Comments: 1-15, 16-17
You name it!
The check engine light came on after I owned it for only a couple weeks. After many return visits to the dealer to correct it, I just gave up. The light finally burned out after 2 years.
In rain and snow, the car sometimes refuses to go above 25 MPH. The dealer told me "it was a thinking car" and the computer just needed to be reset (at a cost of $60 each time).
I cannot turn my A/C on above "2" or the car sounds like a helicopter.
I have had several miscellaneous problems with the ignition system.
The alarm system has gone haywire at least twice.
The molding is falling off the doors.
The list goes on and on and on...
This car has been a big disappointment. I will never buy another Volkswagen for as long as I live.
My sentiments exactly... the car surely enjoys the company at the dealership because that is where it spends the majority of its life...
As a VW Passat owner, I can see it has a lot it common with the Jetta. They are both terrible cars. After my experience with Volkswagen I will never buy one again. If anything goes wrong, you'd better get your check book out.
I have a 1997 Volkswagen Jetta GT automatic and I have no problems like the normal maintenance and I love this car, it now has 80,000 miles on it and it can go forever, no trans problems check engine lights or anything has gone wrong and runs great, but really it depends on when the car was actually made. I am not planning on getting rid of mine any time soon.
My dream car, the 2000 Cabrio I always wanted, became the biggest nightmare ever. I am not surprised that the car is now extinct. Within the first year purchased, I had two factory tires blowout and the start of a major factory alarm problem. The alarm had been checked 4 times before finally being replaced. The windows never worked properly, even after 4 visits to the dealership. The cars faulty door latch needed to be replaced, (after it opened while the car was in motion!).The engine light went on 4 times over the course of my lease-I was told "it's no big deal until the light actually starts blinking". The tachometer would race into the red instead of properly idling. My favorite was after 2 years, my first time going to inspection resulted in rejection-the factory gas cap was faulty. VW refused to replace it. I had to purchase a new one and return for re inspection. My trade in had over 100,000 miles and was in better condition. And at the end of it all, the leasing company charges you for a dent you need a telescope to see. This was the worst car I ever owned-my first new car. I will never buy a VW again in this lifetime. All I can say is thankfully, I leased. I feel sorry for it's next owner!
I feel your pain brother. I have a VW Jetta, its about to hit 100,00, and I'm just praying that nothing else goes wrong.
My first experience with VW was a rabbit (along time a go) very bad experience. However I decide to give VW a second chance with my 1999 Passat and had another bad experience with it (check engine light, water leaking, noise interior and worst of all a blown turbo seal at 50Kmi). I would stay away from VW even though they are nice looking cars! Needless to say, I sold it.
I bought a "Certified" Used Jetta, 99, after 3 days it would not move. Transmission had to be replaced. OK, I can blame the dealer with that one. Took 3 mths to get it taken care of. Last week spent 450 on new ac. thank goodness for extended warranty,, this week can't start the thing, alarm goes off and will not allow it to turn over. anyone have any suggestions on how to remedy this without taking it back in. Or does anyone know of any re-calls on these
Terri
leanngate5@hotmail.com.
I have noticed a few things about Jettas (I've had quite a few). In 1986 VW moved the plant that makes Jettas, Passatts and Golfs to Mexico, and they had a hard time keeping up the quality. The Cabrios and Eurovans were still made in Germany. My first "real" car was a 1985 Jetta (first year Jetta II body style, last year still made in Germany) and I put over 300,000 miles on it with NO PROBLEMS other than an alternator rubuild--that's it! The next one I had was a 1992, and I was TROUBLE. All of the things listed in comments above happened to me, too. I believe it really depends on the previous owners of the cars (if you bought one used). Since Jettas are usually bought by younger people (no offense intended here) they are often abused and neglected. That's what happened to my 1992--so I found out later. VW's REALLY tend to vary in quality, I've noticed, and I'm not sure why. I've owned 20+ VW's from a 1958 Bug to a 1968 Karmann Ghia to quite a few Jettas and a Dasher or two, and it seems like the older they are, the better they are. Honestly, I would stay away from any Jetta II's and Jetta III's you see out there--especially if it's obvious they've been repainted. It's a sure sign that something is amiss. I found out that my '92 has been totalled in a wreck, pulled out of a junkyard, straightened out, repainted and sold to me with a Salvage title (didn't get the title until I'd owned the car for three months--crooked dealership now extinct). Just be VERY careful if you want one, and have a qualified mechanic check it out first. When things go wrong on VW's they go wrong in a BIG, BIG, EXPENSIVE way--no question about it!
