JD POWER Quality Ratings

[lynnhoek]

J D Powers only rates VW Jetta's @ 2-1/2 stars, slightly above all the rest.

After my first VW Jetta purchase, 2010 Jetta TDI, I certainly hope the brand is better than that.

What are everyone's elses experiances and expectations?

[chittychittybangbang]

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/Volkswa...tta/2010/Sedan

Never noticed it before but as a brand I would say not really. There are lemons and there are cherries. Overall VW is getting better. And dealers are independently owned and managed so your experience can totally vary. If it makes you feel any better I still like VW despite, in my opinion, their lower average reliability compared to the average Honda.

PS, I would rate overall design at VW to be among the best.

[iceman]

They've done better in consumer reports. You already bought the car, buyers remorse?

[lynnhoek]

Not at all am I experiancing buyers remorse. The Jetta TDI manuel 6 speed is everything I need in a fun automobile. My concern is the VW quality, will the car be as good as it is now two years from now? I have a joy in motoring now that I haven't enjoyed in many years.

[danham]

The stats and surveys are useful for getting a very general picture. When you zoom in to examine your own vehicle, those numbers mean a lot less.

The "worst" car in terms of reliability my wife and I ever owned was her 1993 Eurovan. We put a ton of money into brakes, exhaust, AC components and electrical gremlins. So it would look HORRIBLE in a JD Power survey. But it was also a fun car that took us across country several times and never stranded us by the side of the road (though it did fry us pretty bad one time when the AC failed on a long, hot road trip).

My point is that with some routine preventive maintenance and advance awareness of weaknesses to be monitored, you stand a decent chance of getting great service out of your JSW.

-dan

[3pedal]

The one area that most owners I've spoken to regard as really awful is dealer service. Incompetence and arrogance are the usual adjectives used to describe their experiences. I'm ready to travel an extra 25 miles to a dealer whose reputation is considered a bit better.

[fgbrault]

Originally Posted by lynnhoek

J D Powers only rates VW Jetta's @ 2-1/2 stars, slightly above all the rest.

After my first VW Jetta purchase, 2010 Jetta TDI, I certainly hope the brand is better than that.

What are everyone's elses experiances and expectations?

I think the J.D. Powers reliability ratings are next to useless. I understand they include such subjective things as "driving experience", "wind noise" etc in their ratings; so they do not, in my opinion, give a good indication of mechanical reliability. I believe they changed the questions on their reliability surveys because (as cars are so much more reliable now) it was difficult to differentiate them in terms of mechanical reliability, especially in their 90 day survey.