2005 Volkswagen New Beetle User Reviews

Pros

nice look, good straight line performance, solid feel

Cons

cheap material, everything breaks, VW provides lousy service

This car looks very nice and I feel more confident taking corners and driving at higher speeds, than in most american and asian cars.
The bad news is:
there is not much space in the back, passengers will always hit their head on the rear window, so its practically a two seater. Things constantly break. The armrest broke three times, the transmission was replaced, both windows broke, there was a waterleak, the mirror broke, ... I could go on and on, there are 23 pages of service history. Most issues were fixed under warranty. Two days after the warranty ran out the armrest broke again: $260. Considering all this plus the dealerships arrogant attitude, I will get rid of this car, and not buy any VW cars again any time soon. I know a few people who haven't had any problems with their VW, so YMMV....read morehide

Pros

fun to drive,pretty good in the snow,I'm 6' 7" and i fit in this car,never left me stranded

Cons

parts break all the time, fuel economy goes into the toilet when you drive with the a/c on,

Stay away from all VW dealers, they just want to rip you off. Cd player stopped working, Gas lid froze shut, had to break it to put gas into it.Had to get fuel lines replaced 4 months after buying it, dealer said: not covered under warrenty $700 to fix. Door handle broke, oxygen sensors went 50000 miles $500 in parts alone. replace headlight bulbs big pain.Alarm works when it wants to. Automatic locks work 50 % of the time. A five speed is the only way to go with a 4 cylinder engine, don't buy the auto. your looking for trouble. Parts are expensive,go with aftermarket. my local Firestone fixes the car for 1/4 the price.If you have hubcaps they are built so they fall off all the time, 45.00 a piece.You have to glue them on. If you buy this car hope you have a friend in the car repair or auto parts businesses...read morehide

Pros

Good Ride, Decent gas mileage. I have owned my 2000 Beetle for 6yrs now having 145,000 miles on it.

Cons

Could have more horsepower.

In the 6yrs I have had this car all I have had to do was nomal service on wear and tear items. I have had an issue with the ignition switch that needed to be replaced. Overall I am very happy with it. I definetly got my moneys worth out of this car.

Pros

Fun to drive and lots of power

Cons

If your not a mechanic stay away from it.

My Turbo Diesel is a great little car as most of you know that own one.
I have been reading a lot of reports from ya'll and find it very funny that the Local dealers are taking such advantage of you.

$107.oo for a headlight replacement is really taking advantage of you. It litterly takes about 10 minutes to change a headlight bulb. All you need a screwdriver and a finger to change it. The turbo diesel is the hardest and it still takes about 10 minutes. Get a manuel, read it and do not be bent over by the dealer.. Whom ever it was that was taken advantage of I would go back to the dealer and ask why when it is so simple and quick to change.

I don't know why a local oil change shop will not change the oil. It is not different than any oil change, just make sure they use an oil with the proper CF rating, you can use synthic or standard oil but it must be for a diesel. Mobil 1 now have a CF rating. Again if you are able get the manuel and use it. Working on any car is half the fun of having it.

In closing don't throw all the beetle out with the bath water just because a few have problems and don't be afraid if contacting the
Regional Rep for VW and get in his or her case when you have a problem with a dealer. Ask for service reports and recalls from the dealer, if they would give them to you speak with the Regional Rep,
hold their feet to the fire and enjoy a great little fun car....read morehide

Pros

realy bad fuel economy

Cons

exspensive repair bill on sensors

pls....pls...pls do not buy a vw beattle i have had one since 1999 its been the worst car i have ever bought its now only worth £3000 pounds and is costing me a fortune on lambada probs every year its failing its mot each year on emmissions
with readings on all 3 tests being 7.3.2b talk about ozone friendly these cars have been cheaply made.. mine has had a new power steering fitted new gear box new aircone 2004
i am now being told that the disks are worn ...the car has only done 45000 miles from new been serviced by vw all its life
but still can not get a legel mot for it becouse of emmisions
to top it all off vw head office have said in there words its now your problem not ours ......
will never buy again never
service is sloppy
lack of customer care vw do not make a peaples car they make a garranteed money spinner for themselves...read morehide

