Overview & Reviews

Volkswagen is an automaker based in Germany. Its products typically command a higher price than those of competing models, but the return is a more upscale driving and ownership experience.

In 1934, Ferdinand Porsche was commissioned to build a small, inexpensive car at the request of Adolph Hitler. His answer -- a beetle-shaped sedan that was called a Volkswagen (German for "people's car") -- debuted two years later. Hitler had a town built near the plant for factory workers; he named it Kraft durch Freude Stadt (derived from the Nazi party's motto, "Joy through Strength"), and soon decided that Porsche's creation should be named the KdF-wagen (short for the "Joy through Strength" car). This upset Porsche, who was not political.

World War II delayed production of the vehicle; the factory suffered extensive damage during combat, and was ultimately taken over by the British Army. The company was renamed Volkswagen, and the town at the factory was renamed Wolfsburg (after Werner von Schulenberg of Wolfsburg, who had been forced to surrender his land for the construction of the town and factory). By the end of the 1940s, mass production of the Volkswagen Beetle had begun. The model made its first appearance on U.S. shores in 1949.

The 1950s saw Volkswagen broadening its product range, adding the Bus (Type 2) to its lineup. The Bus, especially, proved quite popular due to its versatility. And the Beetle, which went on to become the best-selling car of all time, quickly showed signs of being an enduring favorite, with more than 1 million models produced at the Wolfsburg factory by 1955. This decade also saw the debut of the Karmann Ghia sports car, which featured a sleek, Italian-designed two-seater body atop a Beetle platform.

Volkswagen's star rose during the 1960s, its success fueled largely by the breakout success of the Beetle. The car benefited from an effective advertising campaign and from an appearance in a popular Disney movie. By the close of the decade, Volkswagen's yearly output of Beetles topped the 1 million mark.

In 1972, with more than 15 million units assembled, the Beetle topped the world production record set by Ford's Model T. Mid-decade saw the launch of a new era of Volkswagens that had front-mounted, water-cooled engines driving the front wheels. The Passat (Dasher in the U.S.) was the first of the new breed and was built using standardized components that could be used interchangeably among other models in the manufacturer's lineup. The Passat was soon joined by the Golf (Rabbit in the U.S.), which met with immediate success. By the end of the decade, the manufacturer's lineup had grown to include the Scirocco sport coupe and the performance-oriented Golf/Rabbit GTI. The Beetle, however, was discontinued for the U.S. market.

The Golf grew in popularity during the '80s, becoming Volkswagen's most popular model. When a second generation of the car was built in 1983, it was crafted in a mostly automated process using robots -- marking the first time robots had been used in vehicle manufacture. By the mid-'80s, the U.S. version traded the Rabbit name for "Golf." The higher-performance Golf GTI helped the manufacturer make waves on the rally circuit. In 1986, Volkswagen Motorsport nabbed the title of Group A World Rally Champions.

Volkswagen saw its sales in the North American market tumble during the early '90s, but by the end of the decade, refocused marketing efforts and an increased emphasis on new products had brought about a turnaround in the company's fortunes. The popular New Beetle helped put the company back on the radar in the United States (though it fared less successfully in European markets). The body style was based on the classic Beetle, and it struck a chord with consumers who still had a place in their hearts for the iconic, cheerful-looking "love bug."

The new millennium saw Volkswagen moving into the luxury segment with the launch of the pricey Phaeton sedan and Touareg SUV. Though well-designed and executed, the Phaeton was a disappointment sales-wise, perhaps signaling unwillingness on the part of consumers to shell out premium dollars for a brand that lacks the cachet of established upscale names like BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Luckily, Volkswagen has seen success with other vehicles in its lineup, which currently includes everything from family-oriented sedans to roomy SUVs. Today, the automaker enjoys a reputation for crafting vehicles that offer refined handling and upscale accommodations.

User Reviews:

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  Nice Car - LOTS OF REPAIRS - 2001 Volkswagen Jetta
  By thecarrie - June 11 - 2:00 am

  Really like the car for past 2 yrs. Lots of features for the price. BUT, several problems. Power windows break down in the door when rolled down (2 of mine did) - VW extended coverage. Several owners & myself had horrible smell for the first few thousand miles - smells like something dead. Temperature gage broke. Brake pedal switch broke 2x, got stuck because car would not go in gear! Check engine light on @ 26K mi, needs new oxygen sensor already. Shifts rough @ 2K RPM. Sometimes goes in rvrse 5-10 feet when in drive. Console chipping off. But other than unreliability, Id like it.

