My New Beetle has died

[jwright]

I have mixed feelings about the whole new beetle experience. My beetle has just died after I ran over a huge rock and wrecked the oil pan. I had my 4 year old daughter with me and i was in the middle of nowhere. I managed to turn it off when I realized I had done some harm and coast it down a few hills to a more reasonable place to be found. But the damage was done. I do not how deep the damage goes and I'm not willing to dig until I find out. I can't afford to shovel money at the problem any more. I realize that it's my fault this time(there's been many other repairs,pretty much everything that opens and closes and latches or goes up and down or moves in any way, except the glove compartment.That's still fine.). I am also prepared for the cruel responses I will get after this post. I came on here to see if I could find out information to repair my car and I was surprised to see that if anyone complained about their beetle they were ridiculed. I thought beetle owners were a different breed, cooler than average, and friendly. There is a certain elitist mentality here. You say that if you can't afford a VW you shouldn't have one. Remember the translation of "Volkswagen"?...."The people's Car". They were originally built for the masses to be afforded by everyone and repaired by anyone. VW has lost site of this.People who complain are blamed for their problems. My last breakdown was my fault. But I can't be blamed for both window regulators. or a door handle falling off. or a hood release falling off or the ac dying, or anything else. Yes, old beetles had quirks but new beetle owners have misinterpreted the meaning of the word "quirk" On old beetles it meant "innovation", "uniqueness", and"originality" The original beetles stood out, They endured and still do. The fact that they retained their original design for so long is a testament to their greatness.The real test will be in twenty or thirty years. Will you see a new beetle on the road? Probably not. Old beetle? most likely. The new beetles are just lemons and volkswagon has lost their handle(pun intended) on quality. I actually feel a sense of liberation now that the beetle is dead. now i can get a real "Peoples car", and it WON'T be a VW! Ok, take you best shot people!

[Palmettoguy]

It's a small world indeed, lol. I JUST got done reading your CL ad. I was going to call, but may as well ask here:
What type of motor? 2.0?
Is is a 5-speed??
What type/color is the interior?
Does it have the stock 16" rims on it?

Sorry to hear that your car got damaged. I lifted my car about 4" due to the crappy roads up here in New England.

[NewBeetleMechanic]

Originally Posted by jwright

I have mixed feelings about the whole new beetle experience. My beetle has just died after I ran over a huge rock and wrecked the oil pan. I had my 4 year old daughter with me and i was in the middle of nowhere. I managed to turn it off when I realized I had done some harm and coast it down a few hills to a more reasonable place to be found. But the damage was done. I do not how deep the damage goes and I'm not willing to dig until I find out. I can't afford to shovel money at the problem any more. I realize that it's my fault this time(there's been many other repairs,pretty much everything that opens and closes and latches or goes up and down or moves in any way, except the glove compartment.That's still fine.). I am also prepared for the cruel responses I will get after this post. I came on here to see if I could find out information to repair my car and I was surprised to see that if anyone complained about their beetle they were ridiculed. I thought beetle owners were a different breed, cooler than average, and friendly. There is a certain elitist mentality here. You say that if you can't afford a VW you shouldn't have one. Remember the translation of "Volkswagen"?...."The people's Car". They were originally built for the masses to be afforded by everyone and repaired by anyone. VW has lost site of this.People who complain are blamed for their problems. My last breakdown was my fault. But I can't be blamed for both window regulators. or a door handle falling off. or a hood release falling off or the ac dying, or anything else. Yes, old beetles had quirks but new beetle owners have misinterpreted the meaning of the word "quirk" On old beetles it meant "innovation", "uniqueness", and"originality" The original beetles stood out, They endured and still do. The fact that they retained their original design for so long is a testament to their greatness.The real test will be in twenty or thirty years. Will you see a new beetle on the road? Probably not. Old beetle? most likely. The new beetles are just lemons and volkswagon has lost their handle(pun intended) on quality. I actually feel a sense of liberation now that the beetle is dead. now i can get a real "Peoples car", and it WON'T be a VW! Ok, take you best shot people!

I would buy youreslf a new oil pan, make sure that the pick up tube for the oil was not damaged. put oil in it and start it.

It's just not your beetle that gets a smashed oil pan. I have replaced so many I know by heart what tools I need to replace it. I have replaced them from every resaon, even the one you listed. The most recent one was from a wrecker boom (the car had a flat tire) Boom hit the pan and cracked it, oil leaked out and the owner (still mentally dealing with the flat tire) did not see the warning lights on. She drove it out of the tire shop. halfway thru the intersection pop went her engine.


