I Hate My Jetta

Home from the Hospital

2007-11-18T22:24:00.000-06:00

About a month after my car accident, all the repairs were finally complete and I got the call that I could come and pick up my Jetta. I had mixed emotions about getting my car back - It had been nice to drive a reliable vehicle for an extended period of time.

"This car was quite difficult to repair," Mike, the facility manager, said as he walked me around my vehicle and pointed out each part that had been replaced, repaired or repainted. "Honestly, your Jetta was a real pain in the ass."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said politely. I could only imagine the paperwork that he must have filled out to send the car back and forth between service centers. How awful for him.

I pointed to the front wheel rim. "Is that paint on the rim?" I asked.

"No," he said with a chuckle. "That's bird poop. Sorry, it looks like the pigeons had quite a party on your car over these last few weeks."

"That's OK," I said. "Nothing a good wash can't get rid of."

"We ask that you don't wash your car for a week," Mike replied. "You do have alot of fresh paint on the car."

"OK," I said hesitantly. Now I was noticing there was poop all over the car. I was not going to enjoy driving around in this poop-mobile all week.

"I mean, the water pump and the ignition coil went even though the impact of the accident should not have damaged them. Unbelievable!" Mike exclaimed. "Oh, well. That Jetta is running better than it ever was before the accident."

I smiled. We would see about that. I had a sneaking suspicion that my worries with this car were not over.

After the inspection I signed all the paperwork and began my drive home. The car really was driving great. It looked great too. The new front bumper and grill made a big difference.

"You look good enough to sell," I said suddenly. "And I should do that soon. Before the next breakdown."

Exclusive Interview

2007-10-28T14:15:00.000-06:00

I have a good friend who, like many of you out there, was a victim of the defective Volkswagen Jetta seat warmers that caused her driver's seat to burn up. After several years of silence she has decided to go public with her experience in this exclusive email interview - Yes, I scooped Barbara Walters and Oprah with this one ;-) Read on to find out how this innocent young Cleveland woman's VW Jetta cost her a potential employment opportunity.

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ME: I know it must be difficult to think back on that horrific day, especially since this is the first time you are going public with what happened. Describe that terrible day when your Jetta's seat warmer malfunctioned.

ERIN: It was a cold February afternoon - I had been unemployed for almost 2 months (I had just finished Graduate School - which is an entire other story!) and living with my parents. I had a phone interview with SIRVA Relocation for a contract recruiting position that went well. I was going in for a face-to-face interview that afternoon.

As it was February, and I was in Ohio, I did want any person who had experienced winter for at least a day would do - I warmed up my car! The lovely black 2002 Jetta. I went to the garage (My parents were at work, so of course I pulled my car into the garage - I'm no dummy), started my car and went back inside the house to get ready for the interview - aka Smoke a few cigarettes and pound back some Diet Dr.Pepper. When I was ready to leave, I went outside, opened up my car door and POOF - my driver side seat was smoky and smoldering - the material disappearing and charring. You could see the red hot coils. S&^t!

ME: What did you do when you realized what was happening?

ERIN: Growing up watching McGuyver - I quickly used some chewing gum, hairspray and a pickle to stop the butt warmers from melting away my car. Ok...actually I turned the car off - which turned off the butt warmer - Thank god for my Graduate degree or I probably wouldn't have thought of that (enter sarcasm). I did panic. My first real job interview and I had no place to sit in the car to DRIVE there!

ME: Were you injured? Were you hospitalized?

ERIN: No injuries or hospitalization. I did develop stillunemployeditis - as I did not get the job at SIRVA. I did call the Manager right away, but felt like an idiot explaining that my heated seats caught on fire and now I had no way of getting to the interview. It sounded so fake! I was hoping she owned a Jetta as well, so she knew anything was possible. We did reschedule the interview - but that didn't lead anywhere.

ME: Were any of your material possessions ruined?

ERIN: Nothing was ruined, except the drivers seat. I wonder what would have happened if I didn't warm up the car, but just started driving. Maybe an extra 5 lbs of ass fat would have melted off?

ME: What was the damage to your car and where did you take your car to be repaired?

ERIN: The damage to the car was drivers seat - melted! I took it to Ganley who interestingly enough - were not surprised at all. Apparently they had seen this before.

