Depends on which model they own, for dry clutch VW, I can't agree more.

For wet clutch VW, 8 out of 10 owners love their cars more than their wife.

No fuss.. read my post or not?

"unless of course, u have no issue to spend that much just for maintenance"

want to buy dry clutch vw jetta ? yes you can. but make sure you have prepared for these three
1. extra money for early clutch replacement, and other nonsense suddenly kaput equipment that u never expect
2. pricey maintenance
3. a lot of annual leave to visit worksHop

if you can accept those three, jetta is your car. its powerful, easy to mod, fun to drive, but very delicate . u are expectedly use it for 5 years , after that u better sell it.

since you are family man, better stick to japan, korea and even proton is better .

This post has been edited by sp3d2: Oct 5 2017, 08:18 AM

Yes. If you want to own a conti car, you need to be prepared to afford the ownership (maintenance & running cost). They are fun to drive.

Yeah, i did read your previous post. Japanese cars with engine displacement of 2000 cc & larger, the ownership cost is indeed quite high.

It would not be a fuss if you can afford it. With affordability, you can own a car that you want, not a car that you have to compromise based on your budget

About RM2000 - RM3000 a year to maintain an Accord, Camry or Teena excluding tyres. If you consider this high don't touch a luxury Conti car or you will be shocked. Multiply the cost by 4x -5x and you will get the idea.

This post has been edited by Ginny88: Oct 5 2017, 09:40 AM

For japanese 2.4 engine most service if follow book, most around 500-700. never exceed 1k so far (1000km service till 80k km now)

For typical maintainence and service, this is the high side of the figure.

For mine, typical service only cost around 5xx using one of the top grade fs oil mobil 1 gold 0w-40. Twice a year however mine is 3.5L so 6.5L engine oil is required for a single OCI. Typical 2.0L - 2.5L na engine only require 4-5L eo so that alone will cost u lesser on typical service. Everything else is subjective to the condition of the car. Typical maintenance on tear and wear item will cost quite a bit i.e. brake pads, tires and etc however those are once every 3-5 years kind of replacement for typical driver out there.

So i'll say 1-2k budget yearly for service on typical 2.0-2.5L na japanese car is a more realistic figure.

This post has been edited by kirakun: Oct 5 2017, 10:37 AM

I concur. For premium cars, it is recommended to allocate about rm15k a year for maintenance

15k a year?

WTF

15k a year can get a Civic already.

This post has been edited by jacobngen87: Oct 5 2017, 10:52 AM

Just got back from jetta test drive. Now got 5 years free service. Very tempting. But ride is very stiff. Plus cushion is hard. Not comfy for me

I have Elantra Sport, it is stiff too. I've been in Focus, Fiesta, A250, 525, C200, E300, Mazda3, all of them tuned to have firmer ride at various extend.

Depends on your travel type. You will enjoy and apprciate the extra stability on highway. It go through the big bump without the extra swing like in Vios or Altis. But on small bum, or rattle road you get very obvious small vibration. Eg: highway northbound at Ipoh downhill, those red bumps.

This post has been edited by constant_weight: Oct 8 2017, 08:29 PM

Yesterday just test drove an elantra. And it is not as stiff. Maybe the cusion seat is not as hard as the jetta. But i have to say both have good torque

This year my maintenance cost for the Proton is even higher than the VW and Peugeot combined

This post has been edited by Boy96: Oct 8 2017, 09:19 PM

how much did you paid for your proton?

TS, I drive a 2012 Jetta, twincharged. Done 125k km so far, as a daily driver, family car. Done traffic jams, high speed runs, cross border to Singapore, Thailand etc.
Consider myself lucky that I have never had to call for a tow truck.
Major issues so far changed under warranty:
1. 2x clutch change. After having it changed to the latest revision, so far so good. This would cost about RM18xx outside.
2. Water pump change recently. This would cost RM19xx at SC, RM1200 outside, RM600 for OEM waterpump (non-VW branded).
3. Radiator. This would cost about RM550 outside, OEM part.

Spare parts are generally higher than Honda/Toyota, cheaper than premium German makes.
Servicing, like for all other brands, are cheaper outside if you go to the many VW specialist workshops. The 5 years free servicing would be very much helpful to your wallet.

Personally, if you ask me, the biggest issue would be having ready-stock of *affordable* body parts in case you get into an accident and you don't want to claim insurance (if it's your fault). This is where Japanese/Korean/Malaysian brands tend to be better.

Yes, the suspension isn't too comfy, and the seats are firm. But I love driving it, my family and in-laws don't complain. We travel safely where we want to go, it's stable. NVH is quite good, with Michelin PS4 on the original 205/55 R16 size.

The boot is huge, the seats fold down (Civic doesn't fold down). I also have a spare car when I need to go in for warranty replacements, or I use Grab/Uber then. Considering the VW SC is walking distance to my office, it's ok la.

I guess the Malay peribahasa is suitable here, ukur baju di badan sendiri. Everyone has different usage/lifestyle, see if it works best for you compared to all other choices available.

Btw, my understanding is that the new 1.4+DSG is much more reliable, smoother and fuel efficient. My personal opinion on the current available choices in the market:

1. Civic turbo - top choice, but apparently not 100% bulletproof in terms of reliability. The variable engine oil change thingy makes me think twice.
2. Altis - very smooth, very comfy. Only if that is your cup of tea.
3. Jetta - if you don't mind the potential poor RV and everything else I mentioned above, worth considering.
4. Elantra - never test drove it, just checked it out in showroom. doesn't really interest me.
5. Cerato - as per Elantra, but affordable though
6. Peugeot 408 - personally not keen
7. Renault Fluence - also not too keen, but heard some good things about it

do your homework well and hope you make the best decision for yourself

This post has been edited by ADJ: Oct 8 2017, 10:24 PM

OMG, what did u do to your proton?

Many thanks for your detailed first hand experience. Much appreciated.

For me, wear and tear is ok, as long as I dont get stranded middle in the night or in the nowhere without any warning; or forced to take EL to go SC fix car.

Well, with the newer Jetta, again my understanding is that the potential risk is lower but not zero.

For my twincharged unit, a component in the water pump failed. This was connected to the supercharger, so my supercharger also refused to work (supercharger itself was fine, just that it would not engage). So it drove like a very underpowered 1.4 NA. After that the turbocharger would not kick in either. Car could still drive though.

I had just left my office, so went straight to VW SC, had it diagnosed and left it there for 4 working days, claimed the water pump under warranty, changed a belt and coolant. Now this was unscheduled. I was due to go for a long distance drive the weekend after and if this happened then, I would be in deep trouble. Thing is, there was no prior warning for this, no tell tale signs, no symptoms. It just failed.

Remember I mentioned my radiator was changed? That was about in year 2 or 3 of ownership. I’ve never experienced a radiator leak during this kind of ownership period with other cars and there are others who had the same thing too.

Tbh I did test drive the Civic turbo and even the new CX-5 diesel, both felt it lacked certain “something”, especially after I went back to my car - that solid German feel.

Some people cannot tahan and just get rid of their ride. Initially, I wanted to the same, but due to the RV, I’m still driving it. I’ve spent quite abit at this 5th year to fix up some wear and tear parts, it still drives magnificently. I love my ride, and I’m willing to take the risks that come together as part of the ownership experience. Now it’s for you to decide whether it applies to you too.

Someone said, to have a VW you need at least enough cash to buy BMW 3 series..
As for family car, better takes honda or Toyota as more reliable and the maintenance is a lot cheaper too (VW also very particular about service timing iinm)..