Guess what I'm saying kids are worth more then car's. Buy a oil pan and see what it sounds like then.

A VW is not a chevy caprice, they must have constant attention.

They also make a great skid plate for every Beetle, a very cheap insurance policy.

[jwright]

2.0 motor, yes. 5 speed, yes. black and grey cloth interior. stock 16 inch rims, yes

[peanutsmom]

It's not easy owning a Vw and yes some people are cruel. But not all of us! Every car we have owned has been worked on or needed work! Even my 05 f150 needed work!! So no matter what you get chances are it's gonna need work! But I do hope you change your mind, my Smurfette has been running already for 12 years.. We put a hole in her oil pan about 2 months or so ago by mistake, jacked her up to pull cv axle out cause cv axle gave out on way home, and jack slipped and put a hole in her oil pan. My drivers side window stopped working last Friday night before work. She needs other work, but I still love her.. People are always gonna have something to say about the car you drive weather it's good or bad. All that matters is how you feel.. But good luck either way. I do agree in maybe trying to fix it..

[FreqWiz]

Almost any new car you get will need attention...

My 89 Shelby Dakota hardly needs attention, I change the oil about every 4K miles with Synthetic, other then that I never touch it, and I drive it hard, but everything I own newer then it, I have to do constant work....

I have put so much $$$$ in my wifes NEON because of a missed oil change or missed coolant change.

I have a 65 Lincoln Continental, I think I might give her so I only have to touch it once every three months......

New Cars are not like old cars....

I just got this 1.8T Beetle, and I love the little thing, even though I have to put money into it

[SMG]

You should have stopped when the oil pressure buzzer started beeping.

[kcfoxie]

First, I want to say that when the Germans came out with "Peoples Car" this was a very different time. The vehicle was assmbled quite simply, and the owners had to do all the upkeep. Meaning, you had to know how to change a tire, you had to know how to change the oil, you had to know how to install the belt on the motor, you had to know how to lube the doors and window tracks. Dealer networks did not exist in the 40s, 50s, and 60s in Germany.

It wasn't until they started selling these cars worldwide and realized that richer countries have lazier people who don't care/don't want to work on their vehicles that you started to see the throw-away cars that we have today.

Now, from the "People's car" perspective the new models live up to the reputation. I have almost 260k miles on my 98. I get 54mpg highway, and low-mid 40s in the city. My car has never had the engine rebuilt -- but it's had 3 to 4 timing belts installed. I've replaced the shift linkage, and most of my indrivable moments come from issues with the replacement shift linkage. At this point in age, it makes more sense to find my own fix than to get the OEM parts that will just break again. You have to understand that even the aircooleds had SERIOUS design flaws that no one talks about -- otherwise there would still be millions of them around (and there are not, for many many reasons I won't get into here).

I'm not bashing you. It sucks when the ABS Plastic that holds the door handle breaks from age (your car is 11 years old sugar, what did you expect? Saturns do the same thing ...), the power windows were a poor design and there is no excusing that. The cars are low, and aluminum oil pans were a bad idea. A replacement steele bottom pan was $350 back in 06 for me when this happened on my 2002 2.0L. I came out for under the $500 deductible if I'd claimed it on insurance doing it myself.

VWs are DIY cars. They always have been and always WILL be. That is what people's car was all about. German culture is not a services-based culture like the US culture. Many misinterpret that.

If you're willing to start turning the wrench yourself, these cars offer a value next to NONE. Show me another car with the headroom that my 98 has! I'm 6'3" and slightly oddly proportioned, my MkV Jetta is crampt to me. The beetle is more than comfy. Show me another car that will get 42 city and 54 highway real world, without batteries. They don't exist, except the VW diesels. ANd they've been doing this since 1975. These are reasons why people get defensive of these cars.

I wish more cars worked like VWs, you'd have more enlightened drivers. I just observed/assisted with changing the timing belt on my TDI. I did my 2.0's largely by myself with the help of a friend in the role I played this past weekend (er weekend before rather). Regardless, it cost me $301 and half a tank of fuel ($20?) to have it done, dealer wants closer to $2000 for this job. Most shops are at or around $1000 for this parts and labor. Yes it took us 12 hours. Yes I had to retime my pump after I got home, and yes the shut off solenoid o-ring failed and now I get air in my system and have reduced fuel economy and no turbo power until the $1 part comes in.... am I mad? No, because that pump is 13 years old. I bet that part's never been touched.

I'm not trying to bash you, I'm trying to give some perspective. This is not the car for you. You need a Honda.

