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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  Big surprise from VW - 2002 Volkswagen Passat
  By japcarsowner - July 2 - 6:33 am

  This car looks and feels like a luxury car. It never hints itself as a sub-30k vehicle. With its refreshing style and interior design, as well as rich features, it makes you love it more as every day goes by. But if the aformentioned points are of no importance, and you only care about a pratical family sedan, you might as well save a few (thousand) bucks getting an Accord or Camry.

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  Return of the Great GTI - 2003 Volkswagen GTI
  By Tyler - July 2 - 3:36 am

  I have owned many Volkswagens from the original 84 GTI to a 16V Scirocco and this is the best VW I have ever driven. Great quality, handling, and speed. Everything you could ask for in a German hatchback. No service Issues in the time I have owned the car. It has just under 20000 miles on her now.

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  German Performance and Wfficiency - 2003 Volkswagen Jetta
  By Valikyte - July 1 - 10:53 am

  I purchased the vehicle used with 33,000 miles. So far I have not had any major issue and have been very satisfied with the economy. I knew it wasnt a large vehicle when I purchased it, so I cant complain that my 62 figure is somewhat cramped on any trip longer than two hours. I realistically get about 42 mpg highway and 40 city. It is always satisfying to get 500+ miles to a tank and every once in a while put in a tank of biodiesel. My only complaint is that at 38,000 miles it developed a creak in the suspension that only presented itself after I had driven for a while. It did not affect the performance of the suspension, but did annoy me a little.

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  LOVING MY VW - 2001 Volkswagen Jetta
  By CHili Redz - July 1 - 10:00 am

  My VW was in a really bad accident 12/01. She had over 15,000 worth of damage. My cousin T-boned her, lucky the engine wasnt affected. After almost 4 months of repair. She is still in good condition. She runs just as good as when I bought her in 5/01. I havent had any major engine problems. I had to replace driver and passager window regulators, which I found out that was a common defect in VWs. I also had to replace my rear brakes at 28,000 miles which I thought was rare but I was told it was due to a braking feature. Overall I am happy with her.

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  Fuel Tank Swooshing Sound - 2010 Volkswagen Golf
  By Marco - July 1 - 7:40 am

  Enjoy everything about this car except quality problems. Car door was misaligned when purchased and Fuel tank makes a swooshing sound, when one comes to a stop. Dealer says potential baffles defect and/or other?????

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  Stay Away - 2005 Volkswagen Jetta
  By John - June 30 - 7:13 pm

  This 2.5 Jetta is the tenth VW weve owned in fifteen years. It is junk. The transmission skips, it will not engage in drive or reverse properly, and there is a dangerous lapse when taking off from a slow down. The rain sensor wipers are terrible. They sometimes wipe when the windshield is dry or wont wipe at all in a downpour. On continuous wipe they go into intermittent (this car does not have it). The climatronic is screwed up. The a/c comes on by itself when temp is set at 70 and it wont turn off. I have been to two dealers and VW service cannot fix anything. The VW area rep has refused to do anymore warranty service. I am filing lemon law and VW is fighting it. I will never buy VW again.

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  Beats the X5 and ML - 2005 Volkswagen Touareg
  By HS - June 30 - 2:00 pm

  I have owned it for about 2 years with almost no problems; the maintenance is very affordable, about once a year for $120 ~ $180. It is fun to drive, beats the X5 and ML hands down. Great handling. The interior is really nice, almost as nice as the Cayenne. Some people say the gas mileage is not that great; I have to partially agree but keep in mind that this is an SUV with lots of horses under the hood. If you are looking for gas mileage then do not buy an SUV.

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  still loving it =) - 2004 Volkswagen R32
  By GrandPaDriver - June 29 - 11:53 am

  Just do the schedule service needed, and the car will give you no problem. You might need some tuning & modification for the car to run as you expected to be. You will fall in love with it once you drive it. =)

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  Good but small SUV - 2010 Volkswagen Tiguan
  By Alex Povolotski - June 29 - 4:36 am

  Good but small SUV, to my taste. The cabin is hushed, the engine is not intrusive unlike in RAV4, though also a 4 cyl and a turbo on top of that. Eats up potholes very well. Brakes are one of the best ones, cornering and steering feel is very precise. Transmission is smooth and shift quickly and when needed. On the downside, the accelerator pedal is not very sensitive and is too stiff for me. The car does not respond immediately to the pedal input (either a turbo lag or just a pedal being too stiff). You notice a huge difference when you release the accelerator pedal, the car almost jolts and doesnt roll, what other cars normally do. Also limited visibility from the front.

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  Need to be a good driver! - 2004 Volkswagen Touareg
  By Steve - June 28 - 10:26 pm

  I have close to 100K on my 04 Taureg and I have owned an Explorer,Expedition,ML320,Jeep, and despite the noise I read about and some personal experience I still believe this is a very good car. Some advice, rotate your tires every 7k. check tire pressure once a month, change oil at 5K at a non VW shop. Also, this is a heavy car, so you need to be sensitive on how hard you hit the brake pedal. No doubt you need to be safe, but if you are an aggressive braker, you will pay for it. They are not cheap to replace. Also, negotiate with your dealer. I have been successful in replacing cost of front lights, brake pads and recently A/C work. Saved 25% of initial estimate