ME: What did the mechanic say to you about your car?

ERIN: I honestly don't remember - probably something stupid.

ME: Did you have to pay anything, or was the issue taken care of by VW?

ERIN: My car was leased so VW had to pay for it - hahaha suckas.

ME: Do you still have the Jetta, or have you gotten rid of it?

ERIN: Oh, that Jetta is gone. But I do wish I had just let the whole thing burn! Then I could have collected insurance money and gotten rid of the Jetta! Now that I think about, turning off the car was actually a stupid move.....

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Well, there you have it. Another case of inconvenience and missed opportunity caused by a poorly-manufactured VW Jetta. Luckily for Erin, she wasn't sitting on the seat when the warmer malfunctioned. Thank you to Erin for sharing her story, and my heart goes out to all of you who, like me, are suffering psychologically, physically, financially, and/or emotionally because of your VW Jetta.

My Stay-At-Home Car

2007-10-25T21:37:00.000-06:00

I'm not the only one frustrated with my Volkswagen Jetta. I got a call from my insurance company about the progress of my car repairs (since the accident) that really made me laugh.

The mechanic working on my car had just finished all the repairs, which took over a week longer than initially estimated, and he was driving my Jetta back to Progressive for its final inspection. The car kept overheating about every mile and he couldn't figure out why. He finally got so frustrated he drove the car over to a VW dealership and said, "You figure it out. I don't know what's wrong with it." And he just left it there.

This was all relayed to me from Eric at Progressive who was calling to ask if I'd had any problems with the car overheating every mile prior to the accident.

"Hmm," I said thoughtfully, "Not that I recall. And I think I would remember something like that."
Eric laughed. "I figured. And our mechanic said it would be impossible for you to drive it in that condition, but I have to ask."
"So, do they know what's wrong with it?" I asked tentatively. I really did not want to shell out any more money for an accident that wasn't even my fault to begin with.
"It's your water pump. It wouldn't have been hit during the accident, but it was probably on its last leg and that sent it over the edge." I cringed. The water pump was one of those parts that just sounded wicked expensive to fix.
"Oh," I said. "So, is that being repaired?" I was saying a silent prayer that they were not going to charge me for that.
"Yes," Eric said, "And Progressive is covering it because we can't prove it wasn't working just fine before the accident."
"That's great," I said, my voice filled with relief.
"I have to tell you," Eric said, "In all honesty your car has been a nightmare to repair. The ignition coil went out too, which was probably not accident-related either and we're taking care of that."
"Wow," I exclaimed. "I had no idea."
"Yeah," Eric said. "Wow is right. I've never seen anything like it. The only thing we won't pay for that needs to be replaced is your driver's side front wheel bearing. Did you notice a very loud noise coming from that side of your car?"
"Hmm, now that you mention it..." I said thoughtfully. That's the noise I had been meaning to have checked out for months. But, my VW Jetta motto has always been if the car is still running, then there is no real problem.
"Yeah," Eric continued, "the mechanic said there is no way you could not have noticed that noise. We replaced the bearing on the passenger side because that's where you got hit. But, if you want to have the driver's side replaced it is going to cost about $438."
"These repairs are so expensive!" I exclaimed.
"You basically got $1600 of free parts and labor," Eric reminded me.
"Yeah, OK. Go ahead and have them replace it," I said.
"It is going to add a few more days to your estimated completion time," Eric said.
"That's fine," I assured him. "Just call me when it's done."

As I hung up the phone I couldn't help but smile. My little Jetta. Still putting up a fight because it doesn't want to run like other cars. And then I started to wonder- Maybe some cars just weren't made for reliable transportation. I mean, some people aren't cut out for school or office work or standardized tests. Maybe there are cars that don't do well getting cargo from point A to point B. Maybe those same cars were better at other things --like looking cute in a parking spot at Target, or lounging in park on a driveway. Maybe my VW Jetta was made to be a "stay at home" car.

Meant to Be

2007-10-22T21:26:00.000-06:00

I have not written in awhile because I don't have anything to complain about. My Jetta has been in the repair shop for almost a month. Yes, that's right...A month.

What is it now? Pretty much everything.

