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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  A MISTAKE - 2004 Volkswagen New Beetle
  By Rikky Huskanovic - August 16 - 9:39 pm

  First got this car when it was around 80k miles, and it was super cute and super fun for a few days until I noticed that something was wrong half the time when you tried to accelerate. However, it lasted me a few months- all while check engine turned on, it didnt acknowledge gears, etc- until it left me on the side of the highway with the engine and everything inside fried. We got it "fixed" and looked at so many times until it literally just died. No one wanted to even look at it, and the one mechanic that was willing said that all hope was lost. No reliability, no durability, doesnt seem to run over 5000 miles. You will be throwing your money away if you buy it.

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  Never Again - 1999 Volkswagen Jetta
  By sold_my_jetta - August 9 - 5:53 am

  I just recently traded in my Jetta after getting sick and tired of having it break down and in the shop every month. I have had so many frustrations with this car; broken cup holders, front bumper coming off, car not shifting out of park, nasty yellow goop (that I was told was a blown head gasket), windows falling into doors, trunk motor going out, replaced oxygen sensor, broken glove box, in-dash cd player not working, radio randomly not working, sunroof breaking... need I go on. I have had this car for 3 years, had 8 recalls and only 52,000 miles (had 15,000 when I purchased). Needless to say, I got rid of it after getting way in over my head. If you own a 99 I suggest you do the same.

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  Attention Ralph Nader - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By Ted - July 15 - 2:53 am

  The Touareg is possibly the worst car of the modern era. There is a Horse Drawn Wagon that circles our city square that has proven more reliable than my Touareg. The problem I am experiencing is no reasonable dealer will take this vehicle on trade. I am essentially stuck with the vehicle and the $100 oil changes, $1400 dollar yearly brake jobs and constant need for premium gas. Which gets pricey considering this vehicle has the fuel efficiency of a HUMMER. Despite the hit on my resale, I dont want anyone else to get stuck with a Touareg. Frankly, I hope Volkswagen stops makings them - and I can sell mine to a museum.

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  Poor Customer Service - 2002 Volkswagen Passat
  By Disappointed - June 5 - 5:00 am

  My 02 Passat not only breaks down regularly, demonstrating poor quality, the customer service and responsiveness of the company was extremely disappointing. They refuse to acknowledge the issue in any way. My car has had over twenty repairs in eighteen visits to the shop in only three years and only 16,000 miles. I will never deal with VW again.

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  e-Golf is an unreliable nightmare - 2015 Volkswagen e-Golf
  By John Smith - May 26 - 1:11 am

  This car does not charge properly. The range is a complete lie. It might be able to go 50 miles on a charge - nowhere near the range of the lie on the sticker. Acceleration is abysmal. I had a leaf that I traded in and am so sorry I did. VW has been a complete nightmare to deal with. Both the dealership and horrible people at VW customer service. If you want a crappy car that will leave you stranded, from a horrible company, you should immediately get an e-Golf.

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  Worst car Ive ever had - 2015 Volkswagen Passat
  By Candy - April 16 - 12:41 am

  My gas cap wont open, every time I go outside my trunk is open, when I try to close it, it pops back open and just beeps like I locked the car, and if you get your keys wet your SOL because they dont have key holes.

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  My Lemon - 2004 Volkswagen New Beetle
  By SmartyPantsGirl - April 13 - 10:00 am

  My new beetle convertible was in the shop over twenty times in a six month period! The top broke a total of sixteen times, the windows stopped rolling up and down, my transmission went out at 4,000 miles, my brakes failed me while on the freeway at 6,000 miles, it puffed out all kinds of white smoke... It was a mess- do yourself a favor and save your time and money, I filed the lemon the law and got all of my momey back.

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  Piece of [non-permissible content removed] - 2013 Volkswagen Jetta
  By benji smith - April 12 - 1:17 am

  In 2013 we bought the car brand new. At first we loved the car it got great gas millage, but 2 weeks after that it started jumping. I took it in and they looked at the transmission and the engine and said nothing was wrong. It keep doing it so i took it back they keep saying the same thing the techs said that nothing is wrong well eventually they replaced my crank shaft sensor "emission part" keep in mind mine is a gas car not diesel. It was still messed up so i took it back ant they had to fix my ECM "emission part" and now it is in the shop getting the engine wiring harness replaced "emission part". I think that vw screwed up on all of the emissions in all of their cars not just TDI. The car has horrible road noise, the "premium" sound system sucks and the car is just the worse thing that we have had. The only good thing that i have to say about this car is that it is amazing on gas. When we get to drive it and when it is not in the shop which is rare. I recommend getting a dodge we love our charger.

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  Dont buy this piece of junk!!! - 1999 Volkswagen Jetta
  By jody - April 10 - 2:00 am

  I wish I had bought an Acura RSX for just allittle more money. Everything just keeps on going wrong with this car, for example cruise wont work, fuel latch wont work, remote entry wont work half the time, O2 sensor went bad, finally the transmission threw a gear uot the side of it. By the way a new transmission from vw is $2,500. I HATE THIS CAR!! Oh yeah the sorry cup holder broke. I guess I just got burned.

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  Not the VW of years past - 2012 Volkswagen Passat
  By Doug - January 6 - 8:00 pm

  I bought my Passat TDI for the fuel economy, reliability and longevity of the diesel engine. Ive never had a more unreliable vehicle than this one including a few couple hundred dollar vehicles when i was a kid. The turbocharger failed. The fuel pump failed. The exhaust flap failed. Then the new turbo was damaged by the dealer. Then the clutch broke. The transmission synchros broke. Then the heater core plugged. Now the oil cooler is plugged. Almost every major component has failed and lead to enormous repair bills.