. Another hard install unless you are a seasoned car enthusiast. I did this whilst I was doing the wheel bearing. Note: if you remove the shocks/mounts, you have to get the camber professionally set.

Exhaust started to go, not bad as this was the original exhaust. They are very heavy and you can get after-market stainless steel ones that are much lighter.

Rust on the boot lid, a common problem as the shape of the car pulls all the road dirt/salt onto the back whilst going along. Check around the rear window and where the number plate lights are. Can be expensive to fix. Second hand boot is about £65 and costs about £100 to be sprayed properly.

General Comments:

Quite a quick car, but you soon get used to it and soon find its limit.

Good on petrol if handled lightly on the motorway. Can get up to 32mpg on a long trip. Short trips can cost 16mpg to 19mpg.

Handles OK on the original suspension, but benefits from up rated shocks.

Cloth seats show dust and dirt quite quickly.

Whole toy shop of after-market bits to make your car better, from alloy wheels to turbo and supercharger kits.