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  Love My Beetle BUT....no clearance under - 2003 Volkswagen New Beetle
  By Rene - June 11 - 2:00 am

  Just purchased the beetle three days ago and am quite pleased. Actually the process was so smooth and easy however am disappointed in one feature that seems impossible to alter...clearance under the vehicle. Therefore I feel the dealership needs to make sure the potential buyer understands the cars limitations in this regard. See below....

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  This car hauls ACE! - 2002 Volkswagen Passat
  By B-bop - June 10 - 7:40 pm

  Thank heavens for my warranty. These cars are fun but fickle. At about 45,000 miles, the car had a very long case of the "flu." It was certified used, so I milked that warranty for over $4,000 in repairs. The maintenance can be an expensive hassle, though.

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  Never again! - 2005 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Never Again! - June 10 - 7:10 pm

  Well, where to start...Lets see I leased my Jetta in 2005 and liked the car so I ended up purchasing (although the sunroof had to be rebuilt and the driver window motor had to be replaced) I thought these things were just a fluke. Literally as soon as I purchased the car the check engine light started coming on every couple months, it actually came on twice in one month once!!! I took the car in every time and they fixed it under warranty. Now my factory warranty is up and it came on once again and I took it to the dealership and they stated that it was a secondary air pump, which is NOT covered under the extended warranty that I purchased. What a shocker!! it will cost over $500 to fix.

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  A Ride Im Proud to Own - 2015 Volkswagen Passat
  By Walker - June 10 - 3:22 am

  Before purchasing the 15 Passat, Id only driven pickups, but after moving out on my own following college graduation, Id noticed my F-150 was going to be tough to afford. I made the plunge to get this wonderful car in October of 2015 because of the incentives available for it, special financing, and the features coupled with the $25k sticker. I chose black exterior and interior, and added tinted windows. I’m thoroughly pleased that I’ve decided to go with the VW Passat Limited Edition, even after 35k miles (About 2.5k per month). I was skeptical at first about the dinky 1.8L TSI that came with this package, but it doesn’t disappoint. The breaks are superb and reliable. Anyone who has DD’ed for me has commented on them. What’s even better is that they’re not so sensitive that they jar the car to a stop. The top of the pedal push is a little break, the bottom of the push is a LOT of break – as it should be. The handling in this thing will make you feel like you can stick to any corner or fly over an interchange at 85 mph until the traction control immutably kicks in and reminds you that you’re in a sedan and that you’re foolish for mistaking your VW for an F1. Corning and high-speed driving on Texas’ 80+ mph toll roads feels relaxed and controlled with the electronic power-steering (one of my favorite parts about this car). The transmission is nothing special, but includes a tiptronic mode and a sport mode with are both fun. The ride took me some getting used to. The seats are a little stiff, and there’s not a whole lot of extra padding in them like Nissan’s Zero-Gravity seats. But I’ve grown to like these seats, and I’ve even had a coworker who’s a car guy comment on their comfort. They are heated and can practically lay flat fully reclined. Anyone sitting behind me (I’m 5’10”) has had plenty of room, even abnormally large humans. Engine or other passive noises are inaudible at cruising speeds, and road noise is minimal for a sedan with this price tag. I don’t have to yell at my passengers to have a conversation. The suspension is firm as you’d expect from a European car, but there isn’t any obnoxious vibration radiating into the cab from the surface below the tires. The interior is another one of my favorite things. The trunk is “cavernous” (quoting one of my buddies), and the interior is simple – but not stripped-down. This trim doesn’t have the extra steering wheel controls, climate control AC, a sun roof, or advanced options in the instrument display screen, but the push-button start, quality materials, touch-to-unlock door handles ,and touch-screen infotainment system make you feel like you haven’t really made compromises at all to get to the price point. It even comes with an amplified 8-speaker sound system which isn’t bad at all. The info panel in the instrument cluster includes a data readout for odo, mpg (instant and average), trip, mph, and miles to “E”. It will even show your current cruise control speed setting which can be adjusted at 1 mph integrals. The door panels feature a nice soft (vinyl maybe?) leather-ish material underneath the window, a silver hard plastic accent piece, metallic latch, leather around the door handle, and textured plastic everywhere else. The dash board follows a similar layout with the soft leather-ish material on top followed by the silver accent piece and textured plastic. Very few parts of this interior feel cheap. To-date, I’ve spent $350 on regular maintenance. A nut came loose on a sway bar once, but the dealership replaced that under warranty. No big deal. Like I mentioned before, I’ve driven the car 35k miles so far and haven’t had any issues. The electronics have been solid so-far as well. Lastly, I moved to this car for day-to-day affordability more than anything, and that’s where it’s really delivered. I was paying nearly $750 a month for the note, insurance, and gas to drive my old truck. This car, which is 10 years newer, costs me no more than $550 a month. My commute is about 75% highway, and I’ve averaged 33 mpg (calculated at fill-up). My best road-trip average was 36.6 mpg. I financed at .9% interest for 72mos, put $2.5k down, and lumped in $3k in negative equity from the truck. This brought my total to about $22.7k. Now, I owe about $18.5k on the car, and Edmund’s private party sale value is about $13k. Rats, I’m upside-down on yet another car. It de-valued almost 8k (35%) in one year. But for some reason I don’t care. I love this car. Literally every new person that rides in this thing remarks on how nice it is. It makes them talk about how they wish they had a German car like mine. This car doesn’t BEG for attention, it passively draws attention to itself. The conservative-yet-timeless black and chrome exterior, and simple-yet-stunning interior say “hello, I’m adult enough to worry about the things that matter”. As a recent college-grad trying to make it in the professional world, what more could I want?

