Why are VW so expensive?
Discussion
“Prestige” image.
They make very good cars, the non peformance models are devoid of any soul but the GTI can be special and rewarding to drive, VW’s more of an all rounder brand.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
They make very good cars, the non peformance models are devoid of any soul but the GTI can be special and rewarding to drive, VW’s more of an all rounder brand.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 18th October 19:19
Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 18th October 19:21
sleepera6 said:
“Prestige” image.
They make very good cars, which are devoid of any soul, more of an all rounder.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
Cheers bud. I used to own an i20 then ended up having to sell it due to work reasons. Just stupidly bought a Fiat Bravo as my 'welcome back' car. Cheap, cheerful but not for me!They make very good cars, which are devoid of any soul, more of an all rounder.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
Edited by sleepera6 on Wednesday 18th October 19:19
Seen an offer at a local Hyundai dealer with £2k off a new i20... would take it on finance but really tempting as it's within my monthly budget.
sleepera6 said:
“Prestige” image.
They make very good cars, the non peformance models are devoid of any soul but the GTI can be special and rewarding to drive, VW’s more of an all rounder brand.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
Some of these used to be true, but not so much any more. They make very good cars, the non peformance models are devoid of any soul but the GTI can be special and rewarding to drive, VW’s more of an all rounder brand.
Best drive? BMW’s your man.
Best value? Hyundai, Kia, Dacia etc.
Quirky? Citroen and Peugeot etc
Fun, an excellent drive? Honda.
Great engines? Ford.
Posh, sporty image, good used values? Audi.
All rounder? Volkswagen.
HTH. If it was me I would be going with Honda. They are on top of the game at the moment. The new FC Civic 1.5 is a great, great car, totally underrated
For example, I don't think that the current set of BMWs are good drivers' cars in the way that the older models were - the Jag XE and XF drive better than the 3 and 5 respectively for example. You definitely wouldn't have said that 10 years ago.
Hyundai also stopped being a budget brand quite some time ago too.
They're better quality and better engineered. But a lot of people can't see it so assume it's just a 'brand' thing.
A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Quality of the product from start to finish
I have a mk7 gti pp and adore it! It's well equipped goes well and if driven steady enough do bloody good on fuel (averaged 50mpg on a run the other day) and it's solidly built!
I wanted a gti to have a part of the gti legacy wasn't interested in the R or the gtd just a gti for me! Unless you've had one you would think it's just a brand thing,
Had mine 18 month and when the time comes I will probably buy another, possibly the mk8
I have a mk7 gti pp and adore it! It's well equipped goes well and if driven steady enough do bloody good on fuel (averaged 50mpg on a run the other day) and it's solidly built!
I wanted a gti to have a part of the gti legacy wasn't interested in the R or the gtd just a gti for me! Unless you've had one you would think it's just a brand thing,
Had mine 18 month and when the time comes I will probably buy another, possibly the mk8
Similarly, my E36 wipers went to intermittent when halted (below 4mph to be precise), my wife's Fabia did not, result is a scraping noise on a dry-ish screen. Auto-dim interior mirror on E36, manual version on Fabia (and if people say, well you only have to flick the mirror - that is not the point, if something is automated and works as well, why not?)
VW's are overpriced for what they are, they live on past glories of quality and reliability I couldn't see past them at one time now I wouldn't be seen in one.
The i20 you mentioned...to save a bit of money check out the pre-reg prices, potentially very good savings to be had if the dealers have stock they need to shift.
Check out Kia deals too...similar cars as they share many mechanical parts with the Hyundai.
The i20 you mentioned...to save a bit of money check out the pre-reg prices, potentially very good savings to be had if the dealers have stock they need to shift.
Check out Kia deals too...similar cars as they share many mechanical parts with the Hyundai.
Edited by Klippie on Wednesday 18th October 19:52
Bought Mrs MDMA a brand new 5 door Golf back in 2005. Was 12k back then. Equivalent is now 20k. Its had oil and filter every year, a new battery and a window switch under warranty. Has been the perfect car for her ( still has it to this day ). Do wonder if i bought her another if it would be as good as this one has?
Doubt i'd pay 20k for a base model with metallic paint and alloys though.
Doubt i'd pay 20k for a base model with metallic paint and alloys though.
Ari said:
They're better quality and better engineered. But a lot of people can't see it so assume it's just a 'brand' thing.
