2000 Volkswagen Beetle GLS review from North America

Summary of Repairs:

Being I purchase this car used (only 14K miles), I inherited a problem the previous owner was unable to resolve, and the dealer was in denial of. I found out about this issue when at 25K miles, my fuel light came on with this loud beep noise it had never made before. I soon noticed a whole array of noises that the car had never made... like a beep when the lights are left on, a tone when the door was ajar, etc. Well it turns out that the insturment cluster had been pulled out at 10k miles (according to the dealer) when the previous owner had complained about all the warning tones stopping. The dealer took out the insturment cluster, found nothing wrong with it, then replace it. It then mysteriously started working, so they said all was fine.

I told the dealer that all was NOT fine, and this is a symptom of a previous unresolved problem. They Said it was unrelated, and refused to fix it as it was out of warranty. I called an begged VW Customer Relations, with no avail. At 35k miles, the speedometer ceased to work. Again they said it was unrelated. I paid $280 to have the cluster replaced and my keys reprogrammed. All is now fine with the cluster now. Sounds to me like the dealer was in denial!

At 50k miles, I had the rear O2 sensor fail. The dealer wanted $120 labor + $28 for the part. This replacement took me 10min to do.

At 90k miles I needed to replace the accessory belt. The dealer wanted $78 labor. I did it myself in 1min and 30 seconds. Easiest belt I have ever replaced!

At 98k miles It was time to replace my timing belt. The dealer wanted 8hours labor. I did it myself in 4, having never worked on a VW before this one. Are we seeing a pattern of overbilling for hours.

Keep in mind I would always get a qoute from 2-3 dealers, to ensure they were quoting right.

Incredible brakes. I brake VERY hard, and still on the original pads. The front pads were at 50% when I checked at 105k and the rear at 25%.

Clutch still works great, but since it has to fail some time, I called to see the replacement cost. The dealers want between 12-$1300 for this. They claim the parts are almost $600. I found the parts on the internet from a place that claims the get them from the SAME manufacturer as the dealers for a total of $218. I think I will be doing it myself...

All in all, I bought this car because I was so impressed with it's solid controlled ride and handling. It is every bit German as any BMW. After over 100k miles, still drive the exact same way! No creaks or noises either!