Jetta/Golf reliability incl elec, good bad years?

[columnshift]

Helping a friend shop for a vehicle.. Curious about the basic reliability of the VW Jettas and Golfs in terms of the car itself, mostly outside the powertrain. I know the powertrains can go on a really long time but i've heard they have lots of electrical problems. I dont know if thats certain models or certain years or just everything. Curious on other issues like basic body integrity and such/how well put together especially if driven ALOT and getting up in miles.

Most interested in the mark 3/4/5 range but anecdotes on others fine also.

 

[JHZR2]

My close friend had a 2001 GTI he drove until around 190k with next to no maintenance. He changed the oil religiously with M1 0w-40 in fear of sludge, but did nothing else. Some emissions stuff was torn/broken even... CEL on, etc.

Some of the other parts crumbled around him, but the electronics all worked fine, and Im sure that was a "bad" year.

Our 08 rabbit was a gem. We just outgrew it.

 

[RooflessVW]

Mk5 is solid generally solid, but... The drivers door harness in the jetta is too short, so it will need replaced/repaired when you notice none of the switches on the door work. You lengthen the harness as preventative maintenance. The harness for the passenger airbag breaks after years of moving the seat forward and back. A/C compressors fail at about 120k or never.

The 2.0t will need a carbon cleaning at 80k at the latest. The DSG needs 40k fluid/filter changes. The auto transmissions need 60 drain/fills or the valve bodies get gummy.

If you have any specific questions just pm me or ask them here and I will answer them as very best as I can.

 

[GiveMeAVowel]

I own an MKIII 96 Golf GL (2L) and the thing is very, VERY reliable, and has been CHEAP to keep too. No major repairs at all,
only basic maintenance and a timing belt at a scheduled interval.

Body integrity has been very good on my car, even now with 130k no squeaks or rattles to speak of. The only thing that seems to be a problem with this vintage is that the foam covering on the heater control flap rots and allows outside air into the system and will make the heater appear to be weak, the fix is to access the box inside the dash and cover the flap with duct foil tape, a short cut to prevent removing the dash can be used which involved cutting an access hole in the heater box which makes the repair fairly simple.

 

[Gasbuggy]

People who need help shopping for a vehicle should avoid used Volkswagens.

 

[GiveMeAVowel]

Originally Posted By: Gasbuggy
People who need help shopping for a vehicle should avoid used Volkswagens.


I actually tend to agree with that, unless you know the owner and trust that he took good care of the car, I would probably pass again unless you can turn the wrench youself.

 

[Olas]

The 83-92 Golfs and Jettas and the most reliable and simplest, in my experience.

It seems that no VW built in NA or Mexico is well regarded in terms of reliability, fit and finish, or longevity - but the same models in Europe Japan and Australia are far less problematic and considered by most to be good and reliable.

Try and source a vehicle from overseas and you'll immediately notice the difference in quality.

 

[wemay]

Originally Posted By: Olas
The 83-92 Golfs and Jettas and the most reliable and simplest, in my experience.

It seems that no VW built in NA or Mexico is well regarded in terms of reliability, fit and finish, or longevity - but the same models in Europe Japan and Australia are far less problematic and considered by most to be good and reliable.

Try and source a vehicle from overseas and you'll immediately notice the difference in quality.


+1

 

[Andrew1972]

Originally Posted By: Olas
The 83-92 Golfs and Jettas and the most reliable and simplest, in my experience.



Not sure. I owned a 1988 VW Jetta GLI 16v(Made in Germany) while a hoot to drive was not particularly reliable. Electric parts (cheap at junkyard) would constantly fail on this car:
Fuel pump relay
turn signal relayo2 sensor
oil pressure sensors x2
low quality ground on engine to ECU
heater/AC fan speeds relay and fan
dash lights
whip antenna on roof(wire detaches in headliner).

Mechanically it seemed reliable except it did have a hunting idle.

It also had doors that if they leaked around the plastic liner in door would actually flow into the car leaving a disgusting mold. Every other car if water entered the door would not be directed into the vehicle. The car made me sick and I sold it to a kid.

 

[Olas]

Originally Posted By: madRiver
Originally Posted By: Olas
The 83-92 Golfs and Jettas and the most reliable and simplest, in my experience.



Not sure. I owned a 1988 VW Jetta GLI 16v(Made in Germany) while a hoot to drive was not particularly reliable. Electric parts (cheap at junkyard) would constantly fail on this car:
Fuel pump relay
turn signal relayo2 sensor
oil pressure sensors x2
low quality ground on engine to ECU
heater/AC fan speeds relay and fan
dash lights
whip antenna on roof(wire detaches in headliner).

Mechanically it seemed reliable except it did have a hunting idle.

