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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  Exceeded nearly all my expectations - 2002 Volkswagen GTI
  By Joe Freeman - September 11 - 10:00 am

  The Golf (including GTI) was the only car available in the US in early 2002 that was of interest to me. I chose the GTI mainly because of the 1.8T engine, since the Golfs 2.0 was mundane. I was very concerned about reliability and quality in general, as production of the Golf/GTI had just been moved to Brazil, but the GTI exceeded nearly all my expectations, including excellent build quality, fit and finish, and in 1.5 years and 18,000 miles, no significant defects had surfaced. The cars performance is excellent, as is comfort, but the 5-speed gearbox is rather crunchy and the cars handling is good though not quite what I had hoped for.

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  Ugliest car VW buids - 2003 Volkswagen GTI
  By rollerskate - September 11 - 10:00 am

  VR6 engine is this cars best asset. Ugly looking from the outside. Just tell yourself its a Jetta when youre in it driving.

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  Exceeded all expectations - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By aaeaulpa - September 11 - 10:00 am

  I bought this SUV over the MDX, X5, ML, and XC simply because the VW matches all others in luxury, performance, and quality. Plus it saved me a couple grand.

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  2002 VW Jetta Wagon Diesel - 2002 Volkswagen Jetta
  By lindamh - September 11 - 10:00 am

  I love my car! It is fun to drive, great on diesel, lots of room in the back and more with the 60/40 split seats down. I like smaller cars and I need room as I carry lots of "stuff" with me for my job. Last week the back was full with a wheelchair, I still put 3 cases of wine and 2 boxes of food in the side door with no problem! I would definitely recommend this car to anyone.

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  Im in love - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By Amber - September 11 - 12:46 am

  I bought my Touareg about two years ago after having purchased a flawless Jetta nine years ago (which we still drive and requires very little maintenance.) I love to drive this car- whether down the street to the store out of town for the weekend. The precision handling and comfort have spoiled me, as well as the bells and whistles that come along with a luxury SUV. I have had a few repairs done on the car, but they were all covered by the extended warranty. I would recommend this car to anyone looking for a fun ride for themselves and/or family! We have owned a Toyota 4-Runner and a Ford SUV in the past,and they pale in comparison to this car.

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  2007 Jetta Wolfsburg edition 5Cyl Auto - 2007 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Greg - September 9 - 10:00 am

  This car is very fun to drive, and for its price its well worth every penny. Im a male 23 years old, and sure the jettas are typically known to be "chick" cars, which i found ridiculous, personally. But that just goes to show people, than buying a big truck doesnt make you a man, rising above the influence and not giving a damn what people think perhaps helps. But anyway, what i do find a bit irritating is that the aux connection is in the glove department, which is pretty inconvienant. I dont know what those germans were thinking. The turning radius is great, and for a 150hp it accelerates very well. Lots of space in the trunk, sound quality is decent, heated seats are amazing.

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  2010 Jetta LE 1 Month review - 2010 Volkswagen Jetta
  By todddr - September 9 - 10:00 am

  Have had this car for 1 month. I quite like it for the price; I turned out around $23k for the LE with sunroof and a few other extras. A friend told me the Jetta was a "poor mans BMW." Well, I used to own a BMW 3-series, and overall value for the VW has impressed me so far. For slightly over half the BMW price I have a German car...granted built in Mexico...but a good solid feel and ride. Decent power, and cruises the freeway at 90 mph quite well. Some reviews mention poor braking--I dont get that impression. Also, some other reviews mention engine noise; I dont find it "noisy" at all...a little growl that I kinda like.

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  Just what I Wanted - 2002 Volkswagen Jetta
  By RobertEther - September 7 - 12:06 pm

  Reliable, luxury features, great gas mileage (as good or better than advertised), good space for cargo ...all the things I wanted when I shopped for a car.

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  Mixed Bag - 2013 Volkswagen Touareg
  By cpmariner - September 7 - 1:29 am

  Overall, this excellent car is very comfortable (plenty of room for a 6 4" man), amazingly powerful, highly maneuverable, great fuel economy, and really fun to drive. My wife fell in love with it, and her Lexus 350 GS is rapidly gathering dust in the garage. However, at 3,000 miles Im beginning to worry about reliability. The first to go was the power seat memory -recently fixed. More serious, though, is an intermittent "roaring" noise from under the hood. To me, it seems to be the engine cooling fan running at 100% for no apparent reason. But the dealers techies are sure that its power steering-related and requires no "fix". Sounds like code for "we dont know" to me. Well see.

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  NHTSA investigation candidate - 2000 Volkswagen Cabrio
  By theaa - September 5 - 2:00 am

  Loved the car. Test drive was great. But out of the dealership problems started (the dealer being one of them) First, a bad rim. The same wheel goes flat 4 flat times.The dealer claims its not the rim - but the tier, the tier guys say exactly the opposite. Eventually, after 4 trips, the rim gets replaced, and didnt have a flat since. Then the seat warmer goes dead, buring the fuse. Dealer take 4 hours to figure that one out. Then, the last straw, the manual transmission gives while doing 65 on the highway - that was fun. if you had a similiar expirience feel free to report at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/