1997 Volkswagen Jetta GLX from North America - Comments

The door latches stick, so frequently the doors will not open (especially the front passenger door). We're tired of pretending my boyfriend's being chivalrous when he has to come around to let me out!

Four window regulators have gone out, one for every year we've owned the car! These cost between $300-450 EACH.

One winter we were trapped in a car with four doors that wouldn't open and had to crawl through one of the three working windows to get out. We are NOT the Dukes of Hazzard, and this piece of crap Jetta is NOT the General Lee.

As a kid, I remember playing "Slug Bug"- now we get a kick out of seeing how many Jettas on the road are missing their door trim. Ours is, of course.

We find plastic parts all the time, things that just randomly fall off: seat back adjustment knobs, parts of seat track, you name it.

The electrical/ alarm system is whacked.

Dash lights have a mind of their own.

I like the way this car handles for the most part, but that is paled by the absolutely inferior body of the car. I still think Jettas are some of the nicer looking cars on the road, but I'm shocked at VW's lack of response to what are obviously COMMON problems with their vehicles.

I have had similar experience with my Jetta.. None of the windows work, the plasic falls off all over the place and it just kind of bites. It drives good..

I have had similar minor problems with mine, however, all my door still function properly. My windows seem to do whatever they want, but the windows aren't just a Jetta thing. I had a 98 Audi A6 and it did the same thing, my friend has a golf and his does it too, maybe Audi/VW should look into that, I would suggest it. Even with the little quirks that it has, I would never get rid of it. The car drives so nice, tons of power and still gets around 28 MPG, great handling, very comfortable, the speakers are amazing, I love the stick shift, no major problems yet and we're at 145,000 miles. I would definitely buy another one, however I hope I don't have to, I really like this one.

I think the Jetta GLX is a great car, really fast, runs smoothly and very reliable I'm thiking you all just have bad luck with your because mine is still on the road and in great shape! yay for me!

Jetta GLX is the best car there is on the road. It's my second one because first one was stolen, everyone want a peace of it. I never had any kind of problems with this car, it drives awesome and it gets me from point Ato point B FAST!!!btw: windows work perfectly...

I have a '97 Jetta GLX -manual with 80K miles and have owned it since 2001 when it had 47K.

Pros for the car are it's handling, power, stability, comfort for front passengers, gas mileage, large trunk and I would give it relatively high marks for reliability except for small items.

Cons are expensive parts and repairs, side trim door locks and handles, warning lights (air bag), under effective shock absorbers.

I have recently had the front passenger side door lock assembly replaced followed by the inner latch assembly. I have also replaced the side trim, but Volkswagen's double-sided tape does not last. Volkswagen should devise a better replacement and do a recall or at least an inexpensive alternative.

I am currently having a slight idle problem. When car is brought to a stop the idle drops too low and needs to recover. I'm hoping this just needs an adjustment since the idle control valve costs almost $400.

I would definitely buy another Jetta, but plan on keeping this one for some time.

Agreed on most points. The door trim never stays on and looks ghetto. especially since the double sided industrial strength tape I used doesn't want to come off.

The driver door lock sticks and sometime I need to get in through the passenger side.

It leaked for awhile, but found that the leak was caused by poor gaskets for the tailights.

Wow!! I think our cars are twins separated at the factory! I ended up using Shoe Goo and Super Glue to keep my door trim on.

As far as the door handles go... well let's just say I ended up breaking the little lock post when one day I tried to "Daisy Duke" myself into my car... and my "Daisy Duke's" got stuck on it. LOL. My door handle actually broke though and had to be replaced at a cost of over $250. And ever since they "fixed" it, my alarm can only be turned on and off properly from the passenger side.

Window regulators broke three times.

BOTH WATER PUMPS AND THE HEATER CORE WENT - at different times of course. (And just so everyone knows - the heater core itself is NOT an expensive part... but it'll cost about $800 in labor to get to it!!!

It's a terrifying experience to be cruising down the highway at 70mph when your heater core explodes filling your car with clouds! I couldn't see ANYTHING and absolutely thought I was going to die. Very SCARY!

One of my favorite breakdowns is the when the ignition coil goes. That little repair goes for $600 each time... and it only lasts for about a year until it needs to be replaced again. Just long enough to expire your warranty on the part and make you want to scream. I've REPLACED mine 3 times. Common problem if you check the Internet.

The ABS light comes on whenever it feels like it.

The entire steering rack had to be replaced ($600).

I loved the car when I first got it - until it started breaking piece by piece. Both plastic knobs (driver and passenger) to adjust the seats broke off. When you open the visor, a plastic piece from next to the mirror comes flying off into your lap. ETC ETC ETC.

Every breakdown got more and more expensive - and when I called Volkswagen to get them to eat some of the costs of the never ending breakdowns, their answer to me was, "Your warranty is good for 24,000 miles - after that it's the owners responsibility." Apparently after you've driven 24,000 miles you're on your own as far as they're concerned. I will NEVER spend another penny on anything Volkswagen... and I'll tell my story to anybody willing to listen in hopes they won't either.

I've had a Jetta GLX since 1997 (bought it new) and still love it after almost 10 years. I've had a lot of the same repairs as others describe here, but nothing unexpected for a car that old. Ignition coil replaced - only once so far. Mass air sensor - that's an expensive bugger! Window regulator only once, but ti didn't cost as much as others say to replace. Other minor and routine things as well. Batteries, brakes, belts, tires, plugs and wires, etc.

I'm comfortable with spending $1000 per year on repairs and maintenance rather than buying a new car. It's far cheaper, and I may not ever find a car I enjoy as much as this one (that I could actually afford). Plus, it will be my last stick ever because my wife refuses to drive a stick.

When the trim first started getting loose I glued it on with a silicone glue called GOOP that you can find in any hardware store. Best $4 I ever spent. Never had a trim prob after that. I think I have the only Jetta on the road with all the original trim.

My Jetta only has 94K miles and is almost always parked inside, so it has that advantage, I'll admit.

What is it with the door trim haha I used clear silicon to reattach ALL of my trim peaces its fine now tho, coil pack failur and the driverside lock just came out... so yeah humm dopnt know, but the door trim thing was veery odd...