It all started one random morning on my way to work. I was driving westbound down Fullerton Ave. to the highway when I got a sudden hankering for a McDonald's Egg McMuffin. I pulled into the left turn lane and was patiently waiting for oncoming traffic to clear before making my left. The light turned yellow, and the person in the outer lane heading eastbound stopped. I saw a white car in the inner lane, but at this point the light was red so I began to turn. I guess I assumed that the other driver would surely stop because of how far away from the intersection they were, and how fast they were going...Probably about 30 mph, but not that "they're totally going to run the light" fast.

So, I started to turn, and just as I did I realized this woman in the white car was not going to stop. I mean, she didn't even try to put on her brakes and slow down. It was all very surreal...Very slow motion, and I saw it coming. I think I even tried to accelerate to finish my turn, but any of you who have a turbo Jetta know it really doesn't accelerate that fast, so I was pretty much screwed. I cringed and waited for the impact.

And while I waited I could see the woman who stopped for me in the outer lane scream from inside her car - She saw it coming. So why did the woman who hit me look so completely surprised that she was about to hit me? I was in the intersection long before she was, and she was the one not obeying the Chicago traffic law, which is to yield to traffic clearing the intersection even if your traffic signal tells you otherwise.

Well, she didn't and I heard the crumpling sound and dull thud as her car barreled into mine. My car shut off at the impact, and a couple of seconds seemed to drag on for an eternity as I sat in the intersection and racked my brain for what I was supposed to do. I had never been in an accident...Hell, I had never had a traffic ticket, so I couldn't quite remember proper protocol for an accident. Then one thing that cut through my foggy adrenaline-filled brain. I reached up and turned my hazard lights on.

I was about to get out of my car, when I realized my car was sideways, and blocking at least two lanes of traffic. I looked at the ignition. Do I turn the car on? Will it explode? Do I call 9-1-1? I was more worried about holding up all the other drivers that were waiting for me to make a move because I made the decision to try and start the car and get it out of the intersection. It started right away, and I was able to pull it into the shopping center plaza where the McDonald's was.

When my car was safely in the parking lot, I shakily opened my door and got out. The woman from the other car had pulled in nearby, and she was already out of her car. I struggled to control the urge to start cursing at her.

"Are you OK?" I asked.
She blinked at me, but didn't say anything.
"Are you in shock?" I asked loudly.
"No speak English too good," she said.
"Of course not," I mumbled in agitation. "That would be too easy."

Somehow I managed to communicate for the woman, we'll call her Rashna for anonymity's sake, to take out her insurance card and driver's license, although it took awhile. I fished a pen from my purse and wrote everything down in shaky handwriting on an ATM receipt I had in my wallet. Through all of this she was silent. I assessed the damage to my car - There was front bumper, hood, and wheel damage, although the wheel did not seem to be flat. There were also some fluids leaking from the car.

I didn't feel this constituted a true emergency, so I dialed 3-1-1 on my cell phone.

Rashna suddenly began to cry. "No police," she said. "No, please."
Now she understands me, I thought.

"3-1-1, how can I assist you?" The operator asked.
"Hi, umm, I was just in a car accident, and...who should I call for that?" I asked politely. As a good urban citizen I did not want to be distracting police from stabbings and shootings with my fender bender.
"How long ago was the accident?" The woman asked.
"About four minutes ago," I said, "But there aren't any visible injuries..."
"I'm transferring you," The woman said abruptly. The phone rang once, and was picked up.
"9-1-1. What's your emergency?"
I told the woman the details of the accident, and she said she would send an officer as soon as possible. Meanwhile, my "English not-so-good friend" Rashna was still sobbing. When I got off the phone, she sniffed and glared at me.

"I have to call the police," I said firmly. "My insurance requires it."
You hit me. I wanted to add, but my insurance card advised me not to talk about the accident with anyone but the police and my claims agent.

"I need to call my son," Rashna said.
"OK," I said, and started walking back to my car.
"Phone," she said and held out her hand.
"My phone?" I sputtered in disbelief.
"Please!" She said, and her eyes welled up with tears again.
"Fine," I grumbled and handed her my phone.
She called her son. Her work. Her son again. At this point I thought it might be a good idea for me to call my insurance company, so I requested my phone back.
"When my son calls, I must speak to him," the woman said as she handed back my phone.
"Your English improves every second," I growled. "That's great."
I made that call and by the time I had answered all 4,000 questions from my claims agent, the police officer was there.

