2007 Volkswagen GTI 2-door from North America - Comments

The satellite radio has been replaced.

The plastic cover around the shifter peeled and had to be replaced.

The engine light in the car has come on and off several times in the past few months, and the dealer can't figure out why it is coming on.

Ignition has been replaced.

The DSG transmission is a blast to drive, but it shifts very rough frequently.

I have been a Volkswagen owner ever since I purchased my first VW Jetta back in 1996. They have always been excellent cars and proven to be very reliable. I have never broken down or been stranded.

The new MKV GTI is a superb vehicle. It handles like a true sports car and the DSG tranny can shift faster than I can feel or hear.

This has been the first VW vehicles that I have owned where the maintenance costs have been soooo high! This new turbo engine requires the use of a specific synthetic oil that can be found at VW dealerships and repair shops that specialize in German or VW products. The cost to maintain this car has been a nightmare.

I have just about 25k miles on the GTI and I have already taken it in for its 5k mile service ($99.99), 10k mile service (149.99), 15k mile service ($99.99), and 20k mile services ($289.99). These scheduled maintenance visits can cost a pretty penny. Especially since this car only has 25k miles on it, it should not need any major maintenance work done.

I am very keen on taking it to VW while the vehicle is still under factory warranty. Once that is up, I will take it to my trusted VW mechanic, in Boston, to do regular oil changes and whatnot. Synthetic oil changes at my mechanic with the correct oil type is still only $59.99. Volkswagen has a ridiculous maintenance schedule that should be illegal! Basically every service, up until any major one, like an 80k mile service, is just an oil change, oil filter change, cabin filter change, and rotation of tires. All the other things on the list are just "checking" things, like the brakes. It just seems a little overkill to me. These cars are not Mercedes! People who buy VW's don't have as much money as people who buy $100,000 Benzes who can afford to pay $250 for a service job every 10k miles!

My past 1997 Jetta GT and 2002 GTI 1.8T never required maintenance like this, and never did I use synthetic oil. I changed the oil in these cars every 5k miles and I sold both cars with over 150k miles on them each time. I did only routine maintenance, oil changes, timing belts, air filters, serpentine belts, etc, every so often.

My only gripe with this new car is the maintenance costs for it. If it is this expensive right now to keep it up, what will it cost me 6 years down the road from now?

You are right about the dealer overcharging. Don't worry, that's really common. Car dealers make most of their money on maintaining and fixing the cars they sell. In some cases, the actual selling price has very little mark up.

Go ahead and take your car to your mechanic once the warranty is up. You could probably go before that, but I'd be afraid to in case something happens. The dealer couldn't point fingers if you always took the car to them.

I actually recommend synthetic oil. I'm sure you drive your GTI hard from time to time. Even if you don't you don't have to change the oil as often. Synthetic oil is much more durable. I've done a fair bit of research. Amsoil seems like one of the best (http://www.amsoil.com/lit/g1971.pdf). You can find a lot of independent research about it. By the way, the "special VW oil" you need is bogus. VW just subcontracted to some oil manufacturer and marked up the price ridiculously. If it's so good, ask to see the independent test data for viscosity index, four ball wear test, total base number, etc. My guess is they can't (or won't) provide it.

Oh and no, I don't work for Amsoil. But I use it. I've been frustrated by the fact that it's really hard to find decent info about motor oils (most oil companies seem pretty secretive). Amsoil seems to be a glaring exception.

Good luck with your VW. It is a sharp looking car and I hope it treats you well.

Thanks for all the information. I have researched a lot about different oils online, but I have had no really good luck. They give general information of viscosity levels and such and which oils, but there really is no information on which oils are good for my car. The dealership I have been taking it to uses Castrol Syntec, but when I went to Castrols website and plugged in all the information about my car, there were no oils that came up as recommended oils for my GTI. Even the Castrol Syntec was not listed, the oil the VW dealer has been using in my car. I am somewhat knowledgeable about cars and I am learning a lot, but just getting an oil change in this car seems so difficult and aggravating. I almost feel threatened by VW that if I don't take my car to them for regular maintenance, they will refuse to do any warranty work if something were to happen.

I also wanted to know if using regular oil in my car would hurt the car in the long run? I read reports of using non-synthetic oil in cars with turbo, and it wasn't so good. My mechanic always used just regular oil in my car up until 158k miles when I traded the vehicle in. The GTI 1.8T drove perfect since the day I got it until then. I am just curious to know if I am really hurting the engine by using non-synthetic oil in it.

I had taken my new 2007 GTI to my VW mechanic in Boston because the roads are soo bad here that usually in one winter season, I will go through at least 2 rims and 2 tires. I asked him if I needed to put synthetic in this car and he said that these new cars, even though they do they turbo, do not need synthetic oil. He said that engines today are built to withstand extreme heat and conditions. He said to change the oil at least every 5k miles. I just wanted to know your opinion on this.

Thanks for the advice.