Faults:

The 1.8T engine is sensitive and tends to accumulate residue that blocks the oil pickup, causing sludge buildup.

The turbocharger can fail or lose efficiency due to material fatigue, oil leaks, or problems with the blow-off valve.

Frequent ignition failures.

Crankcase ventilation module broke.

It consumes too much fuel, despite being only a 1.8 engine.

General Comments:

The car's design is what I like most; it's almost a mix between the late '90s Golf and the New Beetle.

It has a distinctly German style and an undeniable kinship with the Audi range, featuring rounded lines, flush windows, and generous tires (205/60x15).

It's likely that back then, a portion of the market preferred a more luxurious exterior, but there are others too, and we belong to that camp. We prefer purity to stylistic excess.

Driving position is excellent. It lacks electric seat adjustment and memory settings for perfection. Everything is done manually, offering countless options. The seat height adjustment (which provides excellent support and lumbar tension) is achieved via a ratchet-type lever to the left of the driver (right of the passenger) that raises and lowers the seat as desired.

The car is very spacious both in the front and rear. The sloping roofline might suggest a limited headroom in the back, but there is still a usable 90 cm of space. Legroom in the passenger area is very generous. The front floorboard is well-designed and allows the front passenger seat to be positioned well forward, providing extra space for the rear passenger.

Climate control is great. In terms of active/passive safety, it comes standard with ABS and 4 airbags (2 side airbags).

The engine is spectacular; the 1.8 turbo has enormous power for the size of the car, and it's reliable, as you'd expect from a VW, although it does consume a lot of fuel. The acceleration is brilliant, and the road handling is extraordinary. Despite its age, it's a car that easily exceeds 200 km/h.

I should also mention that I never had any starting problems, even at temperatures below -10 degrees Celsius.

The directional stability is impeccable and it's relatively unaffected by crosswinds or passing trucks. It also features 4 ABS brakes with no premature fatigue or intermittent lock-up. Very comfortable to drive on all types of terrain.

Faults:

Nothing so far, but I feared the worst when I bought it, seeing as the car had 2 year old oil in it, and the engine sounded like a laundry machine. Oil filter and new oil, and voila, it was as good as new.

General Comments:

I originally bought this car to use it as a point A to point B car, but it has become the car I use on longer trips as well.

My first opinion of the car, was that it was just a little rat, not stylish at all.

That changed a few weeks, and 600 km later. After a long trip, I wasn't tired and deadbeat, the little "rat" as I called it proved to be quite comfy, and the look of the car was really growing on me.

Now it's winter, -10 Celsius outside, and it starts easily, every morning. I leave the car running for 10 minutes while I drink some tea, or finish my breakfast, and I'm greeted with a warm car.

The roads are slippery this time of the year, but the rat seems to have as much grip as it did in the summer.

Now and again I take it on the roads just to burn out some residue from the engine, EGR etc, which the car tells me it wants to do by creating a fairly strong exhaust smell. "Higher RPM" the car commands, and the pedal hits the metal, the car smokes for a bit, then the strong exhaust smell disappears.

The car is hilariously nice on the fuel, returning an average of 4.9 litres per 100 km of fairly fast driving.

The fuel consumption does go up a little when I've only been taking short trips with it at low speeds, but a longer trip with a heavy right foot fixes that (these cars were not meant to go 60km/h forever...)

All in all, this is a great car, and it has yet to disappoint me.