1. I just want power windows and electrical systems that don't fall out or go haywire. You can put any price on this car, but if they don't work I don't want them.

Posted at 7:16PM on Jan 9th 2007 by $0.02 0 stars

2. uh-oh, incentives in the form of lower prices... just kidding, i've always been suprised by vdub's high prices.

Posted at 7:24PM on Jan 9th 2007 by J Finz 0 stars

3. Smart move because a Civic is a hard car to say no to!

Posted at 7:55PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Phil 0 stars

4. VW, Give me a diesel Jetta for around $20K and I might even look the other way when I have to take it to the shop to fix broken power windows. :-)

Posted at 8:00PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Louis Duran 0 stars

5. Several recent road tests in magazines have mentioned the high(er) prices of VW's cars in comparison to the prices of their competition. VW heard and took the step of lowering the base price of their cars. UNFORTUNATELY, VDub's prices remain high when they are fully optioned. A fully loaded '07 Rabbit 4 door with automatic can still cost you over $20,000. And the Jetta is even more expensive. For that kind of money, you are into a Civic EX sedan...Honda's top rung (sub)compact.

Posted at 8:10PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Howard Kerr 0 stars

6. I wish you guys would do a little additional research on your own to validate the articles you are linking to. The prices from the original source lack any sort of context. For one, 2007 models have been out for months, so this isn't new info. The Rabbit was introduced at 14,990 for the 2006 model year and is in fact still 14,990 for 2007. The new Jetta had a Value Edition base model for 2006 for xxxxx. For 2007 that is gone and replaced with a "Base model" $16,490. I don't doubt that they're lowering prices. But without mentioning what trim levels they're talking about isn't terribly informative.

Posted at 8:21PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Graham 0 stars

7. Forgot to finish editing before I posted #6. The 2006 Jetta VE $17,900. 2007 Jetta "Base Model" $16,490.

Posted at 8:41PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Graham 0 stars

8. I can't believe you Americans consider $20,000 expensive for a Golf/Rabbit. The price for a base, 1.4 litre 3rd Golf in the UK is £11,995 - thats roughly $23,000, admittedly including tax, but even without tax the price would still be around $20,000 - for a base spec car with a tiny engine. Consider yourselves lucky.

Posted at 9:58PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Andy UK 0 stars

9. I got a new car this fall, and it would have been a Rabbit if VW's reliability didn't suck. VW's features for the price are great, and I love the styling, but I also need a trouble-free car.

My last car was a 2001 AWD Passat; it atypically made it to nearly 100K miles before things got really expensive (the constant check engine light was a distraction but the last straw was a new front end suspension). The current model year Passat is ranked worst in reliability among sedans by Consumer Reports.

Posted at 9:58PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Alex B 0 stars

10. The civic is a very easy car to say NO to:
Rear drum brakes on the DX & LX. WAY too quick steering ratios, all models are less than 14:1. The front rotors on the DX, LX, EX, and hybrid are WAY too small 10.3" [at least the GX has 11.1" front rotors, and the Si 11.8"] compare that to the Mazda3 10.9 on the base car & 11.8 on the normal cars, and 12.6" on the mazdaspeed3.
The rear suspension isn't that advanced, all it really is, is a semi-trailing arm and one lateral control link. and space saving non-coaxial springs & dampers.
The automatic transmission is only D5 D3 2 1
and the DX coupe doesn't have a rear anti-roll bar [I think]
Nein.

Posted at 10:04PM on Jan 9th 2007 by MikeW 2 stars

11. I was car shopping this summer (eventually bought a Fusion). I test drove the Rabbit as an option. When my brother and I got in the car the battery light was on and the AC didn't work. The salesman(boy) said it was a sensor and the shop was aware of it... okay.. whatever. 2 miles down the road the coolant light went on (uh oh) so I pulled over and popped the hood... the coolant was BOILING! 300 miles on this car and it was broken down on the side of a busy road.

The salesboy then drove it back (in slow traffic) the the coolant boiling and parked it.

After breaking down on a test drive I will never EVER consider a VW again.

Posted at 10:09PM on Jan 9th 2007 by jaydez 0 stars

12. Hey MikeW, what are you doing on AutoBlog...they typically are short on numbers and apparently you base all you car buying decisions on the numbers you are able to "pull" on models under your consideration. The rest of us actually DRIVE a car or at least look at it before dimissing it out of hand.