[jwright]

Originally Posted by kcfoxie

First, I want to say that when the Germans came out with "Peoples Car" this was a very different time. The vehicle was assmbled quite simply, and the owners had to do all the upkeep. Meaning, you had to know how to change a tire, you had to know how to change the oil, you had to know how to install the belt on the motor, you had to know how to lube the doors and window tracks. Dealer networks did not exist in the 40s, 50s, and 60s in Germany.

It wasn't until they started selling these cars worldwide and realized that richer countries have lazier people who don't care/don't want to work on their vehicles that you started to see the throw-away cars that we have today.

Now, from the "People's car" perspective the new models live up to the reputation. I have almost 260k miles on my 98. I get 54mpg highway, and low-mid 40s in the city. My car has never had the engine rebuilt -- but it's had 3 to 4 timing belts installed. I've replaced the shift linkage, and most of my indrivable moments come from issues with the replacement shift linkage. At this point in age, it makes more sense to find my own fix than to get the OEM parts that will just break again. You have to understand that even the aircooleds had SERIOUS design flaws that no one talks about -- otherwise there would still be millions of them around (and there are not, for many many reasons I won't get into here).

I'm not bashing you. It sucks when the ABS Plastic that holds the door handle breaks from age (your car is 11 years old sugar, what did you expect? Saturns do the same thing ...), the power windows were a poor design and there is no excusing that. The cars are low, and aluminum oil pans were a bad idea. A replacement steele bottom pan was $350 back in 06 for me when this happened on my 2002 2.0L. I came out for under the $500 deductible if I'd claimed it on insurance doing it myself.

VWs are DIY cars. They always have been and always WILL be. That is what people's car was all about. German culture is not a services-based culture like the US culture. Many misinterpret that.

If you're willing to start turning the wrench yourself, these cars offer a value next to NONE. Show me another car with the headroom that my 98 has! I'm 6'3" and slightly oddly proportioned, my MkV Jetta is crampt to me. The beetle is more than comfy. Show me another car that will get 42 city and 54 highway real world, without batteries. They don't exist, except the VW diesels. ANd they've been doing this since 1975. These are reasons why people get defensive of these cars.

I wish more cars worked like VWs, you'd have more enlightened drivers. I just observed/assisted with changing the timing belt on my TDI. I did my 2.0's largely by myself with the help of a friend in the role I played this past weekend (er weekend before rather). Regardless, it cost me $301 and half a tank of fuel ($20?) to have it done, dealer wants closer to $2000 for this job. Most shops are at or around $1000 for this parts and labor. Yes it took us 12 hours. Yes I had to retime my pump after I got home, and yes the shut off solenoid o-ring failed and now I get air in my system and have reduced fuel economy and no turbo power until the $1 part comes in.... am I mad? No, because that pump is 13 years old. I bet that part's never been touched.

I'm not trying to bash you, I'm trying to give some perspective. This is not the car for you. You need a Honda.

I've always been a tinkerer. There are few people more willing to work on a their car than me. I'm proud of the fact that I've never had to take the this beetle to a mechanic until now. All repairs and all maintenance were done by me. As for the door handle being 11 years old I guarantee you that you can go into any junkyard, anywhere and pick a random car and the door handle will work. I think that's kind of sad that a new car is built so cheaply out of plastic.

[jwright]

Originally Posted by jwright

I've always been a tinkerer. There are few people more willing to work on a their car than me. I'm proud of the fact that I've never had to take the this beetle to a mechanic until now. All repairs and all maintenance were done by me. As for the door handle being 11 years old I guarantee you that you can go into any junkyard, anywhere and pick a random car and the door handle will work. I think that's kind of sad that a new car is built so cheaply out of plastic.

By the way I'm neither rich nor lazy. I'm a baker who work long hours to provide for my family. I'd rather my time, energy, AND money go towards my family instead of a car. The beetle has already stolen too much time that could have been spent elsewhere and with people whom I love.

[Palafox]

I don't blame you for moving on. Stranded in the middle of nowhere is not part of any 'New Beetle Experience', and neither is pouring buckets of time and money. Safety of your family and love ones come first... best of luck

[kcfoxie]

Originally Posted by jwright

I've always been a tinkerer. There are few people more willing to work on a their car than me. I'm proud of the fact that I've never had to take the this beetle to a mechanic until now. All repairs and all maintenance were done by me. As for the door handle being 11 years old I guarantee you that you can go into any junkyard, anywhere and pick a random car and the door handle will work. I think that's kind of sad that a new car is built so cheaply out of plastic.

I've had two saturn door handles come off in my hands. The same with a Focus -- which is also the same age and made of plastic. It's a fact of life.

