I wasn't saying that all Mercedes have electrical problems, but there have been some glitches here and there that, from an outside perspective, given the impression that "all Mercedes have electrical problems". Just like when greasybenz said that VW is crap because his Dad's Touareg had electrical problems, now we've got other people (t walgamuth) coming along and just assuming that all Touareg's are to be avoided. Being a VW and Mercedes enthusiast, that makes me sad. Not too sad though.

I didnt say VW was crap. I meant that VW's "trained mechanics" are crap because they do all that is possible to deny the warranty work and try to charge us up the butt for the repairs. And VW has been known for this kind of thing. Like i said before i liked my dads touareg but the electrical glitches ended up having the vehicle traded in for an american vehicle:eek:

VW isnt crap all together. My moms passat TDI has been just fine, no electrical glitches (yet) i just cant get over the annoying engine noise the PD's have. Still a nice car though.


For fun here is a reveiw of the touareg V10 TDI from top gear.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=4Zwh0wl5TG0

Awesome! I haven't seen that yet. Boy I could spend hours watching old top gear stuff on YouTube! Have you seen the one where he blows up a Prius? It's hilarious.

So according to Top Gear it kind of sucks!:D

actually i was really more like bragging on my dodge. (blush)

but for my usage, the truck is a lot more appropriate.

tom w

I love Audi, the quattro system is still far better than either version of the 4matic ever was, better than dozens of models of "full-time-4wd"/"awd"/others.
I also love the attitude that they take to racing, hail Ferdinand Piech.

But, I don't see myself buying another VW product for a very long time. I currently have three around here, one a Cabriolet (daughter's), a Vanagon Syncro, and a quattro. All were purchased for a reason, none of them are any longer new.

However, of all cars I've owned in the past couple of decades, nobody treated me worse and no car had as many failures as my new VW products. When you have to involve attorneys to get warranty coverage (VW) and involve attorneys after the state has decided in your favor on a lemon-law replacement and (audi) the company won't comply, ... you don't go back.

Volkswagen has some great products, but IMO their warranties and service aren't worth the drive to the stealer. Buy a VW product if you want, then have a private mechanic service it.

I've got to say that I still believe it the German engineering for my automobiles, but they could learn a lot from Toyota et al about customer service.

Interesting VW Touareg Article
 

According to this article VW makes only 750 or so 2006 Touaregs, and these will not meet the new 2007 California emission standard. Anyone know whwther VW is coming out with new 2007 Touaregs that meets this new standard?

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/automobiles/autoreviews/17BLOCK.html

I saw one at a dealer last week....get ready for the window sticker.....$73,000 dollars.

I drove by a place selling a 2004 Touareg V10 today and planned to go back tomorrow for a closer look.
After reading this thread, looks like I can find better ways to spend a nice Saturday (should reach 70 F). Poor mileage and with the price of diesel, I should just walk away unless I need the towing torque (I don't).

I'd like to test drive one. :D But I don't know if I'd want to own one.... I'd probably take a ML cdi over it....

A ML 420 cdi....THAT would be awesome.

I see they are not offering a diesel in the new GLK....I actually kind of like the looks of it.....a GLK 220Cdi would be a great ride for the winter around here....economical, powerful enough (even with the 4cyl diesel) and capable in the snow.

Aint that the truth. I would hardly trust my local VW dealer (Howard Cooper in Ann Arbor) to do an oil change, let alone a major service. I was doing the timing belt on a 2.0 Jetta, which requires removing one of the engine mounts because it sits in the middle of the belt path. Not a problem, just unbolt it, get it out of the way, replace the belt, and bolt it back in with new stretch bolts. As I'm sure you know stretch bolts are one time use. I went to the dealer to go pick some up... they must have some in stock because they do belts all the time, right? NOPE! According to the service guy they never replace them, and thought it was strange that I was asking for the part!

This same dealer re-used the head bolts on my TDI when they pulled the head at 120,000 miles due to a belt slippage because they didn't service the belt properly at 60,000 miles. When they re-timed it they had the timing off by 4 crankshaft teeth, and the injection pump was way on the retarded side.

It's that kind of incompetent service that turns people off from a good brand.

-Jason

Amen! I owned a Porsche 911 when I was living in Ann Arbor, and I didn't let their service techs anywhere near the car. What a disaster of a dealership.

I'm pondering a V10 TDI myself these days...

Cheers, John