2001 Volkswagen Jetta Wolfsburg review from North America

The power trunk latch has failed and been replaced three times.

Both front power windows had to be replaced within weeks of buying the car as the anti-pinch mechanisms failed.

The driver's seat frame broke. (I'm 5'11", 180lbs.)

The coolant temperature sensor failed. Fortunately, I was able to replace this myself for $7.

All four ignition coils had to be replaced. (A "known" issue which was never publicized, but was fixed for free by the dealer.)

The wipers had to be replaced the day after buying the car as they wouldn't clean the windshield.

The brake rotors had to be replaced at 30,000km.

The clutch plate shattered at 60,000km. The dealer informed me that this could only happen if I repeatedly "popped the clutch at high RPM". I've never done that even once. For comparison purposes, the clutch on my 1993 Honda Civic lasted roughly 200,000km.

The salesperson never mentioned the fact that the air conditioning unit has some form of drip tray underneath it which collects condensation that drops off the unit. After owning the car for about 36 months, I noticed a strong odor when I used the air conditioning. The dealer told me that I need to shut off the air conditioning 10 minutes before I shut off the car so that the drip tray has a chance to dry. I only have a 15 minute drive to work...I'm supposed to shut off the air conditioning 10 minutes before I get there? This is "German engineering"?

The power outlet on the dash didn't work when the car was delivered.

The radio reception is so bad that I can't reliably receive FM or AM radio stations. (I live in a major metropolis.)

The 1.8T engine develops good power and is fun to drive.

Unfortunately, the cost to maintain the car simply isn't worth the fun factor that it delivers.