However, I have NEVER had a mirror switch break in any of the 3 New Beetles I've owned (it probably will now, this is just like the flat tire incident at ToD... oh well).

Plastic parts break because everyone uses ABS plastic and ABS is a cheap plastic that gets brittle with sun and air exposure over time. Every car I've ever seen with ABS, has had some ABS part replaced -- saturns it's fenders (they snap instead of bend with age, all ABS), Ford door handles, etc.

My point is, I agree it's kind of crappy, but the Mk4 Beetle handles are WAY better than what the Mk2 had on it. THOSE were super crappy, and I have/kind of still do own one of those... I order 2-3 sets of door handles a year for it. Your bug's needed one. Come talk to me after it breaks twice in the same month...

Also I'm not trying to infer that you're rich or lazy, but comparing your lifestyle to say that of someone from south africa, you are. But, So am I. Actually most of us don't realize how good we have it over here.

As for time being stolen away, I can't argue with that. I don't have a family that enjoys my company, so my time is spent caring for my exotic bird and the cars. The fact that something always needs to be done with my car kind of helps me forget about the fact that there isn't anyone to spend the holidays with. Different strokes, different folks.

So I'm sorry that the car let you down. VW isn't perfect, I know because I'm stuck with 2.6 years left on a car note on a 2006 model Jetta that I can't drive because it needs a $2000 camshaft. That's a design flaw. An 11 year old door handle breaking, in my eyes, not so much.

However, I stand by the get a Honda statement. When a Honda breaks it makes first page new, a VW breaking is expected. I worry when my check engine light turns itself off.

[Volkswoman]

Folks on this site love their NB's. Including myself. However, there is a big difference between the VW of old and the NB. I also have a '65 Squareback. The best little utility car I have ever owned. She was 29 years old when I bought her. I drove it daily for my driver for 15 years until last year when I bought my NB. Moreover, I took her on a month long road trip and the only thing that broke was the accelerator cable. A mobile VW mechanic came out and replaced it for $35. So, coming from a air cooled background, I see it from a totally different perspective. The NB is not the Volkswagen of old. In any way. My '65 is still running and she is 45 years old. little things don't break like on my NB. The NB just isn't made as well. There's no getting around it. Having said that, I love driving it. It handles well, corners great and I will enjoy it till it runs no more. I have decided that after one year of reading the posts here, that I will not spend $$$ on fancy upgrades on my NB. She's a '99. When I buy a new one (IF I do) I will feel comfortable putting more money into mods and upgrades.

[NewBeetleMechanic]

Originally Posted by Volkswoman

Folks on this site love their NB's. Including myself. However, there is a big difference between the VW of old and the NB.

Actually I dont own a VW at all, I know that seems wrong to be on a Beetle site and not own one. You are totally correct the VW of old is gone. Two things stopped the old beetle from running, fuel or spark. That was the only complicated thing on it.

Actually I drive an old C-10 that still has points, runs like a champ.

[2004NBTURBOS]

Originally Posted by jwright

The new beetles are just lemons. I actually feel a sense of liberation now that the beetle is dead. now i can get a real "Peoples car", and it WON'T be a VW! Ok, take you best shot people!

Your NB didn't die, YOU killed it. As you said You ran over the rock. The car didn't steer into it, you did. There are a few people on the ORG that deal out harsh lessons, heck maybe I am one of them. You also welcomed any input and told everybody to give it your best shot, so be prepared to hear it from all of us who YOU say bought a lemon. I understand you want a car you feel is safe for your family, family always comes first. I say go buy a Honda........SeeYa

[SMG]

So you drove over a rock and then proceeded to drive it until a lot of damage was done apparently. You sound like a pretty crappy "tinkerer" if you don't know how to prevent damage to your car in the first place. I'm not sure what kind of responses you were looking for. You're not going to find a lot of VW-bashing people on here sorry to say.

Go buy something boring and enjoy your family.

[kcfoxie]

Originally Posted by Volkswoman

Folks on this site love their NB's. Including myself. However, there is a big difference between the VW of old and the NB. I also have a '65 Squareback. The best little utility car I have ever owned. She was 29 years old when I bought her. I drove it daily for my driver for 15 years until last year when I bought my NB. Moreover, I took her on a month long road trip and the only thing that broke was the accelerator cable. A mobile VW mechanic came out and replaced it for $35. So, coming from a air cooled background, I see it from a totally different perspective. The NB is not the Volkswagen of old. In any way. My '65 is still running and she is 45 years old. little things don't break like on my NB. The NB just isn't made as well. There's no getting around it. Having said that, I love driving it. It handles well, corners great and I will enjoy it till it runs no more. I have decided that after one year of reading the posts here, that I will not spend $$$ on fancy upgrades on my NB. She's a '99. When I buy a new one (IF I do) I will feel comfortable putting more money into mods and upgrades.

