I think it's unfair that VW gets targeted as some faulty manufacturer. However, it should be noted that the vehicles listed here are not made in Germany. The Beetle is Mexico and i believe the Passast is made in another Euro country.

I think VW needs to improve their QC at those plants, they do make a great product that is better than many autos out there, just need to improve public perception

The best way to improve public perception is to make more reliable cars. This isn't an isolated problem with VW. Most of their "low end" cars have quite a few problems. Even so, I hope they can turn it around.

Anyway, why is this list surprising?

The Passat is made in Germany and the Jetta and Beetle are made in the same factory in Mexico. I have a 2006 Jetta and I love it except for the check engine light which has come on 3 times in the last month. Apparently it's due to a defective part in the engine which Volkswagen is in the middle of coming up with a solution for it. Apparently there is supposed to be a redesigned part coming out at the end of August/September time frame. I believe it is an electric motor (idle air control) or something like that.

Why is it unfair? They make crappy stuff, people are calling them out for it. People assume that Germany makes the best, most reliable cars in the universe. That is simply untrue. That title has belonged to Japan for over a decade now.

Public perception is bad, because the product is bad. VW is about to lose one of the few things that made it unique in the US. Diesel. If they continues to have these quality problems, while still maintaining a price premium to domestics and the japanese who will roll out their own diesel vehicles, soon. VW will have even more problems than it does now.

not to sound like an oddball... but i have a pad of paper in my car, in the glove box, when i see cars on the side of the road, i take a note of it.

cabrios have 11.

11. call me weird, but you might like that info for your next auto purchase.

iridiumshadow - 1 million is 1 million, fair or not.

About the cabrio : maybe they were just closing their roof :)

At least all these companies have made prompt recalls for all the issues. The VW problems with a brake light switch seem minor compared to a possible seatbelt failure with the suzuki and possible ball joint failure with the toyota. I'd much rather have a brake light switch fail than my wheel fall off my car or die in an accident because my seatbelt failed. Even though the vw beetle has the most vehicle recalls, it's only for a minor issue compared to the problem with toyota and suzuki which could be life threatening. Just because its japanese made does not necessarily make it a better car.

my jetta burns engine oil, the engine is broken, the engine oil becomes darker than asphalt in couple hundreds miles, and the maintenance costs a fortune.

If you read most of the problems that other manufacturers are quoted as having in this article, they seem alot more severe than the VW ones, granted the VW number is the highest, but if you look alot of these cars have issues that can cause engine fires, seat belt malfunction or brake failure.

I dont see anything like that with the VW's, the problem seems to be minor even if it is listed in more cars. Sounds like a simple warranty fix, and not anything you would have to be worried about in the event of an accident. Let's not forget VW's are some of the safest cars out there.

I will agree that before 2005 VW's did have more mechanical problems and those have been adressed. I read the forums on VW vortex all the time, and these cars are beloved by their owners.

The surprising thing is "Why" anyone is actually surprised with VW's shi++y quality control.

Don't you people actually LOOK at VW's over 2 years old? (oh wait... they're all at the junker)

Funny. American cars are viewed as inferior to imports but imports had far more recalled vehicles on this list than domestics.

Of the top 5 defects, only one is a domestic. Total on the list are 6 defects affecting domestics and 8 defects affecting imports.

Total imports recalled: 1,978,746
Total domestics recalled: 271,268

To Demano: Actually you would be surprised how many VWs are still on the road. I was in Europe for the last 4 years and I bet at least 30% of the cars I saw were VWs, more specifically the Golfs. Of all the VWs I saw, at least 50% of those were more than 10 years old. I owned one while I was over there that was 20 years old and it never had a problem. Many of these cars have 200,000 or more kms on them. Mine had close to 300,000km. However, I know at least Germany has very strict safety inspections so they tend to keep up the maintenance on their cars or risk not being able to get them licensed. As far as American cars go, I'm sure we can all agree the big 3 have definitely improved in quality in last few years. I've owned cars from all the big 3 during the 80s and they were all junk. Now I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new Ford or GM product. It is in my opinion the Japanese are starting to get complacent with their cars. They rely to much on perceived reliability rather than actual reliability.

My jetta burns oil too - they put the wrong oil control rings in.

Instead of recalling these engines (2.0L) and exchanging them, they went cheap and had the dealers mess you around trying to diagnose the problem (they already new what the problem was), by the time you realize what the problem is after you 10 dealer trips - your out of warranty. This type of problem doesn't even hit this list.

Every manufacturer has warranty problems, it's how you deal with them that makes the difference!

My jetta burns oil too - they put the wrong oil control rings in.

