1998 GLX..too many repairs

[Milind Gokhale <mig@EE.Princeton.EDU>]

I got my black 1998 glx early last year and have had too many problems with
it...the car has been in the shop for about 15 days in the last 11 months
with new problems cropping up with alarming regularity...here's a sample

1. Wheel alignment - 2 visits
2. Keyless entry problems- 2 reprogrammed the keys, then replaced a circuit
board
3. Fuel indicator failed -replaced instrument cluster
4. Fuel indicator failed again- replaced another instrument cluster and when
they noticed that didn't work...
5. they replaced the fuel tank
6. I noticed very low oil-below the minimum and had to put in about 2
quarts...this was about a month after the 5K service! they found a
crankshaft seal leak...and had to work on the engine to replace the seal
7. incidentally, while poking around, they also found Power steering
reservoir leak…replaced the reservoir 
8. and more recently, the rear brakes squeak
9. and the fuel indicator still malfunctions

i certainly hope this is not normal for vw!!! i love the way the car drives
but these problems are making me very nervous about what's to come after the
warranty exipres. although my dealer has been very good about making the
repairs, even they are getting frsutrated with the number of times my car is
at the shop. i called vw customer service recently and they have made an
appointment for me to meet a factory representative at the dealers next week. 

any advice/suggestions as to how i might handle the situation to my best
advantage? has anyone out there experienced a similar situation? 

thanks
milind gokhale
Milind Gokhale			Ph: (609) 258-4204 (off)
Research Associate, POEM	    	  258-6688 (MBE lab) 
J303 E-Quad				  279-0274 (home) 	
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ 08540