Pros

I do save on gas compared to the Expedition I used to drive, but not nearly as much as I expected to

Cons

Every 3 thousand miles requires some sort of REPAIR instead of just the typical oil change

I was so excited to get my convertable beetle, but within 12 thousand miles my excitedment had severly faded. I've had to have the convertable top repaired due to motor failure, automatic windo repair due to motor failure, seatbelt timing light/sensor reset 3 times (sooo annoying), interior repairs including cup holder twice, seat release wouldn't work, ac/dc cover broke, and now some sort of brake issue I'm having looked at. What next??????????? I'm sick of dealing with repairs. Don't think I'll be hanging on to this car long!...read morehide

Pros

Classic look,,,,great excelleration

Cons

Could have more back seat room

I bought a 2001 GLS Turbo. It has 118,00 miles and had a few misc. problems that the dealer took care of well. After 4 years of HARD DRIVING, I thought I'd buy a new one. Yesterday I drove home my 2005 Turbo. Hopefully it will service me as well as the last one!
BTW,,,,,Dealer maintanance is expensive for ALL cars. Not just the
New Beetle. Stop whining everybody~...read morehide

Pros

Gas Saver, Good ride and Handling

Cons

expensive maintenance, falling apart after 4 years

My car is actually a 2001, so far it has been realiable, but it is stupidly expensive to maintain and repair. And now after 4 years the headliner is sagging. And when drying it after washing it the other day a gasket at the base of the antenna where it meets the roof completly broke appart, it just dissentegrated. So it turns out VW does not sell the gasket by itself you have to buy the whole antenna assembly (US$70.00) for a gasket that probably cost them a dollar, if that. That it just the part then you have to pay 2 hrs labor (US$120.00) to have it replaced because they have to drop the headliner to get to it. Like everybody else I had to pay over a US$100.00 to have a US$6.00 headlight bulb replaced. The air cleaner took like two hours to figure out. This car comes with a cabin dust/pollen filter that will cost you about US$70.00 to replace, and the guys at the local lube shop run every time I come around. It looks like VW is no longer the people's car it is now the rich people's car because it will cost you a bundle to replace everything that falls appart and maintain....read morehide

my friend maybe want to buy a beetle . but in china, the price is too higher. the car total cost is almsot 40 thousand us dollor. i think it is not worth the price.

Pros

Characteristics - fun to drive and just love it to death.

Cons

Headlights and some maintenance costs in beginning

I bought my first New vw beetle in 2001 2.0 GLS (5 speed) mainly to drive it back and forth to school over an hour away because of the good gas mileage. When I first bought my car I had the check engine light come on a few months later which the dealership explained to me that for some reason my beetle had received the incorrect instrument cluster. Weird that it would have received the wrong part but I went with it and got it fixed under warranty. I kept up with the scheduled maintenance of 40K and so forth. I have tried my best to get the oil changed every 3K miles. I know the maintenance book states different but I was raised up to know that when your car hits 3K miles from your last oil change to change the oil. My bettle has had a few various sensors go bad as far as air conditioner and seat belt sensor. These are not fun to pay for or fun to pay the labor to replace them but it has kept my bettle running to my satisfaction. My beetle now has over 92K miles on it, on it's third set of tires and I have to say it has been well worth my money. I had the timing belt changed at 90K and I have no reason to believe it couldn't take 90K more. I recently paid the car off and you couldn't pay me to get rid of it. I love the way it looks and I do my best to keep everything maintained. It has been an excellent car. I would definitely recommend it to someone else. OH before I forget I did see where some people had listed here about how much it costs to change a headlight. I searched on the internet for directions on how to do this - I refused to drive to the dealership to get a BULB changed! I am so used to changing them that I can probably have mine out changed and back in within 15 - 20 minutes with just around $6 or so for the bulb. It is relatively simple to do and if you take precautions like greasing the headlight assembly after the first bulb change it is easy to remove....read morehide