ARE VOLKSWAGENS RELIABLE?

As I surpassed 150,000 miles, I decided it was time to address a big question: Are Volkswagen reliable? I've had great success with all of my VWs, except for one; and that one was a heap that I never should have touched over 20 years ago. See the video for more details...

Mods to the car and links to blog write-ups:

My Camera Setup:

Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
00:13 - A New Milestone
00:31 - The Critics
01:08 - How I Define "Reliability"
03:26 - My Car's Condition
04:15 - My Luck with Volkswagens
05:52 - The Competition
06:55 - My Tips for Reliability
11:14 - Stay Stock
12:59 - Repair vs Replacement

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#stealthgti #150000

[adamgoof]

A lot of, Volkswagen mechanics would say generally they only see the bad vehicles because people don’t keep up maintenance on the, Volkswagen’s

[rjkubr]

Got a 2016 Passat with 135, 000 miles on it. Only routine maintenance at the dealership. Front brakes replaced at 85, 000 miles, rear still good. Absolutely no issues.

[kingdeedee]

American buyers generally don’t care to maintain their cars. They also like to buy cars they can’t afford to maintain. It’s common knowledge. Of course there are lots of lemons out there, but with the number of people that wait till they see a check engine light before they even do an oil change, no wonder so many cars are “unreliable.” Toyota/Honda still deserve a lot of credit for building such neglect-resistant vehicles but even then they still fail

[shawndonnelly]

I have only owned TDI’s, four of them. They have all been great. The owner (me) has been the problem, not the cars. I took my 05’ across the country twice. It was north of 300k miles when I did both trips. It was taken off the road at 397k miles when I was t-boned last May, resulting in a total loss! Drive a TDI normally, do the maintenance, and the will last forever.

[ralphbernard]

So far I have owned five Volkswagens so far (2 air cooled). I have always had good luck with them. I drove my 1972 Beetle for almost 34 years and my 2001 Jetta GL for 14 years. VW's hold up very well if taken care of properly. My 2020 Passat SE has also been trouble free at 35, 000+ miles.

[lanehogger]

I have a 2017 1.6 tdi Seat Leon. It’s a Uk car with VAG mechanicals. I’m at 95k miles. Only thing replaced on the car other than regular maintenance items was an inner driveshaft seal at 86k. In April it will have its Cambelt and water pump replaced on its 5th birthday. It’s been very reliable so far.

[johndonohoe]

I have a 2003 Jetta TDI wagon with a 5-soeed stick. I bought it new in January 2003 and it now has 410k miles on it. I had a new clutch put in it, and several sets of tires along the way, but the drivetrain has been flawless. I did change the egr valve 2 times over the years, and it did carbon up at about 365k miles, requiring a new intake manifold. I rebuilt the suspension at about that time, also. Every 100k miles I have the timing belt serviced, including water pump and tensioners. I had a couple of wheel alignments done over the years. The motor and transmission have never been touched. The car gets around 45 mpg in mixed driving, and I have gotten up to 53 miles per gallon driving on long trips. It is the most dependable car I have ever had, and I have been driving for 60 years. PS I have used Amsoil in it since new, changing it every 5k miles. I just hope it keeps going, because cars cost so much now.

[palebeachbum]

Perceived reliability and repair costs are what have kept me from driving a VW. Your insight seems very sensible.

[forever]

I just bought a 24 Jetta. I have not owned a VW since 1990. I have been buying Hondas and Toyotas, Lexus, for the past 30 years. The reason I even went to look at the new Jetta was the way the Asian dealers are treating people now. They are being too greedy, not a single deal I tried to make with them did not have thousands of dollars of dealer mark ups added at the end of negotiations. The Jetta has a 2k dollar rebate on it now and I got it for under invoice and the dealer took all the dealer add ons off the price of the car. To make it simple, I would not pay the price to get into an Asian car again. I had forgotten why I liked VW cars. They drive great, I love the stiffer suspension and the seats. My last VW was also a Jetta, I had 139k miles on it when I rear ended a pick up. It was a great car. I was impressed with the new Jetta, I have been averaging almost 50mpg, thats hybrid mileage these days on a regular gas engine. Time will tell if my new Jetta is a good car, but I do like it better than most of the Asian cars I have owned .