Instead of recalling these engines (2.0L) and exchanging them, they went cheap and had the dealers mess you around trying to diagnose the problem (they already new what the problem was), by the time you realize what the problem is after you 10 dealer trips - your out of warranty. This type of problem doesn't even hit this list.

Every manufacturer has warranty problems, it's how you deal with them that makes the difference!

Clayton:

Get your facts straight. Japan does not build the best cars. Oh wait, I mean they build the best, boring cars. Everyone knows that German cars are the best in a lot of areas and no one can debate that. If you factor in the electrical problems of Mercedes, BMW, etc, then you're right. German cars tend to be more bleeding edge whereas Japanese cars are more simplified. Everything that you find on German cars now will appear on Japanese cars later. They've always copied from the source. Think back to a time when Japanese cars used to be cool. The Mitsubishi Diamante, Galant, 3000GT all used to have some really cool features on them. But guess what? These features started to have problems and so Japanese brands went bland. Cars like the Galant used to have a turbo-charged engine, AWD and adjustable suspension and steering (all options). Sound far-fetched? Nope. This was available in the early 90's.

"but if you look alot of these cars have issues that can cause engine fires"

Which ones, and what constitutes "a lot of these cars"?

If you're referring to the Aveo then you're not exactly correct, read again. If the car gets into a severe frontal crash there's a risk that a small number of their (recalled) rails will crack. There's also a risk of damage to the fuse block causing the pump to be shorted to power. If both of these occur in a small number of vehicles there's a risk of of gas leaking onto the ground causing a risk of fire.

My jetta burns oil too - they put the wrong oil control rings in.

Instead of recalling these engines (2.0L) and exchanging them, they went cheap and had the dealers mess you around trying to diagnose the problem (they already new what the problem was), by the time you realize what the problem is after you 10 dealer trips - your out of warranty. This type of problem doesn't even hit this list.

Every manufacturer has warranty problems, it's how you deal with them that makes the difference!

VW has always been a real crappy manufacturer, every VW car i have owned and/or seen all its pieces just fall apart! everything is really cheap and if one day you slam the door shut, you end up with the handle in your hands, the switches / brake lights / buttons and everything simply breaks.
Its amazing at how people try to "defend" VW cars , it seems as VW has worked over their brains and brainwashed them into becomming loyalty fools customers.

Did you know the pointer / gol in brazil is "glued" at the read end? because they use the same car for mini trucks / car / convertibleas and the cheapest way to save on it is to just "glue" the sedan back part - i know it , i had one of those" i tried suing VW but here in south america is not hard to proceed at these things like in the u.s.a.

To david : I guess you missed the part that Ford recalled 3.6 million vehicles for faulty cruise control...that's more than this entire list. Granted its not for 2007, but it is a huge recall nevertheless.

Normally when a company recalls a vehicle it is due to data, plain and simple. The companies factor in the possible number of affected vehicles, what not dealing with the problem might cost them in terms of lawsuits, and of course, brand image, and corporate ethical considerations (but I wouldn't push that one too hard). If the recall would cost less than the potential lawsuits they will most likely recall the car.
If you'll accept that logic, there are lots of other brands that don't do recalls simply because the problem isn't big enough to warrant it, and be handled through regular warranty service, or the problem isn't serious enough to catch press if it happens.
ie) family of 5 dies in crash...faulty seatbelts blamed, company X knew about it months before the accident, and chose to do nothing!

Clayton:
"At least all these companies have made prompt recalls for all the issues. The VW problems with a brake light switch seem minor compared to a possible seatbelt failure with the suzuki and possible ball joint failure with the toyota. I'd much rather have a brake light switch fail than my wheel fall off my car or die in an accident because my seatbelt failed. Even though the vw beetle has the most vehicle recalls, it's only for a minor issue compared to the problem with toyota and suzuki which could be life threatening. Just because its japanese made does not necessarily make it a better car."

So, you'd rather have someone rear-end you at high-speed when your brake lights suddenly stop working?

Ball joints don't just give-out, the creek and groan as they deteriorate.

As for the seatbelt in the Suzuki...how often do you get in car accidents?

Clayton
"Now I wouldn't hesitate to buy a new Ford or GM product. It is in my opinion the Japanese are starting to get complacent with their cars. They rely to much on perceived reliability rather than actual reliability."

Let me ask you this: How many late 80's and early 90's domestics do you see on the road, or German cars for that matter? Take note next time you're out and about.

Re Paul : So true...and it really is scary that they do a recall this way...and what problem your car may have but they don't tell you simply because it costs them less money!

Its amazing at how people try to "defend" VW cars , it seems as VW has worked over their brains and brainwashed them into becomming loyalty fools customers.

No...it's because YOU are biased. My 2002 Jetta GLS 1.8T now has 196,130 miles on the clock...and it's been, overall, INCREDIBLY reliable.