By the way, a lot of cars, for example, have quick steering ratios. What's much more important is how the wheel FEELS as you turn it. GM cars, for example, are notorious for their poor steering feel. And brakes? Honda's are usually lighter cars than their competitors cars are...and therefore don't need huge brakes. Again, having big brakes isn't so great if the master cylinder is too small and/or the pads are cheap/barely adequate. I've owned a few dozen cars and have driven several more and while I have locked the brakes in a stop a few times, I've nearly always found that good tires with mediocre brakes can be a bigger asset than big brakes with mediocre/worn tires.

Posted at 10:30PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Howard Kerr 0 stars

13. While AndyUK has a point, what he forgets is that in Europe, he's getting a European-assembled car with decent tires, at a price that includes ALL taxes. Here in the U.S. (until recently) most cars sold at the local VW dealer were built in Mexico and had tires that weren't good for much more than keeping the wheels from grinding up the pavement...something they had in common with many cars sold in America (Ford and GM, I'm talking about you and your crappy to the point of being unsafe original-equipment tires).

The VW, that when loaded, costs $20,000 (without any discounting) has a tax, title, and license plates bill that can run into $1,500 or more here in Tn. If the dealer is trying to charge a REALLY hefty "documentation fee" you are risking a bill closer to $2,000. So really, not that much cheaper for a not terrifically assembled car.

And by the way, there are folks that would love to drive a more fuel efficient model of car...like the turbo-supercharged Golf that was recently introduced in Europe, but can't. We all have little crosses to bear where we live.

Posted at 10:31PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Howard Kerr 0 stars

14. Looks like VW has made a lot of "friends" over the years - not!
VW has a well deserved reputation for poor quality - actually it seems like that's what VW does best.

Posted at 11:41PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Bill 0 stars

15. Howard,

All Rabbits/GTI/Golf models are built in Germany, including those sold in the US. All Jetta/New Beetle models are built in Mexico, including those sold in Europe. This was not always the case, but it is now.

Posted at 11:47PM on Jan 9th 2007 by Mark 0 stars

16. Hey Howie - Every Honda I've owned has had crappy brakes. Fading, rotor warping - etc. They don't take well to us drivers who like to "drive 'em like we just stole 'em". I'll take a GTI w/ broken power windows and tons of feel and character than a Japanese driving appliance w/ crappy brakes any day. . .

Posted at 12:39AM on Jan 10th 2007 by 4schizle 0 stars

17. #13 Howard...so Pirelli tires on my sisters 06 Focus are crappy and unsafe? Or how about the Michelins, Goodyears, Pirellis and Continentals that have come on past vehicles my parents and friends bought from Ford and never had ANY problems with? Oh thats right, because of some PAST event, all Ford tires are shitty. Man, you have absolutely no clue what you are talkin about.

Posted at 1:04AM on Jan 10th 2007 by That One Person 0 stars

18. It looks like VW is passing along the money they saved when they built my Jetta. Using cheap biodegradable parts and materials and not having a quality control department must have saved them a pile of cash. Employing only the mentally handicapped at VWofA must save a bundle too.

Posted at 1:14AM on Jan 10th 2007 by robino 0 stars

19. Does anyone know how VW manages to stay in business? I test drove three 2001'ish Jettas a few years ago and every one had some strange quirk with the electrical. I've had friends with them and they've all had significant problems...one guy I know spent as much on his steering rack and computer as I did on my 95 Integra that has been trouble free. Consumer Reports ranks them low and anecdotally speaking, they seem to drop in value fairly quickly. I know they're stylish as hell but do they ever get repeat customers? Excluding the die hard fans of the brand, would the average person who bought a VW buy one again?

Posted at 1:26AM on Jan 10th 2007 by yellow_aspen 0 stars

20. Everyone I know of who bought or leased a VW didnt go back a second time.

I seriously think the only people who drive VWs are high school girls who are spoiled and have daddy buy them a cute Beetle, college students who do nothing but spend time at Starbucks talking about Birkenstocks and hippies. Almost all the people I know who had VWs fits somewhere in those categories.

Posted at 1:39AM on Jan 10th 2007 by That One Person 0 stars