Prius or Jetta TDI

Stop going to repair shops that hire Neanderthals.

 

Sorry to hear about your experience. I went through a dilemma of buying a Prius or a Jetta TDI before, back on June when people here in this Chat helped me a lot in my decision of getting the Prius after several educative/productive and other not-so-nice discussions. Do I regret it? Yes and No.

No, because reliability of VW in the US is among the worst. I drive my Prius 40K/year and intend to do so for 4 years, ending up with a total of 160K miles before trading it by another car. I really doubt the Jetta would give me that much mileage trouble-free, the Prius is more likely to achieve it. We shall see. That had a huge influence in my decision, more so than MPG, because I do 98-99% hwy and the MPG for the Prius and Jetta TDI in that situation is comparable.

Yes, because as much as I like driving my Prius (it is a very fun car to drive) the rattle noises that emerged in my cabin after 3 months of use is a big disappointment. Dealers are not helpful and I’m afraid there is not much to be done about that. To me, rattle noises in a 25K car (that’s how much I paid for my Prius III) is unacceptable, but since I drive it a lot and I’m saving lots at the pump, I'm learning to survive it. The JBL sound system, while not great, is helping me on that difficult task. I must be strong...

 

Find another dealer. I can't speak to VW dealers around where you are, but I've heard the same complaints about VW dealers in general being parts throwers and it's not just a few of them.

Good luck with "Good Solid basic mechanical systems". The Jetta TDI apparently turns out to be a bit better in reliability than their gasoline counterparts but is significantly inferior to the Prius. See CR's reliability charts.

Although I don't trust JD Power very much, you can see how well they've done at 2009 Vehicle Dependability Study (VDS) | J.D. Power and Associates.

 

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Look for a late 1960's or early 1970's American made car. The mechanics you are using should be able to work with one of those.

Tom

 

OK. Here's my 2-cents on the issue:

In 1998, I purchased a New Beetle. Over seven year period, I put well over 130K on the car. However, I was cursing my purchase well within the warranty period and beyond.

While the engine itself was sound (it was the gas engine), every other component seemed prone to failure. I replaced the electric cooling fans and air conditioner compressor 3 times. There were multiple failures of electronic components (i.e. switches and fuses). The auto window mechanism was actually recalled within three years of my ownership -- for which I was compensated by VW for my previous two replacements of this component. And, I even had to have the radio antenna harness replaced twice (truth is, I don't think they replaced it the first time).

Mind you, this list does not even include the premature deterioration of the hoses nor the catalytic converter...

And, yes, I was one of those who brought my car in for regular service-- first with the dealer, and then with a VW mechanic who I consider trustworthy. The car remained a problem child.

In late 2005, I bought my Prius. Before it was totaled a month ago by a lady who was probably "medicated" at the time, I had already put 90K an the vehicle, and accept for replacing the tires and paying for the usual oil change it never gave me a moment of grief.

So, when I had to replace my car, guess what I went with?

Now, admittedly my VW story may seem a bit extreme, but anecdotally, I've gotten similar tales from my friends who own, or still own, Passats and Jettas (both diesel and gas versions) -- because the problems aren't the engines...

Well, that's my take on the matter.

Good hunting!

 

There is (was) someone on PriusChat who used to have this in their signature:

The TDI is a great engine. Too bad it was attached to a Volkswagen.

 

Exactly! Do you know what the solution for that is? Get a TDI attached to an Audi. Yes, it is still a VW company, but with much better reliability in my brother's and friends experiences (I'm talking about 20 years of experience and 7-8 Audis in that period!). The new A3 TDI (what a beauty!) is cheaper than Prius V with NAV without the AT package... I wish that car was available back on June when I was desperate for a Fuel Efficient car for HWY trips...

 

I'm gessing CR will have a huge black circle for Squeaks & Rattles in the 2010 Prius whenever it becomes available...

If not, it will just aggravate my frustation...

 

6000 miles on my gen III and not a squeak or rattle to be heard in mine

 

I've heard some ugly stories about Audi(s) too, although they were older models from the 70's and 80's.

Seriously, I would have considered a TDI Golf or TDI Beetle back in 2006 when I was car shopping, but they were not certified for Calif during that time. We did look at a gas engine Beetle, but were somewhat appalled by the FE, the quality of the interior (there was exposed foam visible with the rear seat folded that my dogs would have quickly destroyed) and my GF is very prejudiced against VW from having once owned a 79 Rabbit (assembled with care in Pennsylvania). It would be easier to list what wasn't wrong with that car than to list all of the problems.

