2005 Volkswagen Jetta GLI from North America - Comments

Transmission replaced @ 32,000 miles (warranty covered 5000.00 USD)

Battery and fuel regulator @ 48,000 miles (1000.00 USD)

Timing belt and water pump @ 60,000 miles (1400.00 USD)

Head gasket, turbo lines, internal engine components (5300.00 USD)

*** A lot of headlights and tail lights and brake lights kept blowing out in intervals of 6-9 weeks after 30,000 miles.

I purchased this vehicle brand NEW off the show room floor. I signed a lease to own contract. 350 dollars a month for 48 months, with an option to buy for 10,000 dollars at the end of my contract, or simply return the vehicle for 0.15 cents a mile over 40,000 miles. (worst financial mistake I ever made in my entire life).

My car's last known problems were internal engine component failure and turbo line replacements, topping the final bill with labor to 5300.00 USD NOTE: knowing this car is a lease and I still had 10 months left on my term, I had to give it back to VW and I still owe them 9000.00 dollars!!!

My first problem happened with the tip-tronic transmission missing the first gear, catching at 3000rpms, causing a terrible knocking noise and excessive acceleration to 2nd. VW honored their warranty under 40,000 miles and replaced the 5,000 dollar transmission for free!

My second problem happened when my car lost about 30 percent of mileage and random shut downs while driving. I am able to restart the car and drive for another 2 miles before repeating steps one through three (drive, shut down, restart) VW charged me for a new battery, fuel pump regulator, and a ground to prevent the cylinders from miss firing. 1000 dollars later I was back on the road and gained my optimum miles per gallon.

My third problem was an unhealthy noise coming from the engine bay. It sounded like Jetta was trying too hard in idle. She wasn't as quite as she used to be. VW said I needed a new timing belt and water pump 20,000 miles before my scheduled date. 1400 dollars later Jetta was a quite good girl.

My last and final problem came when I was driving home, and the Jetta just ceased all electronic and engine activity. I was left coasting 1/8 of a mile to a safe location away from harms way. I tried to revive the Jetta with jumper cables, but it made a nasty electronic sound, the same noise you would hear coming from a hand drill.

When you buy a brand new VW, it's nice to know they offer peace of mind with FREE TOW-AWAY service to the nearest authorized VW dealership.

She was run way model and my daily driver. She was completely stock with no modifications. (just how she was made) The only difference was the personal care I took to give my baby girl the best she deserved.

Four Door Sports-Sedan.

Exterior Styling: 8/10 The GLI chrome trim and aggressive stance is envied by most VW drivers, and shouldn't be out of style until 2012.

Interior Styling: 7/10 elegantly simple. Blue and red lights lit up the cockpit like the 4th of July. But I hated the limited passenger room and the tilt function of the finely stitched Recaro bucket seats.

Acceleration: 7/10 Not the fastest thing on the road, but red lights are tempting. You can pass anyone on the highway with ease.

Braking: 8/10 Very large brakes for a car under 200 hp.

Handling: 8/10 Twist and turns with minimal body roll.

Reliability: 1/10 Free tow away service!

I agree that the problems you experienced aren't fun, but you can't entirely blame the car. You leased the GLI brand new in 05, and by 08 had already put 79K miles on it! That's over 26K a year in mileage, which is pretty ridiculous overall. When you're using your car that much, problems very well may occur faster, that's to be expected.

Also, you can't blame them for still owing $9,000. You said yourself you had to pay 0.15 a mile over 40K miles. That means you went 39K miles over. So $5,850 is just your own over mileage charges. You should have gotten a lease to cover higher mileage.

I realize people commute, I myself drive over 23 miles just to get to work in the morning, making my daily commute over 46 miles a day, at least, in DC traffic. But to put 100 miles a day on your vehicle and not expect problems? You're pushing too much blame on the car and not enough on yourself.