How odd, I've owned several VWs (77 Rabbit, 86 GTI, a Fox wagon, 93 Passat wagon, 98 GTI and now an 06 Jetta) and have loved them all. I owned the 86 for 15 years, racking up over 188,000 miles and gave it up only because the floor boards were getting soggy with rust: gave it to a local youth group who refurbished it and sold it. Bought my 98 with 65k miles and drove it up to 201k. Other than stuff I broke (hitting a curb, bending an a-arm, etc.), I never had an issue with any of them. Of course, I am a big believer in preventative maintenance and never let anything go amiss for long... Maybe I've just had good luck, but after nearly 30 years, I've not been disappointed yet! Most of my auto troubles have come from American brands and a couple Subarus my ex-wife HAD to own...! Don't get me started on those heaps!
I own a '99 Jetta (120,000 miles). It has been a problem since day one. I had to replace the plug wires (@ $120) because everytime it would rain the car would die. Missing drivers side door molding, can't use AC or car will stall, both rear windows won't go down, now the passenger side front won't. The battery went dead and I had to go to a stereo installation shop to have it removed so I could get the code for it. It's now starting to leak anti-freeze and the alarm system seems to have developed a mind of its own. It arms itself, won't let me start it, I disarm it, it arms itself again, and the process continues. So now everytime I start the car I have to open the hood and use a screwdriver to turn the starter over and bypass the alarm. I'm selling this car and never buying another VW again!
Plug wires are normal maintainance and I had to do it to my car to because eventually the car will run crappy when dry as well.
My 1998 Jetta (owned since new, 111K now) has been a pretty good car. I think the exhaust system failed a little prematurely at 75K, but otherwise I replaced wheel rear bearings at 95K and the engine coolant flange at 100K. I wonder if the car of the previous commentor is leaking in the same location. It cost me $7 in parts to fix. I think this is a very reasonable amount of problems for a car that has been on the road 8 years and has over 110,000 miles.
I own a 98 VW Jetta GT 2.0. I have had nothing, but bad luck with this car. What I see in all the other comments above is that everyone seems to have a problem with the alarm system. Today, that problem exists. The alarm has a mind of its own and I can't figure out how to reset or bypass the alarm. I recommened anyone who reads these comments to stay away from VW. They are very well known for their electrical problems and as wells as their engine coils. Stay away from them.
My first car was a blue 2000 bug. Everything was fine with the car until I went to put gas in the damn thing, and my electronic gas cap thing refused to open. What's even better is that quite often I find Volkswagen bugs driving around with the gas thing having a huge hole like the owners cut one so they could put gas in their cars, even better I did it myself.
The car I own now, a 2000 VW cabrio, is even worse. The check engine light is on and refuses to go off. Just as well, as my brakes are locking up when its rainy because of a faulty ABS system that the VW dealership claims doesn't exist.
Just 10 minutes ago, my alignment got messed up completely becuase I went over the most minute bump in the road, that any normal car should be capable of going over. I'm scared to find out how much it is going to cost to fix it all.
Ooohhh, on top of all of this, when I bought the car, the radio refused to turn on, and the code wasn't working. Thank god it was under warranty because they had to install a new system, I wish it was still under warranty.
GOOD LUCK ALL YOU Volkswagen OWNERS! WE'RE GOING TO NEED IT LOL.
I'm in a family of all Volkswagen owners and a few friends drive them too. I have had alarm problems with my 98 Jetta, but nothing too serious. A lot of times, I was dealing with a shady dealer. I have heard about the 1999 Jettas having electrical problems, and I do think all Jettas from 99-01 were recalled. I, nor anyone in my family, have had problems, which is why all have some kind of VW. The previous commenter said it right when cars need to be maintained. Also, cars should be driven correctly. Compared to all my other friends who don't drive VWs (they drive Fords, Toyotas, etc) I've had the LEAST amount of problems and have paid the least in services and repairs. Like all cars, you need to be careful when you make a purchase.