I explained the details of the accident to him, while Rashna wandered around looking to wave down her son.

"Look at her over there. She acts like she doesn't have anything to do with this!" The officer exclaimed. "Unbelievable!"

"Yeah, she doesn't speak very good English," I said.

"Ma'am! Ma'am! I need to talk to you, please!" The officer called as he beckoned Rashna over.

She approached him, and he asked, "What happened?"

"No speak English too good," she said unapologetically.

"Great! That's just great!" The officer said.

Eventually the police officer issued Rashna a ticket. My insurance company sent Enterprise rent-a-car to pick me up, and I left the Jetta in the parking lot looking very beat up and dejected while it waited for its tow truck.

"I never even got my McDonald's," I said sadly to my Enterprise driver.
He laughed. "You want to run through?"
I looked at my watch and sighed. "It's 10:35 AM. They aren't serving breakfast anymore. Thanks though."

As we drove away I thought about the accident, and how I had just been thinking about taking my car in because it was making another funny noise. Maybe Rashna had, unknown to her, done me a huge favor. Or maybe it was my Egg McMuffin craving that had separated me from my abuser that morning.

"I'm sorry about your car," The Enterprise guy said.
"Thanks." I replied.
"But at least you're OK," he said.
"Yeah," I replied. "I'm definitely OK."

Not a fan

2007-09-06T20:59:00.000-06:00

I few days after I had my Jetta towed into the shop I got a call from the VW dealership.

"Hi, this is Mike from VW. I'm calling about your Jetta."

At this point I was hoping that Mike was calling to tell me my car had been stolen off the lot.

"Oh, hi." I said.

"We figured out what's going on with your car," Mike said proudly.

"Yes?" I just wanted him to spit out how much it was going to cost me this time.

"Both engine fans are out, and that's probably what ended up frying your battery, which is why you couldn't start your car."

"Oh," I replied. This was starting to sound expensive.

"Didn't you notice a problem using your air conditioning?" Mike asked.

"Yes, I did. I just assumed there was something wrong with the air conditioning," I replied matter-of-factly. "The car was running fine."

"I'm really surprised the car didn't over-heat on you," Mike said. "But the air conditioning wasn't working because the engine was too hot."

I did not want to explain to Mike that I would never take my Jetta in to have the A/C checked. It would be like someone who had advanced lung cancer making a special trip to the doctor to have a planter's wart looked at. It just didn't warrant a separate visit. Chances were I would go in for something more serious soon after the A/C went out.

"So, it's going to be $1200 to fix the fan problem."

"What? $1200 to put in a new fan?!" I exclaimed.

"No," Mike corrected me, "To put in TWO new fans and a new battery and..." He trailed off as he rustled through some paperwork. "It looks like there is a recall out on your Jetta, so..."

I smiled. It was about damn time VW figured out their cars were pieces of crap and gave me some free maintenance work!

Mike continued, "It looks like the recall is for your brake light switch. So, we'll go ahead replace that free of charge."

My heart sank. "Oh. So, the rest of the work still costs $1200?"

"That's right," Mike said cheerily. "And your car will be up and running in no time. I think we can get this taken care of today."

I was really hoping they would be able to keep my car through the end of the week. The problem with picking my car up from the dealership was that I had to pay for the repair work, and I didn't have the money.

"Wow, that's great," I said with forced enthusiasm.

"Alright, someone will call you when it's done." Mike said.

I mumbled goodbye and hung up the phone. Two fans for $1200 made me even less of a VW fan, if that was possible.

More than the Battery

2007-08-26T22:21:00.000-06:00

I suffered through driving without my stereo for about two months before I couldn't take it anymore...No, actually I'm much tougher than that. What really happened was that I just got in the car one morning and it wouldn't start.

I got in, put the key in the ignition and when all I heard was a clicking noise I got out of the car and immediately hopped on the L and went downtown to the Avis car rental facility on N. Clark. I didn't even bother tracking down one of my neighbors to try jumping it - My gut told me it was more than just the battery.