A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Hahahhahaaahahhhhhahahhhahahaaaahhah A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Ford headlamps come out for maintenance, but the VW doesn't. Ford timing chains don't fail but VW does. VW doesn't bother soldering the electric connections, but Ford do. VW touch screen is a disgrace bordering on dangerous, the Ford is simple and ergonomic. I can think of very little that VW do better than Ford, except for bling.
I was about to type that VW build a poorly engineered product - but that's not the case. VW build a very nice car if you want to keep it for 3 years on lease, but non German manufacturers build things to last and run reliably a good bit longer.
I deal with these piles of VAG dog turd every day, and give me almost anything else other than a German car to work on. (OK,we think Landrover are pretty bloody poor too).
Toyota / Honda is the way to go.
But why are VW expensive? - because they can be!
There is little inherently more expensive in any VW or any other car in the same segment with similar spec, the price is simply dictated by perceived value or "Brand Image" eg what the market can get away with. The cost price of a vehicle has little effect on its retail price!
As with most manufacturers prices vary by where they are sold to suit the international regional markets.
As with most manufacturers prices vary by where they are sold to suit the international regional markets.
bearman68 said:
Ari said:
They're better quality and better engineered. But a lot of people can't see it so assume it's just a 'brand' thing.
A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Hahahhahaaahahhhhhahahhhahahaaaahhah A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Ford headlamps come out for maintenance, but the VW doesn't. Ford timing chains don't fail but VW does. VW doesn't bother soldering the electric connections, but Ford do. VW touch screen is a disgrace bordering on dangerous, the Ford is simple and ergonomic. I can think of very little that VW do better than Ford, except for bling.
I was about to type that VW build a poorly engineered product - but that's not the case. VW build a very nice car if you want to keep it for 3 years on lease, but non German manufacturers build things to last and run reliably a good bit longer.
I deal with these piles of VAG dog turd every day, and give me almost anything else other than a German car to work on. (OK,we think Landrover are pretty bloody poor too).
Toyota / Honda is the way to go.
But why are VW expensive? - because they can be!
Of the top 10 most reliable car brands in the UK, none (not one) is German.
http://www.reliabilityindex.com/manufacturer
Yipper said:
bearman68 said:
Ari said:
They're better quality and better engineered. But a lot of people can't see it so assume it's just a 'brand' thing.
A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Hahahhahaaahahhhhhahahhhahahaaaahhah A lot of it is tiny stuff. I had a mid range 08 Golf and worked for Ford for a while so had access to a lot of similar (but newer) Focuses. You'd find disc brakes on the back of the Golf where the Focus had drums. You'd find the boot carpet edged where the Focus was just rough cut. Lift it out and the floor under it in the Golf was much better finished. Everything behind the scenes was better finished. Put the Golf into reverse and the vents switch to recirculate to avoid pulling fumes into the car as you go backwards. Door pockets in the Golf were lined to stop stuff sliding and rattling, the Focus pockets were just cheap plastic, open the glovebox on the Golf and it's solid and opens smoothly and there's a light inside, on the Focus it's just another bit of cheap plastic that flops open.
Many people would say 'so what'? And fair enough, if you're not bothered, buy the budget car - it drives on the same roads and keeps the rain out the same.
But the VW is the quality product, and if you like that sort of thing it's worth the extra (and if not, it isn't).
Ford headlamps come out for maintenance, but the VW doesn't. Ford timing chains don't fail but VW does. VW doesn't bother soldering the electric connections, but Ford do. VW touch screen is a disgrace bordering on dangerous, the Ford is simple and ergonomic. I can think of very little that VW do better than Ford, except for bling.
I was about to type that VW build a poorly engineered product - but that's not the case. VW build a very nice car if you want to keep it for 3 years on lease, but non German manufacturers build things to last and run reliably a good bit longer.
I deal with these piles of VAG dog turd every day, and give me almost anything else other than a German car to work on. (OK,we think Landrover are pretty bloody poor too).
Toyota / Honda is the way to go.
But why are VW expensive? - because they can be!
Of the top 20 most reliable car brands in the UK, none (not one) is German.
http://www.reliabilityindex.com/manufacturer
Yipper said:
The perception of German reliability is one of the biggest myths of all time. Amazed how people fall for it and still believe it.
Of the top 20 most reliable car brands in the UK, none (not one) is German.
http://www.reliabilityindex.com/manufacturer
That is based on warranty direct policies. Of the top 20 most reliable car brands in the UK, none (not one) is German.
http://www.reliabilityindex.com/manufacturer
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