Volkswagon Rabbit (Diesel, 1981

[Zorak]

I have a 93 Ford Fiesta that has a real nice Mazda drive train.

That would be a Ford FESTIVA (actually made by KIA), not a Ford Fiesta, that was made by Ford in Germany. I have owned both, but the Fiesta is the one I would like to find again; they are hard to locate now though.

[kodiak]

That would be a Ford FESTIVA (actually made by KIA), not a Ford Fiesta, that was made by Ford in Germany. I have owned both, but the Fiesta is the one I would like to find again; they are hard to locate now though.

Your right, It was made by KIA. The model was designed by Mazda they called it the 313. I was in Vietnam about half a year ago and there where KIAs every ware.

[vx spouse]

This post strikes a cord in me since I was a die hard VW fan up until a few months ago (more on that later). I owned a 84 Jetta with the then rare TURBO-diesel engine & 5-speed stick in college. At the time was dating a girl approx. 125 miles one way and would visit her weekly. The ride was nothing horrific compared to small, light weight vehicles of the period. Always got 50mpg or better living in Philadelphia, got 61 mpg driving the NY Thruway going to Niagara Falls. Pretty peppy with the turbo and extra gear keeping the ratios closer in a 1800lb 4 door sedan. Previous post was correct as I went thru 3 Blaupunt head units in 4 years with the car due to the engine vibrations: don't even consider installing a CD player! Vibrations also cause the front engine mount to fail regularly. Other than that, the basics are truely bulletproof in these vehicles as the listings for 300k+ mile are common place. Basically the peripherals turn to dust as the driveline runs on. As you can see from the attached links, unlike the VX, their value appreciated even after 25 years & 100k miles due to demand for fuel efficent vehicles in general and their reputation for durability. Could probably save a few bucks on a Rabbit, Jetta, Dasher, or Quantum as the Caddies seem to command the highest premium, but much harder to carry that forementioned ladder in one of those.
As far as the modern VW TDIs: Stay away. Just traded in a 2006 Jetta TDI I bought after only 16 months. Quality control in VW hasn't improved in those last 25 years. Intermittant electrical glitches, poor water seals, and the car living for months at a time in the dealership lot awaiting a part is no longer acceptable even in American cars anymore. The engines still last forever, but you expect more from the surrounding parts in a $29k car.
Rant over.

[taylorRichie]

I'm a huge fan of VAG vehicles...

I had an Audi A4 (just sold a few weeks ago).

But one thing I've learned is they're very hit or miss.

My brother has an A4, has had the engine replaced, the turbo replaced, a ton of suspension etc. done.

I've had very little repairs and my turbo failed at 125K miles and I was overboosting. So I forgive them

Then My other brother had a passat and had nothing but problems, so VW actually purchased the vehicle from him to figure out what the issue was because they tried to fix it 3 times, at one of their main Build facilities (I guess) in Denver.

If you get a lemon they're very very bad, but if you get a good one you can easily go 200K+ miles.

The TDI is nothing short of amazing IMO it's a shame diesel did what it did because I thought it was going to be the wave of the future. They're getting better than Hybrid MPGs and the power output is killer.

My sister-in-law had a VW Bug TDI and when she first got it diesel was just barely over a Dollar per gallon.

VW I think continue to impress and innovate without jumping on the hybrid bandwagon.

E85 is a Joke

Hybrids are getting really good and I have no issues with the current gens (batteries are way better than when hybrids first came out)

But TDI is still killer a V10 volkswagen toureg TDI would be an awesome vehicle that I'd drive anyday.