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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  YOUR 1.8T ENGINE WILL FAIL !!!! - 2001 Volkswagen Passat
  By Do Not Buy This Car! - July 15 - 1:33 pm

  Look Out! VW is misleading customers by extending the internal engine warranty by 8 Years, Unlimited Mileage. They have notified customers of an oil sludge issue in August 2004. What do you know...my car is currently in the dealership with this exact issue at 63,000-miles and VW will not honor the warranty because my oil changes did not occur exactly at the 5,000-mile intervals. If you want a car that sits in the dealership a lot and will cost $$ in repairs (this repair is running $2500) then this is the car for you. VW is passing an engineering flaw in the 1.8t engine over to customers, by telling customers that it is normal for a vehicles engine to fail.

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  Never Again - 1997 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Fitzy - July 11 - 2:00 am

  For starters they have the worst customer service on the planet. Secondly, I have had more problems with it than I could even fit into this review. Engine light constantly comes on and VW charges $97 just to tell you why, side molding has fallen off both side doors multiple times until I finally used epoxy, my door lock on both front doors broke and the lock would spin in place instead of unlock my doors, my passenger side window fell off the track and into the door and broke into pieces, my driver side window no longer works, cruise control broke, A/C no longer works, brakes went faster than I would have imagined, and even the mufflers are garbage!

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  Dont Buy a Touareg! - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By Natalie - June 15 - 10:13 pm

  This car has been nothing but trouble. It is entirely too sensitive and there is a red or yellow warning light on constantly whether it be for the tires, temperature gauge, EPS system, etc... For the money you should expect and get a lot better quality than VW offers in the Touareg. I feel like I own a Hyundai! The Touareg is the WORST vehicle that Ive ever owned. Im on my way to the dealer again. Im there about every other month getting something fixed. What an inconvenience! I cant wait for this lease to be over!

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  Run away as fast as you can - 2002 Volkswagen Jetta
  By geolro - June 11 - 10:00 am

  I completely concur with Paulie and Adam. Ive had the same problems both of them have described with varying degrees of success in remediation. * Spastic shifting * Spastic starting in cool weather * Alarm system malfunctions * Radio went dead * Door seals ruined after winter weather * Squeaky steering wheel * Squeaky front seats * Squeaky body panels in cargo area.

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  Maintenance repair shop queen - 2009 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Keith - May 31 - 11:51 am

  The car achieves outstanding mileage with the TDI engine with outstanding low end torque. However it is a maintenance nightmare. The Satellite radio failed at 18 months along with the aux port. The TDI engine intercooler had a design fault resulting in bent valve and engine freeze up. Volkswagen replaced the engine under warranty. All four struts, shocks and wheel bearings have failed in the last 24 months. Car is religiously washed and waxed. The paint failed at 70 months on all four wheel wells and the rocker panels with large chunks of paint blistering and peeling off. Volkswagen has only agreed to pay 20% of the repair cost. I buy the best tires rated for ride and noise. Despite that the car rides rough and there is so much wind and road noise that I wear ear plugs during my commute and I will not drive it on long drives.

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  I Hate My Car - 2000 Volkswagen New Beetle
  By cd - May 28 - 8:33 pm

  I will never buy another Volkswagen again. I cant wait to get rid of my lemon. It is one problem after another. Not just with the car, but with my Volkswagen dealership. Im tired of taking my car back to get the same things fixed over and over. Not to mention the time the mechanic at the dealership told me my car was fine and let me drive away with an overheating car. The problems never end. In my 1998 Beetle, it was the air conditioning, which broke three years in a row. There were many other things wrong with that year, but I decided to give VW another chance and got a 2000 model. Stupid me, this car is a mess. My independant mechanic told me he wanted to shoot my car, I feel the same :(

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  My Lemmon - 2002 Volkswagen Jetta
  By jm - May 28 - 10:00 am

  Transmission replaced at 800 miles, paint defect took three trips to the dealer. Sometimes it starts sometimes it doesnt. Customer service extreemly poor. I have owned the car for 2 1/2 months and it has been in the shop 30 days.

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  My Lemmon - 2002 Volkswagen Jetta
  By JM - May 28 - 10:00 am

  Transmission replaced at 800 miles, paint defect took three trips to the dealer. Sometimes it starts sometimes it doesnt. Customer service extreemly poor. I have owned the car for 2 1/2 months and it has been in the shop 30 days.

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  DO NOT BUY VW - 2008 Volkswagen EOS
  By minimono00 - May 24 - 11:51 pm

  I bought the 2008 Lux Eos. I enjoyed driving my car for about three years until I started having rook leaking issues. At that time I started to deal with the dealer on a consistent basis and have never have such poor service with a car company before. I brought in my car a total of 4 times and i still had issues with leaking after that. I couldnt believe a 3 year old car would be so difficult for the dealer to fix. Additionally their corporate representatives were miserable to work with. They were not courteous or willing to help beyond telling me to continually bring my car back to the dealer. Its unfortunate that I spent so much on a vehicle and was treated so poorly. I had heard b

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  this car is perfect until.... - 2007 Volkswagen Rabbit
  By hippo1105 - May 22 - 8:29 pm

  I wonder if anyone has this problem. This car worked perfect until last year. The car will suddenly shut down with no reason. It has happened for serveral times now. Since my extended warrenty is still good, they suggest me to bring it back to the dealers. However, the dealers cant find any problem, plus charge me $100 for checking it. I tried to call VW customer couples time and told them the problem. They keep asking me to go to the dealer. Sure I have already paid $100 for it, why would I keep paying VW for their faults. I bought it new from the dealer in 2007. Now they just cant provide any service. What is the point to buy the extented warrenty? No more VW for me!