My dear departed mother used to tell me, “Time goes fast when you get old.” Well, I will turn 58 this month and I can confirm mom’s saying. It has now been four years and Wolfie and I are madly in love. For our respective birthdays, we had a nice makeover. Wolfie got a top of the line detail, including ceramic shiny stuff. On top of that, I finally had the windows tinted. When added in with the APR performance tune, Wolfie is a cool ride in my humble opinion.
I think the tint really makes the car look better, in a mean kind of way, but this is purely subjective. So what is it like to live with a VW for four years? Well, so far it is been great. Wolfie is tall for a car, so getting in and out is easy. He’s extremely versatile. I can haul lumber (and have) and still close the hatch with ease. Try that in your F-150, LoL!
This is really my only criticism of the car: the heater controls are small and hard to see. There are no detents to provide a positive feel. It took a long time to get used to having so little feedback. It’s not much of a beef. I still much prefer manual HVAC controls, but that is another topic.
When I bought Wolfie, I was informed by all asunder how a VW would be a reliability disaster. I did whatever research was available and the Golf VII is actually slightly better than average in reliability. I have had zero problems in four years. Mind you, the car only has 49,000 km on it. VW cars also call for more maintenance. The brake fluid, for example, is due at three years and then two years after that. In August, I replaced the engine and cabin air filters, as well as the spark plugs. Jason Shafer’s primer on how to do said job was of great assistance. Thanks, Jason!
As I have stated in previous COAL installments, I am unable to keep a nice car but Wolfie will be the exception. This has been my pattern for all my life but Wolfie is different. I just love the way he drives. The Golf VII is widely reviewed as being an amazing buy. It drives like a much more expensive car, which is hardly surprising, as the MQB platform is used by a myriad of more expensive VAG models. There is simply not a car on the market I want to to buy anyway.
Wolfie’s bumper to bumper warranty has expired, so we’ll see what happens going forward. He is the best car I have ever owned, and the best I have ever driven and yes, I have driven a lot of cars. Wolfie will continue his mission of 51 weeks of groceries and one week in the mountains.
But mostly, Wolfie is used to haul around Lola and Bagel.
Thanks for the shout-out. My sister is looking to replace her ’09 Passat wagon and got grumpy when she learned neither a Golf nor Jetta wagon is any longer available in the US.
Another I have since learned on VWs is the water pumps and some models having plastic impellers. You may want to check on that. Hopefully yours is not so equipped.
Bagel!
Hey, don’t forget Lola, the Big Galoot!
She’s an awesome girl. She’s a rescue from a shelter in Qatar. She adopted us in November 2020.
I bought a 2015 Golf Sportwagen TSI new in 2015 (base trim, 5 speed). We still love it at 90K trouble-free miles. I went from driving a BMW 330i and was amazed at the quality and handling of the VW.
5 speed manual? Which engine is in front of that? 1.8T FSI?
I was surprised to see that also, as I thought all the wagons were 2.0T (or diesel) and 6 speed. Our US market Golf VII is 1.8T and 5 speed. With 15” wheels, no less! And I too find the HVAC controls fussy, but my wife who drives it daily seems to have no problem.
Like you, Len, still grooving on my Alltrack, and also feeling it’s my favorite car yet. The more frequent maintenance expenses are more than offset by driving joy. Never puts a foot wrong, almost 99% predictable in any circumstance.
I have a 2018 Alltrack SE. Silk blue.Its 4 years old and I continue to love it. I did have one problem…the ubiquitous sunroof leak. One day I found 6″ of water in the spare tire well…I vacuumed out the wate and went to the dealer who cleaned out debris in the drain lines no charge.
Ive upgraded the tires to 18″ on BBS ASR wheels, swapped some Clark plaid GTI seats, added the plug and play helix subwoofer, installed an AWE touring exhaust and added a unitronics Stage1+ tune. The Alltrack now produces about 260hp and the exhaust has a wonderful throaty rumble.
Its solid, great quality materials, is terrific in Buffalo snow and looks great.
May be the best car Ive ever owned
My 2013 VW Passat base model has been the single most reliable automobile I’ve ever owned, beating the three Toyotas I’ve owned.
I personally know people with VW horror stories. The previous generation Jetta was at the center of most of them.
My two Fords were by far the most problematic of my cars.
We’ll be travelling in Europe in a few weeks and I’ve rented a Skoda Octavia manual shift (essentially the same car) for a week. Can’t wait to get out on the open road and twisties with it.