 

I agree, VWs are trouble here in the US. They are incredibly reliable in other parts of the world though, which I find amazing. Audis are like Hyundai as far as reliability...back 20 years ago they were bad but it has not been the case in the last 5-10 years. Like I said before I have a brother and many friends that own Audis and they are pretty reliable nowadays...

 

Let's hope your verbal skills are better than your spelling & grammar, or that may be some of the cause of your frustration when dealing with others. I had to reread some of those sentences twice to figure out what you intended to say.

 

I had a Diesel Jetta for 10 years, and then a Diesel New Beetle for a few... Overall, good cars, but when you needed to get something fixed, they cost a fortune...

Went TDI shopping about two months ago - tried out a Jetta TDI Sedan and a Sportwagen TDI, and after driving them, decided they hadn't updated the interiors enough to justify close to $30,000... It was OK, but something didn't click... I thought I'd love it, and I thought it was just so-so.

Spent a little more and got a Prius V with Advanced Technology... After test driving it, there was no comparison... I got the Prius about a week later.

 

I seem to be caught in a cycle of purchasing VW, then Toyota and then back to VW. Certainly VW has the potential for more issues. The 1998 New Beetle was a 'bust' for VW. I traded a 2005 New Beetle for my 2008 Prius. I had driven 125K trouble free miles! In comparison to the '08 Prius the Beetle had 'comfortable' heated seats, and handled well (read 'fun to drive'). The '08 Prius has the worst driver seating 'ever'. The interior is 'inexpensive' (cheap) in comparison to the VW.
I guess after flip flopping between these two brands, their manner of doing business becomes evident.
Toyota sells you a car and you have to pay for every add-on.
My 2005 New Beetle also had satellite radio that required a subscription to be active.
My '08 Prius requires somewhere between $400-600 to have satellite radio usable through the computer display screen. No matter how many times I asked the sales staff, not one of them understood what 'satellite ready' meant. Their first answer was...go to Best Buy!!
So, while my Prius does it's job very well, and I enjoy all the 'things' that are included in a Pkg 6, it is still not 'fun to drive'. It is reliable, but not fun!
Sometimes 'fun' is better!

Next time 'fun' will take hold!
(PS....I also owned a 2000 New Beetle TDI, I never paid much attention to engines until I owned that vehicle....that engine was phenomenal...certainly the new one must be equivalent and better.)

Anyhow....my 2 cents...thanks for listening..

 

So what did you find so phenomenal about the TDI engine? I'd like to hear more about the TDI experience.

 

The new TDI VW Golf is 26k fully loaded and it's a cute little car. The interior looks nice from the pictures I saw but I don't think I'd be able to get past the NVH at idle as I do lots of city driving. I definitely would consider the Audi A3 with AWD and TDI (not sure if they have that combo). I also don't like the fact that diesel fuel goes up considerably in the winter. Last year at one point during the cold season the disparity between gas and diesel fuel was nearly a buck in my part of the country (diesel being higher of course). OUCH!!

 

I will try to explain my enjoyment of the TDI engine.
I recall that it loved to go up hills and go up fast. Not really dwelling much on the term 'torque' in my life. The first time up a fairly long hill on a highway I realized....'ah, this is what torque is'.

When you step on the accelerator it responded, without hesitation and always had more to go with. Actually I got the first speeding ticket of my life with that car...and after 40+ years of driving, that kinda makes me laugh.

All around the car was fun to drive. With a responsive engine that got great mileage and handling like a little go-kart it was a fun drive.

I don't have a lot of technical reasons to say it was a great engine other than, as I said, I never really paid any attention to engines before. This one got my attention and I enjoyed owning it.

I will certainly entertain a VW TDI when it is time to make another purchase. I look forward to the new Golf TDI they are sending over.

Don't get me wrong, my Prius is fine. Both brands are different driving experiences and different corporate cultures expressed in their products.

 

The TDI, like many other turbo diesel engines, has a lots of torque right where most driving takes place. It probably makes more power below 3000 rpm than a GTI or other comparable sport compacts. So it feels quite peppy, even though the 0-60 times suggest otherwise. Back then, there wasn't much that would match its fuel economy either.