I bought a 2003 Jetta GLS!

Congrats, you should love the Jetta, its a great car. A very interesting mix of cars you tried tho... Cavaliers are the cheapest most god aweful cars on the planet, GM really needs to replace them.

The door ooze is I think a wax or a grease that runs down, it only seem to affect Jetta's tho... My Golf doesn't have it, but the Jetta's at the company I work for have it, but it takes a while for it to happen, and cleans off easy. The windows shouldn't be problematic, that has been fixed.

Cup Holders - ...honestly, they are fine. The plastic used is top quality, it won't break, it's designed to flex like that. They support the extra large Tim Hortons coffee's with ease... okay maybe a 7-11 super gulp isn't going in there.... but honestly, you shouldn't be driving with one anyways (some times you just need a coffee tho, I try not to drink it in the car, I just use the holder as transportation device)

Focus - seems alright, some cheapness, too many recalls tho, and less safety and amenities

Monte - ??? never been in one, no desire to be in one, seems to have a strong engine tho

Mitsu Eclipse - its cheap inside, the motor isn't all that great, according to the specs

Volvo - which one? the S40? if so, there is a reason why it didn't stand out, its a 1995 design, with a 2002 (I think...) redesign, its being replaced in 2004. Inside the quality is as good as the VW tho, with more power too, but it's more money, and the handling isn't as good.

Grand AM - looks pretty nice after its redesign, too cheaply made inside tho (GM trait... tho all their plants win quality awards)

Ford Mustang - Eww... thank god you didn't buy one. Especially the V6 version, my dad's old 93' Volvo (inline 6 engine) seems to have more punch then those things, they are so bargain basement cheap inside as well

..... Your Caprice was one of the last big RWD ships GM made, they are indestructible, keep it until it conks out, there is a reason they were commisioned for fleet service as taxi's.

No comment on Caravan's I don't like them, i'll leave it at that :-)

So who exactly gets to drive the Jetta? You or this daughter of yours, and if it's her, lucky girl... is it a 5 speed or an automatic?

Spoiler - don't get it, they do nothing CD Changer... its trunk mounted I believe, I need one for my 1999 Golf TDI GLS (1.9L 90hp 155lb-ft direct injection diesel, if you are unfamiliar with the motor)

The wax "oozing" out of the doors is rustproofing. Just think of it flowing into all the little cracks and crannies sealing out the water and rust. My

99.5 still does it a little but it's got a 12 year rust through warranty! It's at 107k miles and it's still tight as a drum and fun to drive. It's a tdi and has averaged 48mpg overall.

My daughter shops color/style first, brand second. My wife shops safety, cost, style. I shop performance, safety, ease of fixing and reliability as I fix my own cars except warranty stuff.

Believe it or not I had that in my 1984 GTI and the dealer was stumped at the time. No big deal to me as I finally figured out what it was when I had the interior panel off the doors.

Sounds good. The first day I had my Caravan I put a large styrofoam coffee cup in the front cup holder and gently squeezed the ratchet thing that is supposed to adjust to the size of the cup. Guess I pushed too hard because I punctured the cup and had coffee spraying me while driving at 55mph. Not a lot of fun :)

The upper models are worlds apart from the basic ones but they are overpriced for what they offer. Having had a T-Bird I hate Ford's. I'm partial to GM's and German cars and in the case of GM's only the older variety like my coyote ugly Caprice.

Very nice, but feels weird on the road. I drove the SS model and it was much better, but again too much money for what you get and a little dated looking inside.

A friend of mine has 3 of them and lives under the cars, but he loves them anyway. I drove the basic model and it was pleasant enough but I wouldn't want to have to fix one as access seems poor to common items.

I actually loved the Volvo S40 but it was too expensive reasonably equipped and discounts were no place to be found. Extremely solid build quality on that car though and it felt it!

The Grand Am GT SCT version with all the toys was a super fun car to drive. Even though it only had 175hp with the Ram Air 3.4l engine the car felt fast, sounded fast and was just a lot of fun to drive. Visibility was very good for a car of that type (I drove the 2 door) and while the inside seemed a little confused and cheap looking, it wasn't really "that" bad. Being a 43yo over the hill fart, I like the large button radios and stuff like that. Jap cars drive me nuts with their little buttons all over the dash and so forth. The Grand Am is really a lemon in wolf's clothing though because the 3.4l and 3.1l as well have serious manifold gasket problems allowing coolant to spill into the oil and so forth. The used car lots where I live are chock full of these cars.

Interesting that you should say that because I had the exact same opinion. The car looked great from the outside, only had 12k miles on it, nice 16 inch alloy wheels, spoiler etc. When I first drove it I thought the car was defective somehow because there was no way that engine could be churning out 190HP and feel so sluggish. The Grand Am has 175 and feels much faster. The torque specs seem similar for both cars as well. I asked the dealer if I could test drive a different one (Mustang) just to compare and it was the same thing all over again...... slow! I also didn't like the way the tranny hesitates and then goes when you downshift it by stepping on the gas a bit while doing say 40mph. The inside was real cheap as well but the front seats were comfortable.

One thing about the Jetta that surprised me was for a 115hp engine, it feels and goes a lot faster than I would have thought. Also the room in this car is incredible for such a small package. I am 6'

1" and my wife is 5'7" and we were able to sit in the back seat along with my other 13yo daughter and did not feel cramped at all. Not bad for such a small car.

Yep! It's built like a battle ship and although very ugly it looks just like a cop car so people tend to leave me alone. I'm doing the timing chain this week and may go for a rebuilt set of cylinder heads. I intend to run it until it dies.

A good family hauler but not a solid feel at all. I have a 2000 and brakes are grossly underpowered. The engine 3.3l is a dream and has tons of power but the tranny is a bit dodgy and has had problems in previous models. Still the price was good and it is pleasant enough for what it does.

