2018 GTI - 242HP!

silverrascal said:

Here's my MkV GTI that I've had since 2010 and still love the look of it. But it's nearly 120K miles and repairs are expensive for this baby. Seems like every repair runs $300-600. And repairs are getting more often despite religiously changing the oil every 3,000 miles.

Click to expand...

Curious, what went wrong during your ownership, and at what miles did you buy it? Trying to have an open mind as to whether any of your woes may be tied to the previous owner (or not).

takemorepills said:

What loss are you talking about?

Click to expand...

80% of a vehicle's depreciation happens within the first 3-5 years. Keeping a mechanically reliable vehicle running for 10+ years can easily save tens of thousands (depending on fuel cost, mileage, new car purchase frequency, average maintenance costs, and the model's overall depreciation rate). This doesn't consider taxes and insurance either.

There's nothing wrong with buying/leasing a new car every few years. The point I'm trying to make is that the enjoyment/value equation means different things to different people.

Got ya.

Design said:

Curious, what went wrong during your ownership, and at what miles did you buy it? Trying to have an open mind as to whether any of your woes may be tied to the previous owner (or not).

Click to expand...

Nothing really went "wrong" per se. Just usual wear and tear stuff. I bought it used but only had 25K at the time. Followed the "change the cam follower every 15-20K miles" protocol. Oil changes every 5,000. No real major or frequent issues until after 100,000 miles. Then parts started to wear or fail more frequently. My last fix was for a leaking boost pressure valve unit. I don't drive it as frequently since my Civic is now my daily ride. But I still take it out on weekends and the GTI is still a blast to drive but I wouldn't place it anywhere near the reliability of any Honda I've owned including my current Civic EX-T (fingers crossed!).

silverrascal said:

I wouldn't place it anywhere near the reliability of any Honda I've owned including my current Civic EX-T (fingers crossed!).

Click to expand...

So you just got your Civic and you're already claiming it to be more reliable than your old car?

takemorepills said:

So you just got your Civic and you're already claiming it to be more reliable than your old car?

Click to expand...

I'm claiming that my Honda's I've owned have been more reliable than my GTI. You must've overlooked my statement I wrote in parenthesis "(fingers crossed)" regarding my current, new Civic.

silverrascal said:

Nothing really went "wrong" per se. Just usual wear and tear stuff. I bought it used but only had 25K at the time. Followed the "change the cam follower every 15-20K miles" protocol. Oil changes every 5,000. No real major or frequent issues until after 100,000 miles. Then parts started to wear or fail more frequently. My last fix was for a leaking boost pressure valve unit. I don't drive it as frequently since my Civic is now my daily ride. But I still take it out on weekends and the GTI is still a blast to drive but I wouldn't place it anywhere near the reliability of any Honda I've owned including my current Civic EX-T (fingers crossed!).

Click to expand...

This is the stuff I like hearing. I like to know just how involved repairs are when buying a car.

I looked into what's involved with replacing the cam follower and boost pressure valve on the GTI...both look like fairly straight forward jobs.

I've been trying to look into the most common GTI problems. So far the big thing that seems like a PITA is the valve cleanings @ 40k which is something I wouldn't want to tackle. Also replacing the water pump looks like a huge pain since it requires removing the IM (which is a pain). DSG service looks a bit involved but not too crazy...just sucks it's every 40k.

Mind commenting on other random problems/wear and tear that popped up after 100k?

thaseint said:

This is the stuff I like hearing. I like to know just how involved repairs are when buying a car.

I looked into what's involved with replacing the cam follower and boost pressure valve on the GTI...both look like fairly straight forward jobs.

I've been trying to look into the most common GTI problems. So far the big thing that seems like a PITA is the valve cleanings @ 40k which is something I wouldn't want to tackle. Also replacing the water pump looks like a huge pain since it requires removing the IM (which is a pain). DSG service looks a bit involved but not too crazy...just sucks it's every 40k.

Mind commenting on other random problems/wear and tear that popped up after 100k?

Click to expand...

His GTI is 2 generations old. The current mk7 use a different engine. And yes, with DI there is a hassle with the valves needing cleaning.

silverrascal said:

I'm claiming that my Honda's I've owned have been more reliable than my GTI. You must've overlooked my statement I wrote in parenthesis "(fingers crossed)" regarding my current, new Civic.

Click to expand...

Yes I know. But none of your Hondas have been turbocharged.

thaseint said:

This is the stuff I like hearing. I like to know just how involved repairs are when buying a car.

I looked into what's involved with replacing the cam follower and boost pressure valve on the GTI...both look like fairly straight forward jobs.

I've been trying to look into the most common GTI problems. So far the big thing that seems like a PITA is the valve cleanings @ 40k which is something I wouldn't want to tackle. Also replacing the water pump looks like a huge pain since it requires removing the IM (which is a pain). DSG service looks a bit involved but not too crazy...just sucks it's every 40k.

Mind commenting on other random problems/wear and tear that popped up after 100k?

Click to expand...

Bear in mind, I have the MkV with the FSI engine...

Just off the top of my head:

Mechatronic recall
Control arm replacements
Valve gasket replacement
Spark plug and coils
BPV valve
Cam follower
Timing belt and water pump
PCV valve
80k mile maintenance which included valve cleaning, DSG maintenance ($$$$!)
CV boot repair
Wheel bearing replacement

So, if you can do most the repairs yourself then that saves you a ton of money.

After all that my GTI still consumes oil - always keep a quart of synthetic in the back! Luckily my cam follower hasn't disentegrated and my cam lobe and camshaft are nominal according to my mechanic.

If you get a MkVI or MkVII you shouldn't have some of these issues pop up.

takemorepills said:

Yes I know. But none of your Hondas have been turbocharged.

Click to expand...

Thus my fingers are crossed. Saying a prayer. Lighting a candle. Rubbing Buddah's belly. Etc. etc.

if it makes you feel any better, my 07 gti with 95000 miles on it now, (i am the 1st and only owner) has never had a valve cleaning, and it runs fine.

This is another in the discussion for my next vehicle. There is only three the civic hatch, GTI and the Chevy Cruze hatch diesel RS

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a23973/volkswagon-cutting-costs/?src=socialflowFB

Enjoy your VW"s.

Civics4Ever said:

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a23973/volkswagon-cutting-costs/?src=socialflowFB

Enjoy your VW"s.

Click to expand...

What is the point of your post?