[benVFR]

Sure you've seen some of these on TV, but here is a site with all of the "My Fast" GTI ads:

http://oneighturbo.com/?p=193

Here are 3 more I haven't seen on TV yet, even funnier.

De-Pimp your Auto 1

De-Pimp your Auto 2

De-Pimp your Auto 3

The "My Fast" dolls are going for $250+ on Ebay too if you know someone at a VW dealer and could get one!

[SWEET_Z]

Lol. The windows down one is the best. Having a convertible and a girlfriend who is always cold, I can relate.

There's a VW dealership down the street from work, I might have to go take one for a spin at lunch...

[JeffL]

LOL, those were pretty good.

[Punjistick]

the giant trebuchet is great....."oh snap"

[benVFR]

I'd definitely be scared to buy one due to their reliability record but I do really wish the new GTI had been out last year when I got rid of my focus.

I had test driven the A3 but I really didn't want the 4-door hatch. If they had the 3-door A3 or this GTI here last year I would have considered it much more seriously. The GTI really slots in as exactly what I was looking for. I really like my RSX but the high hatch on the GTI would have been more practical.

Guess it doesn't matter though as the RSX always seems to have enough cargo room for me.

I just hope they get the reliability figured out. They are nice cars but the horror stories are just scary. It was bad enough with my $13k focus, having the same issues with a $25-30k GTI or A3 would have been a major bummer.

[sahd03]

what are all these reliability issues everyone is talking about in recent-model VW's? I know a bunch of people driving VW's (myself included until very recently, not by choice) who have had ZERO problems with reliability and i am confused.... I mean, if you don't maintain a car, it's not going to be very reliable, regardless of who makes it...

[benVFR]

??? Where have you been.

VW/Audi has gotten nailed on almost every car for the last 5 years by basically every organization that tracks reliability. Every single car is poor or unsatisfactory in Consumer Reports. J.D. Power has VW and Audi way down in the bottom, worse then Hyundai and all the American Manufacturers.

I think the big recurring issue is electrical problems. The giant recall for the Coil Packs on 1.8T engines across all the VWs and Audis that had that engine is part of the reputation.

Then there is this site:

My VW Lemon

If you don't mind frequent trips to the dealer to have minor things repaired then you of course may think the car is fine. It may be that lots of owners don't seem bothered with this or think it is part of owning a German car.

e.x. I remember a co-worker with a passat that had a bunch of major electrical and suspension issues and he just totally shrugged it off thinking he was getting great german performance and engineering in trade for the reliability. So if you asked him he would never say his Passat was a bad car even though he was frequently driving his wife's minivan or riding his bicycle to work because the Passat was in the shop.

[sahd03]

oh stop. i've been hearing that crap for years and i've seen the reports. i just don't understand since my personal experiences have been one minor issue except for regular wear and tear - i had a door sensor go bad on my 02 golf that screwed up my alarm. one hour to fix. my W8 had zero problems in 50k. Right now, there are three VW's (02 to 06) in the family and none have been problematic. We all drive our cars to at least 100k, so frequent trips to the dealer are not an option with us.

i'm not saying the reports are made up or that they won't enter into my mind in three years when i get out of the POS i'm driving. i'm just saying that i don't understand.

[benVFR]

What's to understand, every car has varying quality.

I don't know how many people J.D. Powers queries but I know Consumer Reports won't even print any figures on a car until they have 10,000 owner surveys come back for it. That's a hell of a lot more then any of us know from anecdotal evidence.

Now I don't know how long you've been driving, but I am not denying that the "issues" that make European cars constantly get nailed for reliability are way less severe then the issues cars had 20 years ago.

It's just the bar has been raised incredibly high these days.

[bump909]

just putting in my 2 cents.. i've put nearly 100k maintenence free miles on my '01 golf. only had to replace the window regulators. replaced the coilpacks for free before they were even a problem, but that was bosch's problem.

[sahd03]

half of it is perception anyway, regardless of what make you're talking. i loved my golf, i almost cried when i gave up my passat and if VW brings in a 4motion Jetta Wagon in 2008 when they bring in the new-style wagon.... i'm all over it.

but the A3 is awful nice....