It also had doors that if they leaked around the plastic liner in door would actually flow into the car leaving a disgusting mold. Every other car if water entered the door would not be directed into the vehicle. The car made me sick and I sold it to a kid.


Did you have it from new? What was the maintenance like? Door membranes don't really fail unless somebody cut them to install bigger speakers..

 

[stranger706]

I don't know how closely related they are but I had a lot of problems with my 2004 Audi A4. Electrical and mechanical. I think that was a bad era for them though.

 

[cptbarkey]

ask canadacatalyst, he has a vw centered business of recycling vw's and probably has a unique insight on common issues. https://www.youtube.com/user/canadacatalyst

 

[jeepman3071]

Around here most of the VW Jettas are driven by college females who don't change/check the oil. My sister owned a 2001 Jetta for a few months and it died at 100k miles. The auto trans was dead, and the 2.0 engine was burning a quart of oil a week. I'm guessing it was never taken care of by the previous owner, but a guy I worked with who was a VW fanatic said the one rule of Volkswagens is you never buy an auto.

 

[scurvy]

My Golf continues to soldier on well, now into its second decade. It's given me only one problem, and that was just last week when the in-tank pump died. Aside from that relatively cheap and extremely easy repair, it's been an exception vehicle that does everything from high speed commuting, family hauling and pulling a trailer.

However, I would not recommend a VW to anyone that doesn't enjoy wrenching themselves or has a reliable independent VW specialist nearby. VW disservice departments at the stealership are the absolute worst I have every seen.

 

[Dan55]

I have had 3 VWs,driven 400k and cannot recommend them to anyone new or used. They are great cars but reliability is a tremendous problem and VW does not stand behind their product. A great many VW dealers went out of business in my area. Look at the emissions scandal today and how it affects current owners.

 

[stephen9666]

Originally Posted By: Olas
The 83-92 Golfs and Jettas and the most reliable and simplest, in my experience.

It seems that no VW built in NA or Mexico is well regarded in terms of reliability, fit and finish, or longevity - but the same models in Europe Japan and Australia are far less problematic and considered by most to be good and reliable.

Try and source a vehicle from overseas and you'll immediately notice the difference in quality.


This is not really based on reality.

I'm a county of origin enthusiast, so I get not wanting your "European" car to be built in Mexico or the U.S., but right now the least reliable newer VWs for sale in the U.S. are the ones made in Europe.

Originally Posted By: columnshift


Most interested in the mark 3/4/5 range but anecdotes on others fine also.


Mark III and IV are getting really old these days. What is this person looking for? How far up the priority list is reliability?

We have a 2010 MKV Jetta. It's been mostly reliable. The drivetrains in these cars are solid, but the cars aren't perfect. For example, the door latch mechanisms fail a lot. This is an issue that some VWs have had for years and years that the company basically refused to correct.

The MKV is leaps-and-bounds ahead of the later MKVI when it comes to interior quality and other features, but the MKVI has a much bigger back seat.

Depending on your budget and what the person is looking for, the MKVI might be worth a look, too.

 

[Scum_Frog]

Take a look at my signature.

We would not have gotten the '16 if the '07 was not a good vehicle.

 

[scurvy]

Originally Posted By: stephen9666
Mark III and IV are getting really old these days. What is this person looking for? How far up the priority list is reliability?


Quoted for truth. In the US, the youngest mk3 was a 1998 model - making it able to buy smokes, nudie mags and lottery tickets this year - and the youngest mk4 is a 2006 (like my Golf) - which obviously turns 10 this year. Any car that's between 10+ years old is definitely going to have maintenance issues that crop up.

 

[dareo]

I cant recommend anyone other than car enthusiasts get involved with used VWs. They have world class engineering built to a budget. They need the exact VW care not the whatever iffy lube does to it. You mix an unknown history and an average driver not doing exactly what VW intended and it can be a bad experience.

Those that buy new and maintain properly likely have magnitudes higher reliability.

 

[crw]

I've had a 2001 Jetta for a number of years. It has been a nightmare. I could go on and on, but I don't have the time to document everything, much less remember it all. I actually drove that demented Jetta to work today, because I had to give my car to my daughter when she went back to school after the winter break.

I actually just solved it's latest issue. It would not start in the cold. Turns out, it was the coolant temperature sensor. Cheap and simple fix, however, KNOWING what to fix is the problem. The level of complexity, combined with garbage sensors everywhere, means you will be stranded often. It has been, what, 8 years like this?

DO NOT buy a VW of this vintage unless you plan on spending all your free time trying to figure out why the car won't run! Oh by the way, the hoses under the hood melt. They do, they melt! Never leave the keys in the car, because the car might decide to automatically lock itself. If the car gets bored, it starts playing ding-dong chimes in the cabin...