[bockegg]

Originally Posted by kingofgrills

Every car manufacturer has its host of problem cars. VW is no different than the others in that regard. My 2000 NB Turbo has been great so far. It has 45,000 miles now, and I've changed the MAF once, an oxygen sensor, and a cup holder. That's it. The car has held together extremely well and is rock solid.

It gets great gas mileage for a performance car, delivering 25-31 mph, so there's no complaints there. That's right in line with my '84 GTI and '90 Corrado, which is typical of VW's 1.8 liter power plants. By contrast, my Durango delivers 11 mpg, so I'd take my VWs gas mileage any day.

My wife's family swears by Volvos, and only buys those, but I cannot tell you how many problems they've had. I think the dealership should keep a service bay roped off just for them.

Every car manufacturer has their host of problems - Mercedes, Volvo, Porsche, Ferrari - you name it. I think it's helpful to do plenty of research ahead of time, so you have reasonable expectations. Even doing that, however, will not fully save you from potential problems. Oh, and never by the first model year of a car. That usually never bodes well for reliability.

You are right. It is largely chance, although reliability is with the Asian automakers. I got the first year 2003 NBC. Everyone I know with '04 on up has problems with the top and with the flaps. Luckily not me. I also got the 1st year ('05) new Jeep Grand Ch. Limited. So far so good.