2002 Volkswagen Sharan T 1.8 from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Good MPV, reliability marred by big expensive repairs

Faults:

Replaced gearbox (within dealer's warranty)

Air con has now failed.

General Comments:

The car performs well is comfortable and bright with good driver's position and all round visibility. Comfort and performance wise it's a massive improvement on the Renault Espace we had before. My local VW dealer is dire so I'm always worried when something goes wrong with it. Currently the aircon is on the blink and I have been warned that replacing the main unit costs £900. I wouldn't bother, but I've got three kids under 6 so if it gets hot in this car (and it is a mobile greenhouse) all hell breaks loose.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 1st August, 2006

2002 Volkswagen Sharan Carat 1.9 TDI from UK and Ireland

Summary:

A quality car marred by indifferent after sales service

Faults:

Plastic apron around base of windscreen cannot be seated correctly and vibrates against glass at motorway speeds. It has been looked at on seven separate occasions, but dealer is not able to correct it. The noise is not acceptable and at £24,500 I feel VW should do more to inform dealers how to correct this fault.

General Comments:

Otherwise the car is very sound and I have no hesitation in recommending it to other families needing 7 seats.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 29th February, 2004

2002 Volkswagen Sharan Highline 1.9 TDI from Germany

Summary:

Nice, but reliability needs improvement

Faults:

Rear seat row heat exchanger defective, leaked coolant including all over the interior. Carpets and trim panels also required replacement owing to damage. Two weeks required for repairs.

Central locking locks itself without warning on occasion... very dangerous! Never leave the key in the ignition when exiting the car.

Hose to air conditioning compressor failed at about 25K.

Front windscreen defroster (electrical) failed at 28K. Required replacement of main wiring harness.

General Comments:

The vehicle is comfortable for our family of 5 (plus many bags), handles well (for a van), and has decent fuel economy.

Unfortunately, it spent 4 weeks out of the first year in the garage for warranty repairs.

The middle console is not well designed. Rear & front defroster switches should be reversed. Drink holders are too flimsy and condensation drips onto the radio and CD player... probably not good in the long term. The warning blinker switch is also hidden under these circumstances. The controls for the automatic climate control are also somewhat Byzantine.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 8th May, 2003

7th May 2004, 11:22

Compressor to Ac failed at 20k. Took them a week to fix it as they didn't have the gas in stock. Rubbish service. Not impressed with the car either. Lots of creeks.