1995 Volkswagen Jetta GL 2.0 4 cl. from North America

Summary:

Very reliable if maintained continuously

Faults:

Replaced timing belt at 80,000 miles.

Replaced master brake cylinder at 110,000 miles.

Impact strip on passenger side door has fallen of several times despite makeshift repair.

Paint chipping and peeling especially on the trunk top and hood.

Door chime sounded when stereo is on.

Heater switch broke.

Driver seat sags on the left side.

Cruise control stopped working at 74,000 miles.

Repaired clutch at 100,000 miles.

Air filter box has arced during wet weather. And so did the Ignition or inside the ignition housing and is now unreliable at best. Not sure whats wrong yet.

Illumination display panel lights keep going out.

The reverse has knocked since I bought the car, but hasn't worsened since.

General Comments:

Considerably quick, can cruise at well over 100 miles an hour.

The faster you go the smoother the ride.

Upper white interior is very hard to keep clean.

Handles very well.

Good gas mileage.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 4th October, 2004

23rd Nov 2004, 10:03

I've had similar problems with my GL. I bought it with 50,000 on it and it currently has 153,000. The cruise control stopped working a while ago. The gas gauge can be a little off at times. The heater fan selector switch won't work on 3. The differential is wearing out in the manual trans. slowly. I had a transmission fluid leak that I didn't catch right away or it would still be fine. I would have to say though for the amount of small problems that I've had with this car it has been the best car I've ever owned. It consistently gets 30 miles a gallon even driving at speeds of 80 or so. It has only not started once when the ignition coil was bad, but that part was under warranty as a recall and was replaced for free. This is my third VW and won't be my last.

1995 Volkswagen Jetta III 2.0 from North America

Summary:

A solid car

Faults:

Shortly after I bought it, small electrical problems like the panel lights not working, problems with the power lock motor not shutting off for 30 seconds.

Passenger-side lock broke at 70,000 miles.

Sun roof track parts broke at 70,000. Out of necessity, it's closed permanently now, but leaks into the car.

New timing belt and distributor cap at 100,000.

The molding will not stay on the doors. An aggravating and consistent hassle.

Minor leak in the fuel line at 100,000.

General Comments:

A very solid car. I bought it at 60,000 and it has served me well. Consistent, but minor electrical problems throughout, but little maintenance done so far.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th August, 2004

29th Aug 2004, 16:02

The III series Jetta is very solid, We have a '98 GT. The door molding shrinks slightly on all these cars and they fall off. The new Jetta IV has different door moldings that don't fall off, but they have other problems that are far more serious!

Buy some 3M brand 1/2" wide molding tape at the local parts store and remove the old tape adhesive by rolling it off. Clean with Alcohol, let dry and re-apply the molding with new tape.

I did all four doors in about an hour.

1995 Volkswagen Jetta GLX VR6 2.6 VR6 from North America

Summary:

Flawed, but very rewarding for the $. Recommend the VR6 if the price of gas doesnt scare you :)

Faults:

All problems with this car have been small, but unexpected: starter motor... ouch! Alarm control unit.. another expensive item, and apparently a known problem.

Head gasket bleed (condensation) started at 150,000km's, has continued to 265,000 with no appreciable loss in coolant level, engine compression or power. The motor is a tank.

General Comments:

The engine on this car is smooth and linear. It also sounds amazing.

The bad points? Unless you know how to setup a suspension, this car will under steer all day. I've alleviated much of it with a beefier rear sway bar in the rear, taken out the one in the front, and I have higher springs in the rear of the car to force the back end to rotate more, instead of pushing all the momentum on the front wheels.

The stock brakes are pitiful, but it's pretty easy, and inexpensive to upgrade the rotors (Brembo slotted) and pads (Hawk or Williams) for incredible stopping power, without any appreciable fade.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 14th July, 2004