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Are jettas reliable?

I would stay away. First of all, they aren't terribly reliable in the first place. Secondly that car seems to have been someones 'project' and I wouldn't trust their skills nor would I trust how it's been driven. Plus its not looking so great inside.


whats your price range?
 
I think the general consensus is no. That said my friend has that same body style and loved it so much his dad got a new one. I guess it's luck of the draw.
 
I've got '00 1.8T, and it's been a fairly decent car. Good looking and fun to drive, but expect to pay out the ass if something breaks. I wouldn't take that one though, as mentioned before.
 
Originally posted by: krunchykrome
It's not reliable.

what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?
 
its not completely as bad.

75% of problems with VW are electircal. 15% of the other problems are just due to the 2.0 NA engines. they just stink. sludge issues, SLOW,

i worked on them for a year. common issues. vac lines breaking, MAF meter going bad ( can get pricey) they have some sludge issues, pull the oil cap and look thru it and back for sludge or yellowing. they are nice cars with a chip. N80 vavles also go bad. If it has a sunroof there are chances it can leak. Poor drain design.

so what if it has a boost gauge, it doesn't mean its a ricer. If i had a turbo car i would get a boost gauge.

All in all its a DECENT car if your a DIY type of guy, if not then repairs can cost you up the.... I might want to get another one. I dont like how there is so much overspray and poorly painted calipers. He has a jack next to his type E subs, lower end subs and cheaper jack. Looks to be a decent branded boost gauage. It does have a cheapo intake, that DOESN'T help performance.



OH I JUST SAW something. a common problem. the center armrest. the lid is broken and the armrest has been used heavily. they break all the time. Its like 50-120 to replace all. Easy pull and push type of install.
 
Yes they're reliable. Reliably going to have you visiting the dealer all the time.
75% of problems with VW are electircal
Based on what little I know about cars (less than jesse james, more than jess from full house), electrical problems are real hassles to track down. Bad suspension can be replaced but electrical problems pop up in peculiar ways and can be nefarious.
 
Its a german designed car built in mexico, way to complicated for no reason with all the quality that $2 a day buys you.

--edit-- but it does have to be said that I have a friend with a 2003 diesel jetta that is well over 200k miles. His maintence costs are astronomical, every few months its a $600-$1500 bill, each oil change has to be done at the dealer, specialized screws holding pannels together, and costs nearly $100
 
If you want reliable then stay away. Too bad, because they're nice looking and fun cars.

But if you do decide to get one just stay far far away from the one you posted. It's obviously been beat to hell and back. When I'm shopping for a car I immediately rule out any owned by a kid or that has aftermarket equipment.

 
Originally posted by: Cdubneeddeal
The ricer tach is an obvious sign of the previous owner...It is a Wolfie though..

That's a boost gauge. A very poorly mounted one at that.
 
Originally posted by: Heller
Originally posted by: krunchykrome
It's not reliable.

what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?

<10 year old commuter Toyota Camry or Corolla.

I know, probably not what you wanted to hear.
 
Originally posted by: thomsbrain
Originally posted by: Heller
Originally posted by: krunchykrome
It's not reliable.

what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?

<10 year old commuter Toyota Camry or Corolla.

I know, probably not what you wanted to hear.

Uforunitly not, i need something that stands out a bit more, i just can't see myself driving a 95 corolla

Oh and guys, i was just using this car as an example, i can see from obvious use its been beat to hell 🙂

I guess im back where i started then :/
 
I have that exact car... 01 wolfy 1.8t...previously I owned a 2000 1.8t and a 99.5 2.0L.

the only thing to be wary of is sludge (in the 1.8t engines) , but that depends on how the previous owners kept up with the beast...mine has 121k on it now and it runs perfect...after I did some maint. on it of course.
 
oh yea... how can i forget the #1 reason... WINDOW reguatlors. VW mk4 have a tendacy to have their windows just randomly fall down while driving.

its a failure in design. they extended the warranty on that to 10 years 100k miles. after that its gonna be 2 hours in labor, my vw dealership was $110 per hour. and then parts was a i think a 50$ kit.

they said the newer design is suppose to only need to be fixed once because it was updated. But i've done it on some cars say 3 times. Its winter and your keep trying to roll down your window knowing its frozen its GOING to mess up the regualtor.



but all in all they are very fun cars. pretty nice and easy to pull out decent HP from them. 01 models i think are AWW motors. rated i think at 180hp @ most and putting down 140-150whp. a chip and up/down pipes, fixing that n80 valve and etc should take you somewhere near 180whp.

which should a decent for a daily driver. I would get one myself ONLY because i know my exact way around those motors. I've pulled them out, done tranny swaps and clutch jobs on them easily. Thats the only reason why i would get one. But for me i would only get a 02+ with the AWP motor.
 
My brother wanted a 2002 1.8T Jetta and I told him to get it only if he doesn't mind getting it fixed a couple of times a year. He's had it for a couple years now and so far it's been fairly reliable but he doesn't drive much (less than 5k/yr.) In general VW's are not considered very relialbe and I think it's reflected in the resale value.
 
Originally posted by: Heller
what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?

You may laugh at this but a 2004-2005 Chevy Cavalier is an absolute steal for $6k. I've had a bunch as rentals and they are quiet, powerful (for a 4-cyl) and get good gas mileage. Pretty new too so they shouldn't break and even if they do it's a Chevy so it will be cheap to fix.
 
Originally posted by: T2urtle
oh yea... how can i forget the #1 reason... WINDOW reguatlors. VW mk4 have a tendacy to have their windows just randomly fall down while driving.

its a failure in design. they extended the warranty on that to 10 years 100k miles. after that its gonna be 2 hours in labor, my vw dealership was $110 per hour. and then parts was a i think a 50$ kit.

they said the newer design is suppose to only need to be fixed once because it was updated. But i've done it on some cars say 3 times. Its winter and your keep trying to roll down your window knowing its frozen its GOING to mess up the regualtor.

My friend's GF's Jetta is at dealer for the same reason above as I type this. lol
 
Originally posted by: Dunbar
Originally posted by: Heller
what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?

You may laugh at this but a 2004-2005 Chevy Cavalier is an absolute steal for $6k. I've had a bunch as rentals and they are quiet, powerful (for a 4-cyl) and get good gas mileage. Pretty new too so they shouldn't break and even if they do it's a Chevy so it will be cheap to fix.

also one of the least safe vehicles he could buy, those things fold up like a tin can.


look into Mazda's, might can find a mazda 3 in that range. They are pretty fun to drive. If not the proteges were pretty decent as well
 
Originally posted by: DEMO24
Originally posted by: Dunbar
Originally posted by: Heller
what other cars would you suggest around the 6k mark that arent 20 years old and are reliable for daily driver?

You may laugh at this but a 2004-2005 Chevy Cavalier is an absolute steal for $6k. I've had a bunch as rentals and they are quiet, powerful (for a 4-cyl) and get good gas mileage. Pretty new too so they shouldn't break and even if they do it's a Chevy so it will be cheap to fix.

also one of the least safe vehicles he could buy, those things fold up like a tin can.


look into Mazda's, might can find a mazda 3 in that range. They are pretty fun to drive. If not the proteges were pretty decent as well

I'm actually looking to sell my 2002 Protege for ~$6500.....too bad the OP lives in Florida.
 
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