[deanmarr]

I'm at 79, 000 miles in my 17 sport. My car is the exact set up as your. is38 EQT tuned Reflex Silver. My car is DSG. My experience is the EA888 motor is a stout and reliable engine. The DSG gear box handles power and is the only automatic I have ever loved. However there are some weak supporting components that do fail. List of things I have replaced: Waterpump, PCV valve, secondary air valve TWICE, an injector, and I just replaced the coil packs. I'm 57 years old and love this car despite some of it's cheap components. Great review

[buckjmalone]

Dad and I are driving our 17 th VW. Dad started in 1951 and I started in 1968. Never had a lemon. One leak or two over the decades. Use OEM and use LiquiMoly oil with the VW/Audi seal of approval. Great cars!

[kwangnam]

I'm a DIY mechanic that work on 99% of car maintenance and repairs at home. You are really spot on about keeping the cars on the road longer.

[pofok]

I have a 2012 Jetta base that I've had for 4 years at 170k miles. It had a minor issue with a bushing when I first got it, and then the ignition coil pack went out just a few days ago. I fixed it myself for about $30 in 15 minutes. Other than that, absolutely 0 issues in those 4 years. It's been so amazingly reliable that I just picked up another 2012 TDI. My only "problem" with the base model is that one of the running lights doesn't always stay running. It works sometimes, then it randomly goes out and will come back on later. I'm sure it can be fixed but it's so minor that I hadn't bothered with it in these 4 years.

[nickelarcade]

Good to hear about your mileage.I love my 2018 GTI. Only 44k but I work from home and only do 5k per year. Just replaced the water pump (warranty), oil pan, spark plugs, cabin/air filters, and fuel suction pump (recall)

Definitely higher maintenance than a Toyota but still not too bad. Runs like a champ now !

[TK-ecbv]

2001 B5 Audi A4 w 1.8T here. 330, 000 miles so far. It's needed the basic routine maintenance (brakes, suspension arms, timing belt, CV boots) and one new turbocharger. Very reliable car. Take care of VW products and they will take care of you.

[innocentram]

Loved my MK4 Jetta Wagon, it was golden as long as maintenance is up kept. The thing about Toyota vs VW reliability really just comes down to having a reliable owner or not. When I had my dad whipping me 100 miles/2 weeks away from maintenace, VW has never failed me. The second I left home, my Jetta died and replaced with a Passat which had tons of issue by 3rd year. Toyotas/Lexus on the other hand, I don't think I have ever done maintenance on time. Even with off roading and leaving the car as is when I go on 2-3 month vacations, don't hurt it too much.

[DJonathanHayes]

2021 Passat here, my fourth VW…my 13 tdi had issues I couldn’t resolve, so ended up with a Hyundai then as soon as I could I ran back to VW, lol. I think maintenance is key and I change my oil every 3000-5000 miles, and try my best to do the maintenance as prescribed. 52, 000 miles and so far so good. I plan on having my transmission fluid changed early as well, and the timing chain too.

[aurtisanminer]

For two years, I work as a mechanic in and Import shop. The most common major issue that I came across with four cylinder Volkswagen or Audi was timing chain issues or if someone did not replace the timing belt on schedule. Volkswagen went from a timing belt to a timing chain on the turbo 2.0 L engines and the chain tensioner was not built well. I would personally prefer a timing belt so that it gets replaced regularly and you are less likely to wind up with unexpected issues. My biggest gripe with Volkswagen and Audi was how difficult it was to work on them. The exception was the Jetta and golf. The transverse mounted engines were not as difficult to work on. The Audi TT was like that also.
I think that they started mounting the engine transverse in more models in recent years.

[spinnetti]

I've had 12 VAG cars... didn't regret any of them, even our 2004 Touareg which had low ratings but we had it 14 years without problems except pretty much the first year.. Even after 220k miles, only did a drive shaft, fuel pump and alternator.

[AzteCypher]

It's because of your advice that I've been waiting for temps to reach 180F when I first drive off and I must thank you for that. I also feel that my Mk7 is very reliable and will continue to be so as long as I keep up with the maintenance. Thanks for the video. Cheers!