I have been driving a 1986 VW GTI for the past 10 years, and since she's starting to show her 20 years of age, I may soon be looking for a replacement. My VW driving and owning experiences have been good, although certainly not flawless. Here in Canada, VW are offering the 2007 City Golf for a very reasonable price. It's basically a 4-door A4 Golf, 2.0L engine, disk brakes on all 4 corners. With options like air conditioning and cruise control, it prices in around $20K CDN. Pretty good warranty. I like the hatchback versatility, and like I said, I have enjoyed driving my GTI.
However, as many of you will know, VW are not necessarily leaders in reliability, at least according to the summaries in Consumer Reports and other sources. Toyotas seem to rank much better in the reliabilty area. (Yes, I know those are statistics, and it is possible to get a trouble-free VW or a lemon Toyota.) Looking at Toyota's lineup, the Matrix is the closest match to the City Golf, in terms of size and configuration. With similar options, the Matrix price is comparable, perhaps a bit higher. From doing some on-line comparisons, here are some pros that I've found for each:
VW City Golf - ========== PROS: better warranty; disk brakes front and rear; anti-lock brakes; torque peak at low rpm; telescopic steering wheel; wipers are variable and speed sensitive; nicer styling (personal opinion);
TOYOTA MATRIX ============== PROS: better fuel economy; higher HP; cargo area has flat floor; better reliability history; 16V engine; more usable cargo space;
Opinions, please!