The Golf GTi 16v I owned in the early 90s was the worse car I ever owned in my life, gave me more hell than my first car which was a Trans AM GTA V8.

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99 Gurkha with OM616 IDI turbo

2015 Gurkha with OM616 DI turbo

2014 Rexton W with OM612 VGT

What kind of mileage should this thing get? Its built out of tin foil and old barb wire, so it's pretty light.

It has Audi's mark stamped on every freaken part, that must piss Audi owners off!

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Uh oh. I better research that one carefully (Gold diesel) before I buy.

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1986 300SDL, 362K
1984 300D, 138K

http://www.myvwlemon.com/

My Golf was a gasser though not diesel.

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99 Gurkha with OM616 IDI turbo

2015 Gurkha with OM616 DI turbo

2014 Rexton W with OM612 VGT

If I had to loose one of our three cars, it wouldn't be either of the VWs. Don't get me wrong, I love our 300TD... but it doesn't get up to 50 MPG, doesn't go 1000 miles on one tank of fuel, and doesn't get up and go like these chipped TDI Passat wagons.

Now if MB sent over a 4 cylinder CDI C-Class SportWagon... ...


I'd still have both TDIs and the 300TD would be making someone esle happy.

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300TD W124, Two VW TDI Passat Wagons,Cummins Ram 250, Kubota Tractor
23 cylinders sipping the sweet sauce of the soy bean

I think its pretty well known that VW gassers are problematic and expensive especially if something goes wrong and you have to fix it

If you have one and its running fine, be happy, be very happy, because they are great cars when all is well!

My GF owns a 99 beatle. The odo stopped 2 years ago, and reads: 280k! The only thing she's had to have done (besides maintanance), is a head gasket. Not only that, but at the time of the head trouble, she drove from Syracuse to Cleveland; never had to pull over. To top that, she's still riding on the origional cllutch! The high milage honestly is mainly local driving, maybe 20% highway! As far as I'm concerned, thats pretty good iin the reliability dept.

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1989 300E 144K

I concur.

Well hopefully with a bit of luck I'll only have to drive it for 4 months at most.

Then I will spend the rest of my life trying to forget.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

My first car was a VW Dasher, and I have owned 5 or 6 VW's since then. They've been among the most reliable (if not THE most reliable) cars I have ever owned. Service on new ones has gone to hell, but I won't be getting rid of my '98 TDi anytime soon.

Hatt -- do you know the car's history? Dollars to donuts it's been beat on hard... as far as I know every one of my VWs is still on the road with its subsequent owner(s). I see them with 300K+ in the wrecking yards all the time. The ones that are in there with much less have obviously been severely neglected.

That said, I think VW felt the bean counters' belt-tightening around the same time MB did. The early-90's and later ones aren't quite what the early ones were, but I'd still consider one if I were shopping.

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1992 300D 2.5T
1980 Euro 300D (sadly, sold)
1998 Jetta TDI, 132K "Rudy"
1974 Triumph TR6
1999 Saab 9-5 wagon (wife's)

Hattie- I'm sorry your having a bad day. VW advertising is really good.

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"It's normal for these things to empty your wallet and break your heart in the process."
2012 SLK 350
1987 420 SEL

I know its been beat to death. I got it from the original owner, my dads friend. First it was bought for his wife, then the daughter got it. She beat the living crap out of it, and never did a damn thing maintenance wise. Now she has a new Accord V6 to beat to death. I wish my parents would buy me cars.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

First off - Mexico vs. Germany plant debates are ethnocentric. Some early MkIIs were poorly assembled, but now, some of the German cars seem to be built worse than the Mexican ones. MKV GTIs and Rabbits were coming to the US with a litany of terrible quality control issues - mismatched interiors, DSG steering wheels on manual cars, etc.

None of these issues popped up on the Mexican built Jettas.

There is nothing to suggest that Mexican workers can't put a Golf together as well as German workers. The parts, design, engineering - are all the same. The only thing that differs are the people, and can you fearlessly say that a Mexican can't build a VW like a German? For what it's worth, most of the workers in VW's German plants aren't German anyhow!

Some of the MkIIIS were really just...blah...compared to the sleek, modern MkIV and the fun, tossable, boxy MkII. The doors are limp, the plastic endless, and a MkIII 2.0 Jetta slushbox is kinda just...eh. They are very fun to drive though, and you can't compare a VW to a Mercedes. A VW is the people's car, and MB is (well, was) engineered "like no other car in the world."

VWs can last a long, long time too. Just like most German cars, the engine will outlast the car and the electronics around it. I've had a Jetta gasser with over 300,000 on the original engine, as well as several friends with high mileage VR6 motors too that run like a top.

And don't let anyone tell you that an Audi is just a VW on steroids. Drive both back to back and then see where the money went.

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2003 Volkswagen Jetta Wolfsburg Edition, "Tiffany," - Black/Black Cloth - 75K miles, Jetta #6; my faithful, turbocharged, BBS-adorned sled

SOLD 3/08 1981 Mercedes Benz 300D, "Elise" - Astral Silver/Black M.B. Tex - 217K miles - I miss her everyday; the best-built car I've owned

I need a 14in steel wheel, any idea where I can get one cheap?

I can get tirs put on this car for like $180! Thats like one tire on my MB!

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Try ebay. Discounttire sells em too, i dunno if tirerack does.

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1985 CA 300D Turbo , 213K mi