See, to me, a failing power window isn't a big deal. I know what a failing regulator sounds like. I pay attention to the sounds my car makes, and if it isn't sounding right I worry. Perhaps coming from a 73 Type 1 1300 is what made me that way.

As I said before I get over 50 highway, over 41 in the city, and have 5 to 6 inches of headroom and I stand 6ft 3 inches tall. Nothing comes close to this car.

The interior door panels are crappy. So were my 73's. So were the replacements for either. Fact of life, I deal with it.

The flaps on the heat exchanger box on the mk4 is a bad design. Others just replace it with an OEM part destined to fail. I'm modding mine to not break again. Why? Because I don't like throwing my money away. OEM is often throwing my money away.

As I said before, the NBs issues are MINOR in the grand scheme. I have a 2006 PD TDI that has a failing camshaft. I know because of smoke, reduced FE< and the noticable engine tick that's developed. I removed the valve cover, yup, i have rough edges. On a 4ish year old car (4 in November, I think the 22nd to be exact) that has merely 124,000 miles. UNACCEPTABLE. THAT is a failure worth writing a brand off. Not a busted door handle, power window switch, mirror control knob, or a window regulator design that they gave a unlimited mile 10-year warranty to any owner -- original or not -- to say we're sorry.

I'm not fully excusing some of the problems the NB has. What I'm saying is, this car has far less issues than my mom's Focus. It has less issues than my Jetta. I'm willing to cope with a busted 260,000 mile, 13-year old transmission shift linkage, I'm OK with re-sealing the injection pump (knock on wood I think the last owners did this), I'm OK with some oil consumption, and I'm OK with the shoddy interior.

I get 630 - 740 miles out of every tank. I could care less about the look of the car. It saves me money HAND over FIST and it's only left me stranded once in the 27,000 miles I've put on the car since January 24, 2010. If you average that out, I put 2454 miles every month on this $3500 little car. My folks thought I was crazy. Who is laughing now with me $20 oil and $8 filter every 10k mile oil change, $12 rear brake pads, etc?

I swapped in passat seats (welded up my own bracket) because the Mk4 seats are terrible, but Passat seats are made in Germany. I find SOLUTIONS to my complaints.

I also don't give up on something that works SO well for me. Don't think we didn't cuss at the design of the car doing the timing belt last weekend. Getting the motor mount off the belt side is a REAL Pain in the arse. TRUST me. However, I do this once every 3.5 years or so. For what I'm saving in fuel over my OTHER TDI which was doing "leaps and bounds" better than my 2.0L VW, the camry, our Jeep, or any other Honda in the family (best ever in the honda: 40.26mpg, best ever in the beetle 54.4 -- and that was my 5th tank at 50+ MPG over the last few weeks of trips).

So if I'm nutty or biased, ok. Your car wasn't cut out for you. That's cool. I'm stating this so that perspective buyers who read your experience get something to counter it without having to dig down.

After all, if the cars never broke this forum wouldn't have anything to talk about now would it?

[peanutsmom]

hehehehehe Hi kcfoxie who is not a girl.. lmao.. My driverside window regulator broke on night before our gtg last weekend but passenger side still works so I use it till I can afford to fix it. No biggie. Air works, and if I have to go through a drive through instead of getting out and walking in then I open my door. It was our fault the jack slipped and put a hole in her oil pan and I apologized to her a lot and thanked her for making it home so she did not have to get towed and cost me more money I did not have.. But how did you not hear the buzzer going off.. I would have hoped out as soon as I hit something to see the damage!! I don't care where I am I would not have drivin her anywhere with any damage done because all that going to do is cost more in the end!! duh common sense.. I always have my 8yr old daughter (will be 9 tomorrow) with me and I would drive Smurfette from here to Texas anytime but I would do a tune up before going. So fix her up and keep going.. I would fix Smurfette and keep on going.. But you want to talk about a car you keep dumping money in, look at my old eclipse.. money pit..

[Missladylinda]

I'm sorry to hear your gonna give up so easily on your nB
I would so fight to keep my Boo alive if that happened to him,And im so poor i cant even pay attention.But i got some good friends here So be it if you walk away just remember buying used you buy someone elses problems..Also if you have a regular car make sure not to run over things.Honda's get stolen ALOT and there rubberbands break too..Ive owned 41+ cars and i know they all broke at one point or another...Good Luck with finding that car that wont...

[woofster]

The grass is always greener on the other side.