I called my insurance company to have the car towed to my favorite VW dealership (Pugi Volkswagen in Downers Grove), and they said I could only get 10 miles of free towing and they would have to charge me for anything over that. Unfortunately, the place I wanted to have my car towed was 25 miles away. "Forget it," I said in irritation. "I'll call AAA."

"If you live in downtown Chicago," the operator said, "why don't you have it towed to a dealership downtown?"

I rolled my eyes. This woman obviously did not realize I had been through this situation before. "They will take every penny I have left," I said. "I have managed to find one honest Volkswagen mechanic in the Chicagoland area and that is where I'm taking this car!"

"OK, well then...Have a nice day," she replied cheerily.

I slammed the phone down and called AAA and arranged to have my car towed the following morning. If I can give any VW Jetta owner a piece of advise it would be to buy additional towing coverage through AAA - You'll need it.

When I got off the phone I went over to my boss's office to let her know I would be late the next morning.

"You're kidding?!" She exclaimed when I told her what happened. "Again?"

I probably would have been fired a long time ago if my boss's life partner didn't have a Jetta that had just as many problems as mine did.

"Gail's Jetta was just in the shop last week," my boss said bitterly. "Electrical problems. Cost me $1500 to fix. I end up paying it because she's still in her training program at work. I keep telling her she needs to get rid of that thing..." She trailed off.

I nodded knowingly. "I'm sorry." And I was. I was sorry for everyone who spent their hard-earned money on a Jetta.

She turned to me. "I hope it's nothing serious," she said with genuine concern in her eyes.

I forced a smile. "Me too." But I knew it would be. It always was.

Stereo Down!

2007-06-11T22:39:00.000-06:00

On my way home from work today I stopped at the grocery store. After 20 minutes I came back out to my car with my purchases, and when I started my car I realized that my entire stereo system wasn't working!! It was just completely dead when it had been happily blasting music only minutes before. I was furious.

This would not be that big of a deal if I didn't spend at least TWO HOURS in my car every single day driving to and from work. I can't sit in silence for that long. I can't even hook my iPod into the system or play a CD. It's completely inoperable! I've managed to avoid road rage to this point, but with no music I don't think I'll be able to last much longer. Turning the stereo up extremely loud was how I avoided listening to the strange noises my engine has been making the last couple months. If I can't hear anything wrong, there must not be a problem...

I had my boyfriend check out my stereo when I got home and he says the fuses and battery connection are fine...Of course VW makes it very difficult to do any troubleshooting outside of the dealership. He wanted to pull the stereo out of the dashboard and check out the wiring, but he needs a special tool to do it and I am certain this tool is only available at my authorized VW dealer. No sense fixing something at home with $30 and a trip to Pep Boys when I could take a half-day off work to go sit in the dealership and for 3 hours and pay $150/hr in labor plus the array of outrageously priced German parts. Yes, that's always a convenient option!!!

But, it's either that or my sanity...

Why I Hate My Jetta

2007-05-21T21:39:00.000-06:00

I hate my Volkswagen Jetta. I hate it because I cannot count on it to get me where I need to go when I need to be there. I hate it because every time I put the key in the ignition there is a moment of dread where I am staring intently at my dashboard and wondering if something will go wrong, or if I can make it another day without another visit to the repair shop.

I hate my Jetta because the company that keeps churning them out to meet its ever-increasing sales goals is more concerned with brand image than the integrity of its products. Volkswagen ended up 27th out of 36 vehicle brands Consumer Reports ranked by predicted reliability this year. According to Consumer Reports, "Volkswagen builds vehicles that perform very well in our testing but vary in reliability" (Which Companies Make the Best Cars? Consumer Reports, 4/07).

VW's new campaign "Driven By Optimism," created by Crispin Porter + Bogusky, shows that three VW models for under $17,000 - The Jetta, Rabbit, and the New Beetle - are enough to turn around some very negative situations. While focusing on value and conveying this idea of optimism is a great marketing strategy and message, VW does not have the cars to back it up. The bottom line is a car is no longer affordable if you have to continuously shell out thousands of dollars in repairs!! Sadly, the target audience for these entry level cars will continue to be teens and young adults who will not be able to afford to keep up with the regular maintenance and repairs on these German-engineered pieces of trash.

