Faults:

2 blown headlights within 2 months, oil usage on the high side, driver's side door grip, worn.

General Comments:

Bought my 2000 Jetta in 2006 with 104,000 miles and I'm very pleased with the car. I haven't spent a dime on it except for 2 oil changes. Oil consumption is a little high after 2000 miles of an oil change. Seems to be a normal problem with VW Jettas. Car runs great, no problems with electrical system at ALL!...everything works, and coming from me, an aircraft owner... I pay attention to "everything works"...I love the car!

Faults:

Covered by Certified VW car to 50K and an extended warranty to 75K.

* Passenger Window fell into door at 26,500 and 82K.

* MAF went at 42K. I bought an after-market stereo and I had to swap to the OEM one before they would service the car. The infamous k-line or whatever might be shorted and ruin their equipment.

* Front 02 sensor at 44k. Yes, I had to swap the stereo again.

* Rear brake light and brake switch were replaced at 49K.

* I noticed an oil "consumption" problem at 40K and went through two rounds of the infamous oil consumption test. I had to show them all my oil changes information.

* At 59K, they told me that out of "good will" that they would do a cylinder wall de-glazing and piston ring change. We all know that the truth..

* at 60k, the inner joint broke on the right side and they replace the "hollow" right-side axle.

* at 82k, another brake switch recall.

I haven't had any problems for the last 25K that isn't your normal wear and tear, but it can be expensive..

* timing belt with a new tensioner, water pump (with that stupid nylon impeller) at 84K

* front brake rotors and pads... Not bad to put 85K and finally wear out the front brakes.. back ones are still fine at 84K

* two sets of tires...a little over 40K per set.

Of course, I had all of the annoying issues that aren't worth fixing..except when you use ebay to your advantage...

* Glove box hinge, cup holder, arm rest clip and rear ash tray broke in the first 40K.

* My kids ruined the low hanging "belly/bumper" in the front getting this caught on the "parking curbs"

General Comments:

I grew up driving sub-compact Toyota Carina's, Corolla's along with a Honda Accord.

German cars like the VW Jetta are a true driver's car. I actually look forward to take the car out and drive it around even after having it for over 5 years. The Japanese cars may be more reliable, but they can be boring.

I bought the car really for my teenage boy's and this is the "ideal car" for them. They like the looks and the car is peppy, but with the 2.0L they really can't get into trouble. I feel the car is solid and has a good safety record.

While the list of problems look long, compared to most Jetta's, this is a small list.

Faults:

On a long trip the check-engine light came on. I took it in to a VW mechanic that had the computer equipment and he adjusted the timing. When the previous owner had the timing belt changed he had not timed it properly.

The passenger side doorlock rarely disengages fully. I have researched the Bentley manual and this can be fixed by the do-it-yourselfer, but it is a pain so I don't bother with it.

The tidy owner might have trouble with the cloth interior. The seats require a good cleaning every now and then to get off the hair and lint.

General Comments:

The TDI engine gets great mileage, on one trip I came very close to 60 mpg.

For such a chunky vehicle, with stock springs and old shocks, it also handles reasonably well.

The interior is comfortable and the stock sound system is excellent.

If you can do basic maintenance, keep to the maintenance schedule in the manual, and choose your mechanics wisely, this car is very reliable and will never leave you stranded.