The new Golf and Jetta weren’t just late to the U.S. they were several model years late. And to make matters even worse, VW dealers were fending-off irate customers who were saddled with quality problems from the get-go. And those customers rewarded VW for their callousness by abandoning the brand in droves - never to come back.
taken from: Peter’s latest Rant
I am Volkswagen’s ideal customer. Or, at least, I used to be. I really wanted a BMW, but I couldn’t afford one. (I argue no one can really afford a new one, but that’s another topic for another day!) The VW Jetta Mk.IV was like a baby 3-series, solid, serene, teutonic, and just snobby enough to be above the rice-burners from Honda and Nissan.
So, I bought an 01 Jetta and had nothing but issues with it. Windows wouldn’t stay up, it stalled constantly, pieces of the complicated turbocharger failed, it leaked cosmoline rust-proofer at the door sills, and, most damningly, it just WASNT ANY FUN TO DRIVE!
I’m glad I’m not in that same place anymore.
Bad thing is, I’d LIKE to be a VW driver again; a nice Passat with a manual tranny and a TDI at 40-50 mpg would be awesome. But I just won’t go near one again.