Automatic and everyone gets to drive it but it's really her car. The solid feel, airbags and safety features sold me on the car.

She likes the look :) I say forget it.

Looks like my car comes with the hookup already there in the trunk.

Thanks so much for the great reply!

psycho

**Yesterday, I had a pastrami reuben. It wasn't even remotely psychotic :) Congrats on your purchase! I have a new Galactic Blue Jetta GLS 2.0l myself. I got it in February. Today, I had it on some little curvy backroads in CT and it was fun fun fun! Back home in MI, it's great on the psycho highways with more than enough passing power. **The Jetta requires changes every 5000 miles, are you going to do them at 3k anyway? A Caprice with 307k? Time to get Daddy a new car. **I've had 3 Grand Ams. An 85, 89 and a 93. The 89 was the biggest piece of crap ever. The Quad4 engine was a mess (blown gaskets) and the car's computer went nuts. I loved the 85, but when they replaced the very sporty tires (worn out) and the steering rack (crapped out), it handled like a Buick. Yuck. I lost the love. The 93 had a fantastic 6cylinder engine and nice interior ergonomics but, sadly, the fit and finish of that model was awful. Eventually I went for something else. **I've seen gleaming fields of them while driving down Michigan Ave on my way to Dearborn. There's a huge Ford factory there. :) **Recall City! The Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press have field days when there are major recalls on Big 3 models. I think the Focus has had 9 or 10 so far. **Same things, time for a new model. These are so dated.

**Mmmmm nice. But more a daddy car than a daughter car.

**My friend had an older model and I hated it. The interior design sucked and it was just a very uncomfortable car. It's probably better, well, at least their commercials are... **I like Volvos but my bank account says: Hahaha! I wouldn't mind having one. **Interesting that you should say this. My sister has a BMW 325i and she loves the interior of the Jetta. She thinks it's just like the interior of her car but I think the Jetta feels a touch roomier. Just yesterday, she was lamenting not getting a Passat wagon. Then again, she races the BMW at Limerock and it's a wagon no less! **The cupholder is a major beef with me. I drive to CT and back to MI several times a year. I'd like a nice cupholder that doesn't risk drippage on important things. I have a multifunction steering wheel so at least I can use the stereo. **That was supposed to be fixed in the 2003s...hopefully :) **What do you mean by light?

**Did you get the full warranty and everything?

**I have the Monsoon system but no CD changer. The radio sounds cruddy but the CD player is quite nice. **Good luck!

kaboomie

Reuben's rule :)

The blue is my favorite color, but we got a white one which is second favorite for me. I used to love driving my 84 GTI through the back roads of upstate NY. It was like driving a slot car.

I change oil every 3 to 4k like clockwork and I always use a quality filter like Wix. That's the secret for getting long life out of engines.

Good tires and suspensions make all the difference in the world even on old fart cars like the Monte Carlo. The SS version is more or less like the standard except for tires, suspension and some body work but the two cars drive completely different. I didn't like either one though.

They aren't as popular here in NY as they used to be at least from just looking around. I see a decent amount of GT versions but not many standard ones.

So I have discovered. It doesn't surprise me though as it's a new model and Ford has never been known for building a quality product. Even the Crown Vic has it's problems and they have been building that car for years. I was kind of hoping the Focus would be an exception for Ford but hopefully it will get better. I sure see a heck of a lot of Focus's driving around where I live.

True. They have steep discounts off sticker price though, but unless you go for the top model with the sport package, the car is nothing but a box on wheels.

I was looking more toward the new Impala SS !!!

I didn't like the engine compartment because things looked to haphazard.

Me too :( They are very nice cars.

BMW is a quality car but very expensive to purchase and repair.

I thought it was interesting that the dealer made a point of showing us the cup holders :) They have to be better than the ones in my Caprice that aren't tall enough to prevent just about anything from spilling over.

I'll let you know !

It seems too easy to press down compared to other cars I have driven. I feel like I have to hold my foot off it in order to drive. My wife and daughter noticed the same thing.

I had another car once that had the same problem and all I did was add another return spring to the throttle making it a little harder to press. I'm not sure how the Jetta is setup but I'll figure out something. Maybe my shoes are too heavy :)

Yes. It qualifies as a new car and I got both the standard warranty and the powertrain warranty along with the roadside assistance etc.

The Grand Am had the monsoon system and in that car it sounded great. The dealer said the CD player sounds better than the radio but I didn't think the radio was that bad. We have a lot of powerful stations here so maybe that is why.

Thank you. Same to you.!

Psycho

Read my message again. Volvo. Not Ford/Mistu Ford couldn't build a flashlight and get it right. Psycho

I didn't really find it twitchy at all, in fact it seemed very smooth but the pedal itself is too easy to press in my opinion. IOW I'm talking about the mechanics, not how the engine reacts The 2/3's thing and where the engine max's out is something different. I think the 2/3's down full power thing is something of a marketing tool used to make the car seem to have more power than it does. In my case a higher rate throttle return spring should fix it, unless VW has some weird method of throttle return. psycho

I did read your message right. The S40 was co-designed with Mitsubishi and built on the Mitsubishi Carisma platform, is built in a Mitsubishi plant in the Netherlands, and all of that under supervision of Ford, which owns Volvo cars.

See, e.g.,

Of course, the new S40 will be on a Ford/Mazda platform, and will be buily in a new facility in Belgium, instead (now that Daimler-Chrysler owns Mitsubishi).

-D .

My apologies to you for not knowing that. I should have done my homework, but it was out of my price range anyway :) It sure doesn't look, drive or feel like any Ford/Misti I have ever driven that's for sure.

Is nothing sacred in this world anymore!

Psycho