Re: New VW slogan: "Are you ready to put up with it?" -Reply

[Vojin Janjic <vjanjic@mail.state.tn.us>]

> BTW, if it's only "Anecdotal evidence" as you call it, how come I
> never hear "Anecdotal evidence" about VW (except for the old
> VW bug) being very reliable and cheap to repair?

>This is easy.  What are we supposed to do, send a message
>once a week that says "Didn't break down again this week." ? 
>No, people complain when something goes wrong but
>express themselves far less often otherwise.  

I hear "Anecdotal evidence" about Hondas and Toyotas going
on and on and on with no problems ALL THE TIME!!!!

But, I see your point and it is a good one.  Something like...
people claiming to be psychic, based on one lucky prediction,
while ignoring the remaining 780 failures.  :-)

On the other hand, VW owners are not more prone to
complaints than any other car owners.  Therefore, any other
forum or newsgroup should have a steady praise/bitching ratio,
proportional to a vehicle reliability.  Check out, for example,
Miata's mailing list.  Higher praise to bithing ratio than GLX, for
sure.  Any conclusions?

I am not saying, by any means, that GLX is a diseaster when it
comes to reliability.  VW is unquestionably getting better since,
for example, the Rabbit Diesel times...   My point is that GLX is
still lagging when compared to Acura, Honda, Toyota, Mazda
and Saturn (not to even mention luxury models like Lexus and 
Infinity - they are a different class).  What do you think, all of our
experience and common knowledge is a big conspiracy against
VW by Japanese manufacturers?  Get outa here!

>This shows that you and some of your friends have had bad
>luck. 

Well, then, let that be my 2c worth:
1995 Jetta GLX, replaced by VW of A through BBB arbitration to
avoid use of lemon law (at 18,000 miles)
1996 Jetta GLX, $2,100 total repair costs to date, with additional
A/C and cooling systems problems - still not even diagnosed (at
45,000 miles)

All I desire here is a GLX with as much personality and fun
factor as it currently is, with a rock-steady reliability of Toyota,
which today's marketplace dictates.  That's all.  

Maybe I am just unlucky so far, which is really too bad,
considering I like GLX so much.

Vojin