Incredibly stupid new corporate leadership probably had something to do with it. How many new names have been brought under the VW umbrella in the past 15 years? And look at the new models VW is producing under its own name, I mean Christ on a pogo stick, who needs a luxury Volkswagen SUV? And while they’re playing with all their new ideas, the basic cars that used to be the backbone of the company are 1) getting too expensive for the middle-class families that used to buy them and 2) turning into shit. They’ve lost touch with what built the company in the first place without managing to turn it into anything else in particular; it’s just adrift.
I know, I know, hardly a Déesse. It’s even a diesel. And a stationcar. And it’s grey. I know. But it’s reliable, comfortable, roomy, and economical. So it shares at least two of those factors with your DS.
Yes, but they were very rare in the U.S (before looking it up, I’d have bet money that such a beast didn’t exist at all, having never seen one!). According to this site, regarding the 1984 Jeep Cherokee:
I thought “Fucking Volkswagen” was going to be about a very uncomfortable place
Late 80s early 90s my family had a Rabbit. Bad news, it lost reverse gear! Good news, it was light enough that I could back out of parking spaces with my foot, even on a slight incline. Then again, it had >100K miles on it when we got it, so it lasted quite awhile. (I may recall incorrectly on the mileage).
Doesn’t surprise me that they were unpopular in the US. Diesel technology as it was in the mid 80’s, I bet that 4 cylinder diesel was vastly too weak for that heavy Cherokee. And with gas prices as they are, I’d have a thumping V8 in my Cherokee as well, thankyouverymuch. But over here, a turbo-diesel in a Jeep (or any big off roader, really) makes sense. Actually, it makes even MORE sense in the dirt, as diesels truly are kings there, but then again, very few Cherokees ever make it off the tarmac.
It is too bad the french couldn’t hack it in the USA-they made some of the most comfortable cars on the road! Great suspensions, with tremendous wheel travel. The big problem…they never trained their dealer mechanics well enough…that is why Renault disappeared in a flurry of irate ex-customers! CITROEN was one of the most technically advanced cars on the road…and they had many safety features long before being Federal requirements. However, if you did not rigidly adhere to the service schedule, you had problems. American seldom change their oil on schedule…and letting it congeal to tar was death to a Renault engine.
My neighbor has a 99 VW Jetta…and he has had his share of problems…the trim moldings keep falling off the car! And. BOSCH made MILLIONS of defective ignition coils for VW-he’s had to replace5 or seven of them.
GM’s attempt to introduce V8 diesels probably had something to do with the lack of popularity over here. Took their designers 4 years to get 'em right and by then nobody cared. They’ve been much more popular in imports, my dad’s '79 Rabbit was a diesel.
Sigh, I miss my 1963 Karmen Ghia. Body finally corroded off in the mid eighties but the drive train was just fine.
My 1984 Ford 250 6.9 liter diesel engine with 400,000 clicks is still performing wonderfully. Once again, I have to drive a vehicle with a rusting out body because I have an indestructible drive train.
I’ve noticed that diesel is way more available for passenger vehicles in the cities in Canada than in the States.
Volkswagen’s TDI engines are good, but they were well overdue for renewal, which is taking place right now in the Golf V. I haven’t driven any of the new ones, but the “old” TDI’s were getting a bit long in the teeth. They were rough sounding, vibrating pieces of crap compared to the much smoother HDI powerplants in Peugeot and Citroën diesels. The same can be said for the JTD engines in Fiats, Lancias, and Alfa Romeos: much much smoother than TDI’s.
And I always get pissed off when VW is boasting its diesel creds. I even saw an add once where they said they were the first company to put a diesel into a compact car, when they produced the Golf I with a diesel engine (the Rabbit that Jeff speaks of). Bullshit: Peugeot beat them to the punch by half a decade, with the diesel version of the 304.
And lest VW get all the cred for “inventing” common rail diesels too: it was Fiat that first introduced the technology, and it was PSA that perfected it. VW just has better marketing, that’s all.
That may be because, IIRC, that engine was produced not by Ford, but by International Harvester. Transmission, too, unless I’m doing some serious misrememberin’. They were stunningly solid.
I’ve been happy with my '00 Passat. I’ve had a couple of dealership visits – one recall and two Check Engine experiences – but those have gone well. I did get an extended warranty (100,000 miles/7 years) and will be getting out of the car before the extended warranty is up.
We’ll have to see how Dangerosa’s new Jetta holds up. I hope her experience is nothing like the OP’s.
Just wanted to come in to complain about my former '97 Passat sedan. The car was cool, but the repairs were sooooo expensive. I got two flat tires on the New Jersey Turnpike and had to pay almost $1000 for new rims and tires! Maintenance itself was ridiculous. I was so glad to get rid of that thing.
My sister has a '99 Passat wagon and that thing has had numerous expensive repairs, too. She can’t wait to ditch it.
Well, the verdict is in. I spoke to a VW advisor when I picked up my shitty Jetta just now - apparently, VW will reimburse me even if I sell the piece of shit today, as long as I can prove via receipts and statements that I paid for the repairs on the car and owned the thing when I was paying for it. I’ve already got all that stuff together and am sending it via certified mail after lunch. Tomorrow, my husband and I are shopping for cars. I’m hoping I’ll be the proud new owner of a pre-owned Toyota by week’s end.
I can’t tell you how gleeful I was to let the sales people know what a lemon my car was and that I am probably getting rid of it tomorrow. I lost a little bit of momentum, though, when they tried yet again to sell me another new Jetta. Bastards.
Well, Renault controls Nissan, which certainly sells a lot of cars in the U.S.
And, VW’s have scored very poorly on recent J.D. Power surveys for both initial quality and customer satisfaction. My brother jokes that every trip to the dealership costs him $500, regardless of the problem.
That’s been more or less true of my VW - every single visit to the dealership, unless it’s a recall, costs me between $400-$500. And it breaks down or gets recalled about every three to six months, which adds up to quite a bit of dough, and doesn’t even include basic maintenance, like oil changes, check-ups, etc. I tell ya, VW totally sucks. What’s worse is that I’ve read even more terrible horror stories than my own!
Ah, well. I guess everyone gets a lemon sooner or later. I’m really up-beat now, though, because I get a new (to me, anyway) car. Plus, I’m always happier once I’ve made a decision and am ready to act on it. In fact, I’m actually very happy this happened because fixing this car has cost me almost as much in inconvenience and in unpaid time off to get the damned thing fixed as it has in out-of-pocket costs. I just wish I’d gotten rid of it before the A/C pooped out - then it’d be the dealer’s problem and not mine, and it’d be worth more.
Emotional commitment… nah. Oh well, sure, a little. VW is one of the brands that has a pretty loyal fan base over here. Talking cars with a VW driver can almost seem akin to talking religion with a Baptist priest: they’ll accept no criticism of their deity. And while I can respect that with regard to a religion, I think it’s quite insane when talking about cars. Bash my garlic mobile all you want, that’s cool. It sure has its faults, like any other car. What pisses me off is people still maintaining VW make reliable cars, when all the stats show otherwise. And then speak of how affordable they are, because they depreciate less than French (Or Italian, or British, or Japanese…) cars. Yeah, sure buddy. But what you save in depreciation, you spend twice in repairs. And since I bought my cheese eating surrender Citroën second hand, I consider depreciation a good thing, anyway.
