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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  VW stands for VERY WORST! - 2010 Volkswagen Passat
  By Joel M - August 23 - 5:00 pm

  I bought my 2010 VW Passat (2.0T TSI) used about 9 months ago. I did not buy it from a VW dealership, but did my homework and saw that all maintenance was consistent and up to date. It rode nice and and was okay for comfort and the body and engine looked to be in good shape. Blue Book value at the time was about $8200 and I picked it up for $8000. Within 3 months, I noticed a coolant leak. I took it to a VW mechanic (not the dealership) who told me the auxiliary water pump casing had cracked. There are two water pumps on this vehicle and both are plastic. So I had the water pump replaced at a cost of about $600. About 2 weeks later, I have another coolant leak. this time it is the main water pump. Another $600 out the door. The mechanic told me he has been seeing this problem with all VW TSI engines from the years 2009 - 2011. The problem, as he can figure, is that there is a seal between the pump and the block. The design VW has makes sure a piece of this seal is sticking up. When oil contacts this seal, it swells causing the water pump casing to crack. That was his thoughts, though Im not convinced it isnt just oil hitting the plastic that causes it to embrittle and fail. So now I have replaced both water pumps and think Im good to go. Not so. About two months later, I have another coolant leak and it is, again, the main water pump casing that cracked. This looked to be caused by a little oil that was slopped during an oil change. Thats all it took and Im repairing this car, again. At this point I posted it for sale online because I see it is a dog. The blue book has now dropped to about $6500. No takers for a couple months and then, you guessed it, another coolant leak. I had the car in for the 120,000 mile maintenance a week before and the mechanic inspected the water pumps and everything was good. So I take it back to him and yes, the water pump failed again. This time the source of the oil that caused the leak was a failed PCV valve. During the aforementioned maintenance, this was checked and found to be working fine. It was not part of the maintenance, but my mechanic checks a lot more just to verify common failures are monitored. In this case, the PCV valve, which coincidentally is another cheap plastic part, failed causing the interior pressure of the engine to build, blowing out pretty much every seal on the engine. Oil sprays out, coats the water pump, and the water pump casing splits, again. Now I am looking at basically a $3000+ fix. Needless to say, it is now being offered for sale as a parts car. VW has been contacted throughout this period and, not surprisingly, has not responded. My feeling is that VW talks a good story about customer care and loyalty, but they really dont want to hear about problems, they just want you to pay to fix them, over and over. This feeling isnt just that they ignored my complaints, but go to their website. Try and find a place where you can actually lodge a complaint. It doesnt exist. There is a link for feedback, but it is really geared around feedback for their website, not for their products. You can eventually dig around long enough to get someone that will tell you to email your complaints to vwcustomercare@vw.com. Do yourselves a favor...avoid ALL VW products.

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  Stay far far away from these cars!!!! - 2009 Volkswagen CC
  By Ryheem T. - July 18 - 7:05 am

  My wife purchased a 2009 VW CC last year......July 2015. The first day of owning the car the fuel pump went , luckily we purchased the car in CT where the dealers have to give you a 90 day warranty. Car was in the shop for 2 weeks total bill cam e to well over $1000.....luckily we didnt have to pay for it. Car drove good for a few months then the brake booster went(Feb 2016)...........$700 fix. My wife was recently at work and the car wouldnt start.........replaced the coil packs($500 job) , car was out of the shop no more then a few weeks...........check engine light pops up......dreaded P2015 code(intake manifold issue). Luckily VW has a warranty for this........covered for 10 yrs/120k.......fixed free of charge. Got the car back yesterday 07/16/16 , this morning car wont start. Im telling you guys.......stay far far away from these cars........nothing but headaches!

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  Never again will I buy a VW - 2001 Volkswagen Cabrio
  By Denise - July 6 - 9:43 pm

  This is a horrible car! Weve had nothing but problems. We fix one, then another quits working. We get water in the floorboard - weve replaced the seals and top - still wet. All the dashboard lights light up - dont light up. The manual lock on the drivers side quit working and, of course, so did the remote. Thats another $500-$1000. Sometimes the key will start the engine, sometimes it doesnt. Sometimes it leaks, sometimes it doesnt. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt. I could go on and on - bottomline, stay away!

