2002 Volkswagen Jetta GLS 2.0 from North America

Summary:

"You Gotta Get a Jetta"

Faults:

I have not found anything wrong with my car.

It seems to not even show signs of any kind of problem.

General Comments:

I love my Jetty. ever since I took it on the first drive.

The car handles just perfect. Power-steer performance is unbeatable.

I could go on saying good things about my car.

With gas prizes going up my Jetty shows great reliability on the road and on highway.

I believe that if something goes wrong with my car that is my fault for not putting attention to it.

So for those who say their Jetty sucks its because you did a poor job on taking car of it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 21st April, 2006

21st Apr 2006, 16:33

Actually, '02 Jettas have a reputation for horrible reliability, so no, it's not because of "poor maintenance". Good luck with your Jetta.

21st Apr 2006, 18:07

Looking at the number of blue unhappy faces alongside reviews of recent Jettas I would say I would have no problems if I was to (in your parlance) "Go Getta a Jetta".

2002 Volkswagen Jetta GL 2.0 from North America

Summary:

Run from it like it was the plague

Faults:

Transmission locked up at 24,000 miles. Car wouldn't roll, period. Had to have a flat bed tow truck drag it on board and tow it in for service.

Burns oil like it's going out of style. It's not uncommon to put more than a quart in per 1,000 miles. Supposedly this is within VWs spec.

Driver and passenger's windows fell into the door. This was a recall item. The dealer replaced one side, the following week the other side broke and we had to go back.

We had the driver's side floor pan fill up with water after a rain storm. This was around 19k miles. We're told it was a result of clogged sunroof drains. Turns out it was really a leaky windshield seal.

Had the passenger side floor pan become sopping wet after a rain storm. Again, "clogged sunroof drains". This was at 38k miles.

Due to the above, mildew has collected on the passenger side carpet and floor mat. The interior smells musty due to the water that's collected in the carpet insulation.

Springs fell out from under the driver's and passenger's seats.

Headlight replaced at 24,000 due to condensation.

Burned out brake light bulbs are a common occurrence.

Parking break handle broke.

Several interior trim pieces have the rubberized coating peeling off.

General Comments:

Things seemed great for about a year after we bought the Jetta. Then the windows fell in. That was a recall item. Next, the check oil light came on and I discovered this car uses oil like nobody's business. Then my wife went out to leave one morning for work and found 2" of water in the driver's side floor pan. It's not one particular thing that made this car such a lemon, it's a culmination of all the little things combined with the lack of service from VW and VW dealers.

For instance, the water that collected on the floor was supposedly due to clogged sunroof drains. However, it doesn't say that cleaning the sunroof drains are part of regular maintenance anywhere in the manual. It doesn't even say where they can be found. The dealer charged us $120 (bargained down from $240) to clean the drains and didn't even vacuum up the water that had collected on the floor. As a result of all the leaks our car now smells like mildew - and VW won't replace the carpet because the damage was caused by "outside factors".

I'm done with VW. I'll be darned if I ever buy another VW/Audi product again.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 18th April, 2006

18th Apr 2008, 12:14

Hahahaha are you kidding? You can't clean the sunroof drains your self? it takes like 5 minutes this is why you car is lame.