Volkswagen Bora Reviews from Australia and New Zealand - Page 2 of 2

No. 2 spark plug lead blew. Replacement cheap but awkward.

The mini disc player (not popular here) does not go. Just as well there is a 6 stack CD player in the boot!

Funtastic! Loads of features and great to drive.

Solid, stable ride with all interior comforts.

Heaps of control knob lights for night driving - especially good for navigating the great stereo in the dark.

Fuel efficiency rates 42MPG best on highway and 32 MPG on average around town though the tyres must be smaller than spec as the speedo registers 57KM/H when the car is actually doing 50Km/h.

The V5 is a serious performer, but I prefer less performance and better fuel economy as with the 2.0L model.

Maybe we are lucky in New Zealand where we get used imports made in Germany ex=Japan! Imports from America in any brand tend to get bad reports for reliability here.

Centre arm rest latch broken.

Gear lever boot prematurely worn and loose.

Slight muffler rattle.

First the bad:

Speedometer is hard to read at a glance.

Trip computer fiddly to operate.

Hard to find parts either stock or performance.

Now the good:

The Bora is a real stealth bomber - looks ordinary but goes like a rocket. Quick enough off the line, but it's around corners where it really shines. The grip is simply amazing, and the car rounds bends at ridiculous speeds so calmly you forget that most other cars would be a smoldering wreck in the same situation.

Power and torque everywhere. Very smooth power delivery but just enough of a tail-pipe rasp to keep your right foot buried.

Superb leather seats, nice sounding stereo. Even the fuel economy isn't too bad!

Luxury + Performance + Handling + Reliability = Bora V6.

Brake light switch (common) cheap.

Clutch (fixed by dealer, replaced everything as was difficult to diagnose, problem was that clutch would drop half way to the floor after an hours use of car. But you could still change and engage gears. Turned out to be pressure plate)

Expensive 2,500 $ items = clutch, pressure plate, machining DMF (carefully), master cylinder replacement, slave cylinder replacement, multiple flushes.

Window regulators (common) about $100 a door plus lots of pain doing it myself

Rear boot latch - $90 plus fitting myself

Clutch pedal weld (common) welded back up by service centre (Volkspower)

Rear knocking sound (seat strikers maybe?)

Air flap positioning motor is gone (found through vag-com scan (diagnostics tool). Needs to be replaced, haven't looked into as it doesn't bother me too much)

On a sweeping right hand corner, traveling at some amount of speed but not nearly enough to lose grip, the ESP system pulsates as if you are out of control. Does not happen the other way. Turning ESP off solves this. Not sure??

This is a comfortable sports tourer with all the bells and whistles, and none of the wrong kind of attention.

AWD system + ESP + EBD = One very difficult car to lose in the wet or dry, and believe me, I have tried and tested in emergency and fun situations.

This car from factory does understeer. This is easily fixed with the Haldex performance controller and rear swaybar (about $2000). About 60 percent reduction in under-steer, though still very neutral.

Great exhaust note as this is the engine's character.

Gear-shifts are notchy, some MT90 does help. If you learn the gears it does become very smooth and likes to be driven hard or soft, and does not like in-between.

I get about 450 KM's out of a tank of 60 litres with 98 RON. On the open road about 600 KM's.

Brakes are good and will stand-up to a decent mountain session, though ragged at the end blackspur+Reefton = Brake pwnage. I changed my brake fluid to Castrol silver and have not had any problems with fade since.

This car is heavy and can be driven quickly, but will need to be driven hardish to do so. Maximum power comes in at 3500 RPMs, with a second cam engaging at 4500 to take you to 6200. The fun really starts to happen at 5.

So far, I am quite happy with the car for what it is. I drive hard and have done quite a lot including towing boats and trailers without much struggle.

Overall the car is good, and I believe now that I have ironed out most of the common VW bugs, the car should be good for years to come, though I may look at fixing the gearbox somehow!

Nothing as yet.

A very involving and exciting car to drive, quick and handles well. The engine note inside the car is great, I'd rather hear it than the radio. Plenty of power and love driving it.

Rear passenger space is small, could have been a bit bigger.

One small rattle due to a loose piece of trim below ashtray.

A very quick car.

Holds the road like the white line.

Traction is excellent.

Boot is small.

Without doubt one of the two best cars I have ever owned.