2004 Volkswagen Golf Is it it worth it?

You may find this to be different in your country but here in the U.S. VW is one of the least popular cars along with BMW. The main problem is their business practices that cost owners money after the sale. Our most popular domestic brand, General Motors has suffered in recent years from the same reputation resulting in an increasing number of people saying, "never again". Their advertising leans very heavily on finding new first-time buyers because they know many people will not buy another one. It usually has nothing to do with the quality of the product. It's things like not releasing paint codes and service information, requiring you to buy new computer modules through the dealer instead of finding used ones and requiring them to be programmed to your car before they will work, and the outrageous cost of replacement parts when the dealer is the single source supplier.

When it comes to customer-friendly business practices, according to some high-level national independent trainers, Hyundai ranks first and Toyota is second. Chrysler is third, but their opinions are probably skewed by living in the U.S. And Chrysler is a U.S. Brand. Remember, we're not talking quality, reliability, and things like that. I'm referring strictly about how the company views you and your needs when you already own their product. We have a few diehard VW enthusiasts but among the general public, there's a reason we don't see many VWs on the road.

It's not common to hear someone ask if they should get rid of a car because of expected high-cost future repairs. We usually hear those questions after someone has put a lot of money into numerous uncommon repairs. You might consider getting some repair estimates for the same repairs you had done but for different car brands. That will help you judge the relative cost of your repairs you paid for. If you do decide to trade for something else, find out if the engine is of the "interference" design. If it is, and the timing belt breaks, the valves in the engine will be damaged and that turns a simple repair into a very expensive one. I would never own an interference engine. I haven't given up any power in my 1988 minivan daily driver, and if the belt ever breaks, I can just pop on a new one and be on my way in a couple of hours and the cost of about three haircuts.

What engine? The only engines to have a timing chain are VR engines. Some engines have a chain that connects the intake and exhaust camshafts.

Your mechanic made a mistake when he changed the chain / belt.

http://wiki.ross-tech.com/wiki/index.php/17748/P1340/004928

"Incorrect correlation" means that the piston to valve timing is incorrect.

Rather than fix the car correctly, he is hoping that you get rid of it ( because he does not know how to fix it).

People are scared of what they don't Know... hence the bad rap. Every car manufacturer has lemons, blame the assembly line workers.

Find someone who can fix your car and you will enjoy it.

I drive a 24 year old BMW ... it keeps going and going and going.

I fix VWs for a living... they keep going and going and going.

Thomas

Caradiodoc, I didn't read your post until now (I skip long replies). So anything that I said above, that you think was aimed at you, was not.

We both want to help.

I Googled the cam code and my reply went from there. I'm ticked off at the guy who can't set timing.

Just making sure that there are no hurt feelings.

Thomas

No hurt feelings. I didn't even view your reply in that light. Anybody can own a newer car. I have lots of respect for someone who can keep a 24-year-old anything on the road. My minivan will be dragging a huge tandem axle enclosed trailer to the nation's second largest old car show swap meet in two days. Anything newer with the computer-controlled transmission would explode before I got to the end of my driveway. This will be the eleventh year but luckily it's just a 100 mile round trip. My sad van is going to expire in a puddle of sweat one of these years.

AdeAdesina86, I forgot to mention, it doesn't make sense to trade a car, especially one you like, because it MIGHT need an expensive repair. I have two older cars I bought new and both had uncommonly low maintenance and repair costs but they were not representative of all the similar models. My opinions are skewed because I had much fewer repairs over the years than others who owned the same models. I also form my opinions from seeing other peoples' repair bills but those aren't necessarily representative of the entire brand either.

You're better off enjoying what you already have and like, then, if a major repair is needed later, compare that cost to how much you're spending on monthly car payments. When you DO trade, you generally make out better trading off the car when it does need a big repair. Dealers know every trade-in will need work and they're prepared for that when they make you an offer. If you were to spend $2,000.00 on a repair first, you might be lucky to get $500.00 more the next day for a trade-in.

As a parting note, I used to tell my students, "you are welcome to like any brand of car you want to, just don't tell me yours is better than mine unless you can tell me WHY you think it is better". Even then, we all value different things and we are willing to overlook different short-comings. You can't argue for or against an opinion, especially when they are formed from sound reasoning.