Quote:
Originally Posted by JSH
Nope, not just neglected maintenance. The A4 cars with the 1.9L TDI (1999 - 2005 Jetta) were notorious for electrical problems. That isn't neglect.
I did maintenance by the VW service schedule with all OEM parts.
Things that broke on my 2003 Jetta Wagon (built in Germany BTW) - The radiator fan
- The heater blower and resistor pack (twice)
- Glow plug harness (twice)
- MAF sensor
- Both headlights (The lenses yellowed)
- Replaced 3 out of 4 window regulators
- The sunroof seals started leaking
- I had to clean the intake manifold twice because soot from the EGR system would fill it up
- The glove box latch broke
- The center console latch broke
- The soft-touch paint stared peeling off the interior trim pieces
I had to do brakes, tires, shocks, struts, etc too but those are normal wear items.
Compare that to my 2005 Toyota Prius. The only thing I every had to replace on that car (and the 2009) that wasn't on the service schedule was the 3-way valve in the coolant system. The valve failed on both cars about 125K miles |
Compared to my Toyota that's nothing.
Within my 3 years of owning it I had to:
-replace the roof
-replace all 4 struts
-replace the rear subframe
-replace the rear brake calipers
-replace the lower universal joint on the steering column
-replace the brake discs (all 4)
-replace the brake pads (all 4)
-rebuild the front brake calipers
-rebuild the cylinder head
-replace the connecting rod bearings
-replace the piston rings
-clean and modify the pistons
-replace the oxygen sensors
-replace the muffler
-rebuild the headlights (lenses yellowed)
-replace the radio
-replace radiator hoses
-fix rust issues
And there is probably a bunch I've missed.
Compared to what I see my peers who own VAG cars older than mine, that is a lot and a lot of repairs on the Toyota are a lot harder than on VAG vehicles.
The only person I know who had to do more on their car owns a Porsche 924S.