Save yourself some grief, buy a Honda.

Repair List...It Keeps Growing

2007-05-21T20:02:00.000-06:00

I've saved every receipt from every trip I've made to get the car repaired. It's not just the money I've spent that bothers me - luckily most of the big stuff has been under warranty...It's all the TIME I've had to take off work to sit and wait for my car at the dealership, or the TIME I've spent waiting for a tow truck, or the TIME I've spent waiting for a ride to pick up car from the dealership, or the TIME I've spent waiting in line for a rental car that I wish I had back.

8/26/02 - One month after purchase!!
Transmission cable readjusted
Remote reprogrammed
New windshield installed after I found a crack in it

7/7/03
Passenger side front window cable and clamps replaced after the window dropped into the door (recall - No charge)

1/28/04
Ignition coil replaced (recall - No charge)

5/23/04
Driver side front window cable and clamps replaced after the window dropped into the door - No, they couldn't fix them both at the same time (recall - No charge)

9/14/04
Cooling fans are replaced after engine overheats (Under warranty - No charge).
Parts were on back order, so I had a rental car for a week.

12/22/04
Catalytic Converter replaced

5/31/05
Engine splash shield fasteners replaced
Brake lights replaced - $65.28

6/1/05
Exhaust Pipe Clamp Repair - $28.18
Seat Warmer Repair Kits Installed - Recall Work - No Charge

7/8/05
Replaced coolant temperature sensor and conducted decarbinization procedure and coolant flush - $297.30

7/13/05
Fuel injector replaced - $498.44

12/1/05
All 4 tires replaced - $957.40

4/17/06
Rear brakes and break pads replaced - $423.92

5/24/06
Battery Replaced - $119.98

11/28/06
Solenoid valve is replaced after malfunction indicator light comes on (dealer covered)

12/05/06
Major transmission work done
It would have cost me $2500, but the mechanic felt bad for me because I had to pass my emissions test, so he got VW to cover it.

The Beginning

2007-05-21T18:27:00.000-06:00

I'll never forget that hot summer day in 2002 when I first drove my brand new Volkswagen Jetta GLS 1.8 Turbo off the lot. With the windows down, the moonroof open, and "Life Is A Highway" blasting over the stereo, I felt as free as I had ever felt in my life. After all, it was the first new car; The only car I had ever owned. With college behind me, I saw my new car purchase as the first milestone in my adult life - My first sign of independence.

I punched the gas pedal and gleefully watched as the speedometer inched up to 95 mph. "Time to see what this baby can do," I said to myself. I maintained my speed for about 34 seconds before my cell phone rang.

I picked it up. "Hello?"

"Dammit, Andrea! Slow down!" My dad yelled. "You want a ticket the first day with your new car?"

OK, so I wasn't as independent as I initially let on. My dad was following right behind me in his car. He had to come over to the dealership and co-sign on the car because I did not have the credit history to finance it myself, and now he was following me home.

"OK, OK. Sorry!" I hung up the phone, and slowed down to 70 mph.

It was understandable why I was excited. I had made it through high school driving two hand-me-down Pontiac Bonnevilles...That's right, two. The first one was a silver 1989 I got when I turned 16, which my friends and I nicknamed "The Boss." The nickname was fitting because no matter what we managed to crash that car into, it always survived with barely a scratch. Eventually, that car was passed down to my younger siblings, and I ended up with a white 1988 Bonneville we eventually nicknamed "The Cum Wad." I will abstain from giving the context around that nickname other than the obvious - the car was white. I had gone to college in Chicago, so I had left my Bonneville back in northwest Ohio with my parents and relied on public transportation for four years. I figured any urine-smelling L train was better than trying to parallel park that battleship of a car downtown.

I had fallen in love with my Jetta the moment I set eyes on it. I came to the VW dealership after I had test-driven numerous Hondas, Toyotas, Nissans, Volvos, and even a HUMMER. I wanted something cute and sporty that was not outrageously priced. I had spent years with old Pontiacs that broke down at least once a week, so I wanted to steer clear of domestic cars. The Jetta was stylish, fun to drive, and came fully-loaded for a reasonable price. Plus, there was that whole German engineering thing - What wasn't to love?

The answer was - Plenty.