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  Do not buy!!! Please read - 2005 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Jay - April 27 - 3:40 pm

  Ok you may think German but check the sticker, it is assembled in MEXICO.problem #1..ok so i didnt see that till after i bought the car...learn from my mistake please! i had the worst experience with my Jetta GLS 2.0 and just because the style changed doesnt mean the mechanics and reliabilty have! Hope you dont plan on putting anyone in the back because there is nooo room and the ride is very uncomfortable.i have spent many 8 hour trips in the car it stunk!...it has been in the shop more times than i remember. had an oil consumption problem (1-1.5 qts. between oil changes 3,000miles) i was told it was normal by multiple VW dealers. water pump @ 60,000 catalytic converter went. etc. ran out

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  Shoddy CD Player Paint Blisters and Flak - 2006 Volkswagen Rabbit
  By sprint350ss - April 22 - 12:40 am

  This vehicle comes equipped with a shoddy cd player radio. The paint has blistered off the buttons and the face of the device. Still under warrant however, VW USA does not want to remedy the situation for hundreds of VW owners. The device is considered wear and tear item. how do you wear the face of the radio. Shoddy materials is really what it is.

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  2003 Volkswagen Passat - 2003 Volkswagen Passat
  By j wilson - March 30 - 6:37 am

  This car is a complete lemon. You fix one thing three things break. Repairs include 2 water pumps, vacuum system failure. Sludge in the motor. Very expensive parts. Turbocharger failure. Antenna broke. Seatbelt buckle broke which is hooked to airbag. Dont buy a Volkswagen. I have paid more in repairs than I paid for the car.

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  Worst Car weve ever had! Avoid it like the plague - 2006 Volkswagen Jetta
  By jettatdigreen - March 14 - 7:18 am

  We were excited to get a TDI. Diesel engines are supposed to last a long time. We were told by the salesperson "this is a 400,000 mile engine." Maintenance is horrible and costs an arm and a leg. At five years and 83,000 miles the well known cam shaft and lifters failure occurred costing us $4000 to repair. Even though its a well known problem VW of America said "there are no recalls on it and youre out of warranty." Less than 2000 miles after the they replaced half the engine it died again and they say "oh the turbo is dead" and it has nothing to do with the last repair - that will be $3000. Just to get it working enough to trade it in has cost us 2/3 of what the car is worth.

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  Worst vehicle Ive ever had - 2014 Volkswagen Passat
  By Smitty - March 3 - 8:25 pm

  The NAV is not user friendly. When you enter the car, the media plays whatever it wants to even if your apps arent open. The display changes from whatever setting youve selected to show that youre making a call and to whom youre calling; so if you had it set on the speed you have to change it back after starting or ending the call. As soon as the a/c was out of warranty the compressor went out. I have had it replaced less than a week and its gone out again. Besides the fact that my TDI has no value because of the lies the company told, the car is a piece of crap.

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  NEVER buy a Volkswagen. - 2006 Volkswagen Passat
  By Cody - March 2 - 4:35 am

  I purchased my 2006 VW Passat 2.0T for about $25K from the dealership. It now has106k miles. The scheduled maintenance was always done on time, including the pricey synthetic oil changes every 3k miles. After taking the necessary actions to have the car regularly serviced(in hopes of having the car last) At 85K miles I needed to replace the front axel. ($1200) At 100K miles my car started shifting funny. I brought it to the dealership to take a look. I was told I needed to replace the transmission. They quoted me $6000. After this shocking quote I brought the car to a reputable transmission shop. I was told the same thing, I needed a new transmission. This quote was less at $4.5K. Thats right, with 106k miles I needed to replace the transmission! In my opinion a transmission should not need to be replaced with 100K miles. The black rubber coating on the buttons is pealing, the sunroof is leaking, and the engine is misfiring. I would highly suggest to anyone looking to purchase a VW not to. They are stylish and affordable but the cars do not last.

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  Volkswagen selling defect cars and refuse to fix - 2016 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Mariana - February 6 - 12:34 pm

  Volkswagen rips off consumers, they refuse fixing new cars in worranty and refuse replacement. Car has been in service 4 times and no one did anything to fix it , they only claim they fix it, in the other hand warranty refuse to cover anything even if the car its still in warranty only 6 months old 10k mil. Stay away , Volkswagen its a rip off and they also discriminate woman, everyone should know about this before buying a car from them.