2002 Volkswagen Jetta Europa 2.0L from Mexico

Summary:

It's German, it's cheap, what else would you want?

Faults:

Nothing really, but I have to comment that in the first 400 or so Km. the assembly of the interior was rock solid, but afterwards it began to rattle a little bit on the driver's door.

The brakes aren't as firm as I expected, but they do their job well and they keep improving as mileage increases.

General Comments:

An excellent car for the money spent, it is by far the best compact car available (even though here in Mexico such fine cars as the Opel Astra or the Renault Megane are available). Sure, a Dodge Stratus or a Nissan Sentra have more standard equipment and bigger space, but in my viewpoint the ride and handling, interior and exterior finishes and overall quality is far beyond VW's offering.

I would recommend this car extensively; great value, great looks, and great performance. A hard to beat mixture!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 26th March, 2003

2002 Volkswagen Jetta 1.8t from North America

Summary:

High priced crap

Faults:

The engine light comes on once a week.

The car would not start.

The coils are bad and they won't fix.

The seat material wore out prematurely.

The coolant reservoir cracked.

The ECU was misprogrammed from the factory.

The car stutters.

The shifter is very difficult to move from park to drive or reverse.

General Comments:

This has been a total nightmare! VW's dealership customer service sucks. Volkswagen's customer care is a joke! They say they will look into the problem, but they never say will will fix the problem. So, I am caught in a constant dealer to customer service circle. The coils are bad, but they won't fix them? This car and Volkswagen are a joke. Come on, you pay $20,000 for a car that has problems that they won't fix? The gas mileage they have on the window sticker should be more like 14 mpg, not 17 to 24 mpg. I had a Honda before this and it had close to 200,000 miles on it. I had replaced an alternator at a cost of $75 (used). The people at Volkswagen should be ashamed of themselves. If you are even considering buying a Volkswagen, don't do it. I have had so much trouble in the last year with this car that it is sickening.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 18th February, 2003

2nd May 2006, 14:43

My sister has a 1998 pas sat 1.8 turbo that was purchase through a used care dealer in 2000. Since she purchase the car it has been nothing, but endless problems for her. First of all the electrical interior parts Sunroof, Windows, door locks began to malfunction at different times over the years followed by the engine light coming on even after serviced. The rack & pinion fluid began to leak like pouring water out of a bucket when the seals go bad while making a turn. After having starting issues, the deal service person stated that the throttle body needed to be replace. My sister complained to the service guy about all the money she spend on constant mechanical problems, He cut her a little slack and provided some information on how to resolve the problem without replacing the throttle body using carburetor cleaner. This resolve the problem for a while, then the starting issue began again, but this time the carburator spray did not work. In all my days as a mechanic, I have never encountered so many problems with one vehicle. I have heard back in the 70's the VW Rabbits having problems, but this takes the cake. My advice, STAY AWAY FROM VOLKSWAGEN'S!

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2002 Volkswagen Jetta GLS 1.8 turbo from North America

Summary:

A front wheel drive BMW 3 series

Faults:

I have had the car for four months and have put a little over 8,000 miles on it in this time. Everything is perfect on this car, except it was delivered with a blown rear tail light and it has an occasional squeak and rattle inside on rough back roads.

General Comments:

This is my third Jetta in my 3 1/2 years of driving. I love Volkswagens and my dealer, York Volkswagen. The 1.8T has plenty of power and it pulls very strong at 1900 rpm up until about 6000 rpm. It has the available Sport Package, which includes the sport suspension and 17 inch rims and all season tires. It handles very well no matter what you put in front of it.

I strongly recommend this car to anyone who is in the market for a very capable four door sporty sedan.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 16th February, 2003