When people bitch about VW's - like someone on another forum complaining about having to replace 3 inexpensive ($14) plastic center console latches - my response is: STOP SLAMMING THE CENTER CONSOLE CLOSED YOU IDIOT!!

And VW redesigned the plastic latch anyway! ^_^

Exactly Snake. So many people want to go "OMG! THE CUPHOLDER BROKE!" and say that car X is unreliable when there are cars out there (like the Sunfire my sister used to have) where if you take too long turning the ignition (lets say because it's cold and takes longer to start) that the whole steering column will catch on fire. They want an excuse for why their preferred car is better, so they ignore the fact that every company's going to have something go wrong from time to time and instead whine about inane crap.

The fact is that Japanese cars are better specificially Toyota and Honda. The others are only so so. Now American cars are good to average to below average but are over all better than the European cars. Just read consumer reports and you will get the truth. In regards to the people who got over 200,000 miles on their car with very few problems.......well there is always an exception to the rule.

I had a 1995 Chrysler Concorde (brand new) that I put over 200,000 miles on and it had a great engine but I had to replace the entire AC system in the car twice and have the front end rebuilt once.

My 1996 Honda Odyssey is pushing 200,000 miles (and it was used) and I have only had a few oil leaks and regular maintance.

Some times you just get lucky.

"Just read consumer reports and you will get the truth."

No, read consumer reports and you'll get some truth mixed with a lot of crap. I've seen so many horribly flawed things in CR when it comes to cars (my parents get it) that I'll never take their word for anything when it comes to buying a car.

I would agree that CR doesn't rank the german brands low enough.

Any examples Remy? What they have said about our toyota and honda have been pretty accurate.

The world record for longevity belongs to a european brand -- Volvo. A guy bought a brand new P1800 sports coupe back in 1966 and has logged 2 million miles on it and it's still going. How's that for reliability.

No...it's because YOU are biased. My 2002 Jetta GLS 1.8T now has 196,130 miles on the clock...and it's been, overall, INCREDIBLY reliable.

When people bitch about VW's - like someone on another forum complaining about having to replace 3 inexpensive ($14) plastic center console latches - my response is: STOP SLAMMING THE CENTER CONSOLE CLOSED YOU IDIOT!! And VW redesigned the plastic latch anyway!

My plastic cup holders broke, the glove box hinge has broken, the remote CD wore out not great, but not huge issues for a 100k car, as all of the major mechanicals i.e. AC etc have all worked great! I am not an idiot but a very reasonable mechanical engineer.

But again VW made a batch of 2.0L engines with the wrong oil control rings in – and never recalled them. The dealers acted as if it was normal (1 litre in 1000 miles), then we need to do tests, and again, and again, oh you’ve got a leak there, oh we need to test again, and finally out of warranty. Took it to an independent VW garage they knew it was a 2.0L in a new york second.

Love the design, looks and feels very solid compared to Japanese – but never again

If you're going to take that route for reliability, then I still see Model T's on the road. Now thats reliability...

"Any examples Remy?"

Sure. The one that I recall the best is that they knock the Z4 for problems in the Z3, when they're completely different cars and share virtually no parts. Most people will tell you that the Z3 wasn't that great, but the Z4 is a pretty good car. So CR is either 1) being blatantly biased or 2) incredibly stupid.

To Mike:

The article was specific to 2007 models, so I'm not sure why this is even a talking point.Ford is recalling 12 models that were produced between 1992 and 2004, which tallies up to 3.6 million vehicles. A lot can change in 3 years.

Case in point, Ford and affiliates only made the above list once, and even then are the last entry for a total of 10,061 vehicles. If their record holds strong this year, then they will save a lot of money on recall costs and get better customer reviews, which will lead to loyalty and help them retain their dwindling market share numbers.

I'm not even sure why this 3.6 million vehicles was an honorable mention. Had this problem been fixed in the year that the problem occured, it wouldn't have been mentioned at all.

Although, using my own reasoning, it could be a few years for all of the vehicle producers to realize the full extent of recalls for their 2007 models.

Im actually quite surprised at this list. I knew VW had problems with the Beetle. But with all the bad rep it already has, why does GM have ANY models on this list? I'd think they'd of locked their shit down by now. This should've been their time to poke fun at Toyota, instead Toyota has one freaking car here (an SUV made in America).

I thought Ford would have a showing, the Expedition is no surprise. If you absolutely have to have something made in America, and it has to be a company that was founded here, get a Tahoe. Then you can both consume gas and tell yourself you are revolutionary. The Expedition just sucks gas (and, strangely, lacks any options for skid plates, why build and SUV with no offroad options)?