Happy Birthday Len ! From one October baby to another. I’m a year ahead of you (59 in two weeks) 2 years behind in current car ownership (2020 for the 04 Impala) but the same in mileage (50k)
I also feel about the Impala like you do with the mighty VW. It’s not the most head turning car, but it’s been the most reliable and I dearly love it.
2 years is my usual attention span but with the big blue bus I’m aiming for five and hopefully more.
Long may the 4 of us roll!
Bought new my 2018 golf tsi. 5 speed.. I cross shopped the mazda 323, Honda civic sport, subaru impreza. Impreza was something of a dog and had cheap feeling terior. Honda very sporty but s bit low sitting and loud. Mazda pretty sweet but felt a little tinny. Both M and H had 6 speeds but had negligible diff in top gear rpm/mph and felt IIRC low on torque at low RPM. The golf on the other hand pulls well at 1200 rpm. The golf also had a more upright seating position which would be important as I be driving a lot in this additionally it was quieter on the highway… While still being plenty fast and having a nice engine note. The 6 year 72000 mile warranty was the kicker. It’s 2022 I have 82000 miles on it. Is other than routine maintenance here’s all I have done.. About 2 years and I smelled a little coolant but could not see a leak. I brought it to the dealers and they change the water pump at no charge. About 2 months ago after a lot of rain my wife detected some water in the car. Clogged sunroof drain. Fixed. Immediately pulled up the rug and the insulationAnd hit it with all manner of heat lamps and hot air and a dash of lightly bleached water. Thankfully it had only been wet A-day and we’ve had no issues since.Then about a year ago at bout 71960 miles I get a CEL and a drop in power. My code reader say IIRC motor control module issue. I called the dealer and have a conversation with the service manager. By the time I get the car to the dealer it’s gonna have 20 miles left on the warranty. While not expecting any trickery I wanted to confirm that we were on the same page. I also noted that they were having a very good tire sale and I did in fact need new street tires. Always looking for a win win I told him that I’ll happily get the tires but I want to ensure this is going to be taken care of. Came back from my trip and laugand was told that the Turbo wastegate module had failed if I recall correctly. Fixed under warranty. So far so good love the car
Hi from Dublin, Ireland. I had a 2017 Golf Alltrack Estate (Wagon). Loved it. Huge boot space, nice spec. But had persistent leaks from the panoramic roof. So swapped it for another 2017 Estate without the panoramic roof, 25,000 KM less mileage and slightly higher spec. It’s my fourth Golf. My first was a MKII GTI. The Estate/Wagons here tend to be 1.6 TDIs, with the 2.0 TDI more common in the Passat which are also very popular with families. Most are manual transmission but automatic is starting to catch up with the increase in EV sales. The days of fun sporty drives in the Wicklow mountains will be a distant memory.
Happy Birthday..Len, you’re my middle sister’s age, I’m a few years up on you.
Haven’t owned a wagon, only hatchbacks, but 3 of them in a row, including my
current ’00 Golf. I can’t and won’t claim they’ve been trouble free, but I keep cars
a long time (bought the ’00 new). Ignition cylinder failed when I didn’t have the tools to
break into the column to get at it, so it had to be towed. Also, the shift cables broke, ended up putting it in 2nd gear via the selector shaft (fortunately I figured out where it was) and at the risk of burning the clutch was able to get it home. The power steering rack failed (figures, my other 2 VWs didn’t have power steering, nor the power windows/power locks which also have been failures on mine and many other VWs of this vintage.
You remind me I need to change my brake fluid also. It seems to me that VWs respond well to regular maintenance; but even then I find them durable moreso than reliable. That’s why I have a bit of an issue recommending them, if you want a car you can just drive and ignore servicing, don’t think the VW would suit you best. I don’t mind a bit of tinkering to allow me to have something interesting to drive.
No, it isn’t a truck, but as my only vehicle I’ve carried a fair amount in it after removing seats…lumber, dishwashers, etc…the hatch is a bit shorter than your wagon so you probably have the edge there for long stuff, but I think weight is more of an issue, think I could easily exceed it with lumber amounts that fit, even with single driver (though I’m hardly svelte).
My choice so far has been the manual on my 3 VWs, but recognizing my age and some (fortunately temporary) physical ailments, and that no one else in my family drives standard, my next car will need to be automatic. Wouldn’t mind another Golf but can only buy used ones now, and I’m a bit too old for a GTi (had an ’86), so I might have to leave the VW fold after 41 years for my next car. I’ve kept my current one as long as I have since I know I’m in denial, I want just a newer “copy” of what I have, but it keeps getting harder to find in the market.