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  My First German Car - 2005 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Jetta Fan - June 9 - 9:26 pm

  I bought 2.5 Jetta couple of weeks back. Love the car. Its fun to drive. I drove Focus for 5yrs before buying used Jetta. The car had 78k miles, hoping to drive for another 80k. Since I bought it from Ford dealership, the dealer didnt give any warranty on my Jetta. This is a great Winter car. I live in Michigan and this year its snowing really hard. The car got ABS and traction control. It drives great in snow and slippery roads. The car is small, but heavier than Corolla and Accord. Very Solid !

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  Class Action Lawsuit - 2001 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Jeffrey Puterbaugh - June 9 - 8:06 am

  Initially, I loved this car, it was a blast to drive and is very stylish. That was until the problems started. This will read just like so many other reviews. Rear brakes went at 20K, Mass air flow sensor went at 30K, water pump went at 40K, coil pack and assoc. electircal went at 60K. I paid $25K for this piece of junk and expect better from VW. With so many of the same problems occuring with so many of these cars, there definitely should be some accountability on VWs part. These repairs should be covered. I have no choice but to seek out other owners to join me in a class action lawsuit. At this point, I simply cannot afford not to sue. Contact me if interested.

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  2010 VW CC - 2010 Volkswagen CC
  By Jerry - June 8 - 8:10 pm

  Ive owned this CC for 3 months now and I look forward every day to drive it. People are constantly admiring th coupe and most have no idea what model it is. Driving on the interstate with cruise control on will give me and Im not kidding better then 41mpg at 60 and better then 35 at 70. The sound system is great and I would buy another one in the future as I highly recommend it to all my friends.

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  Annoyed - 2006 Volkswagen New Beetle
  By frustrated - June 8 - 6:46 am

  I pulled my Salsa Red off the lot only 7 weeks ago. The darn thing is falling apart. I am completely frustrated as it has been in the shop twice now resulting in me being in a rental for a total of 6 of the 40 days I have owned it. The Air Bag light came on within the first week. Now my Audio Jack disappeared into the console when I tried to plug my MP3 player in with the cable I just bought. The trunk liner doesnt match up with the body of the car, and there is a knocking at the bottom when I make turns and they are saying it is my trunk contents. TRUNK IS EMPTY!! I havent turned 1500 miles yet and completely regret my purchase. I think it was assembled by a 2 year old.

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  All About Style - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By tosram - June 7 - 12:26 am

  Since I bought this car I have had two problems with it problems and now I need to turn it in for recalls (more than one). Repairs on this model are expensive.