What Paul said about a company's recall policy was very true until very recently. In the past, you'd weight in the cost of the recall vs. the cost of a lawsuit. After the highly public Ford-Firestone Tire issue auto companies seemed to have shifted to an aggressive recall strategy where even perceived problems are called in. Ford's recent 3+ million vehicle recall is an effort by Ford to show that they're being pro-active and taking care of reliability issues.

Companies in the past must've done a cost-benefit analysis and come to the conclusion that if a recall costs more than the risk of a lawsuit then its not worth it. They must've done a more recent analysis where they factored in public perception. Now companies know that its just too risky to have your company's badge appear on the 6-o-clock news beside a picture a wrecked vehicle.

As for Ford's huge recall, I'm sure most of those vehicles were never really in serious need of a replacement part. I'm sure Ford just wants people back into the dealership to see the new improved Ford lineup. If you bought a Ford in the mid 90s you might be looking for a new car sometime soon and you might just be moved by Ford's "concern" and might just decide to give Ford your money again.

On the note, expect auto companies to be issue recalls more often for less pressing issues. Its a good way to show owners of your vehicles you still care and its a nice way to get people into your dealerships again. God knows I try to avoid the dealership so I don't have to fight off the leeches that are so lovingly called sales people.

Long live VW, maker of great German cars! That Japanese crap can't hold a candle unless you like cars that are incredibly boring, unimaginative and cheaply built. Anyone who disagrees should try driving a German car....you'll never go back! :)

More cheaply built than Mexican-made VWs? You're nuts. I've been in VWs. Sometimes they even started up and moved around a bit. I'll take almost any Japanese manufacturer dollar-per-dollar over a VW. If I bought a German car, it wouldn't be a VW.

VW owners are like MAC computer owners: fanatics. They will buy and use nothing else, despite the fact that all around them more reliable, better performing products are abound.

Sure the MAC and the VW may look cool, but so what? I want a car (and a computer) that can preform the way I want and expect; and for a decent price. Why should I overpay for some cool looking POS that will wow others but disappoint me in the end?

But, you can't argue with these people; they are blind even when the numbers are staring them right in the face. I say, let them alone to be cool while the rest of the world just passes them by.

VW owners are like MAC computer owners: fanatics. They will buy and use nothing else, despite the fact that all around them more reliable, better performing products are abound.

Sure the MAC and the VW may look cool, but so what? I want a car (and a computer) that can preform the way I want and expect; and for a decent price. Why should I overpay for some cool looking POS that will wow others but disappoint me in the end?

But, you can't argue with these people; they are blind even when the numbers are staring them right in the face. I say, let them alone to be cool while the rest of the world just passes them by.

VW owners are like MAC computer owners: fanatics. They will buy and use nothing else, despite the fact that all around them more reliable, better performing products are abound.

Sure the MAC and the VW may look cool, but so what? I want a car (and a computer) that can preform the way I want and expect; and for a decent price. Why should I overpay for some cool looking POS that will wow others but disappoint me in the end?

But, you can't argue with these people; they are blind even when the numbers are staring them right in the face. I say, let them alone to be cool while the rest of the world just passes them by.

VW owners are like MAC computer owners: fanatics. They will buy and use nothing else, despite the fact that all around them more reliable, better performing products are abound.

Sure the MAC and the VW may look cool, but so what? I want a car (and a computer) that can preform the way I want and expect; and for a decent price. Why should I overpay for some cool looking POS that will wow others but disappoint me in the end?

But, you can't argue with these people; they are blind even when the numbers are staring them right in the face. I say, let them alone to be cool while the rest of the world just passes them by.

Let me ask you this: How many late 80's and early 90's domestics do you see on the road, or German cars for that matter? Take note next time you're out and about.

Drive in any rustbelt area in the midwest. The most common older cars to see on the road are the GM W-body (88-96 Grand Prix, Regal, Cutlass Supreme, and Lumina). Also, you will see a lot of Ford Rangers, Chevy S10s, pretty much every GM RWD car made in the 80's, Ford Aerostars, etc. I RARELY see a more than 15 year old import car left on the road around here.

If you want to see what a good old car is, just drive to a ghetto area and see what they're driving. Chances are you'll see a lot of caprices

HAs anyone else had a problem with the door lock system in the 2008 Acadia? I bought a brand new vehicle, only to have the electrical door locks not lock and XM radio not be able to scroll to different stations unless the car is stopped or in park. I have taken it to GMS 2 times now, each time they say it is fixed and it comes right back!

HAs anyone else had a problem with the door lock system in the 2008 Acadia? I bought a brand new vehicle, only to have the electrical door locks not lock and XM radio not be able to scroll to different stations unless the car is stopped or in park. I have taken it to GMS 2 times now, each time they say it is fixed and it comes right back!