Volkswagen is Planning a $23,000 Tesla Competitor

[misterbobby]

People sleep on VW. Ive been driving GTIs for 20 years and i wouldn't touch any other car. Once youve driven German, if you enjoy driving, there is no going back. Cant wait for an electric GTI!

I have driven plenty of Volkswagens over the years, most of them brand new, and you couldn't pay me to drive another one of those pieces of shit. Every issue I encountered seem to be well-known from a simple Google search. In my nearly 40 Years of driving I can say with absolute certainty that Volkswagens have been the most unreliable cars I've ever driven. And the company that I work for can back that up too as we used them for our company cars and they were an absolute nightmare with sometimes 25-30% of the cars being in the shop at one time with non-stop maintenance issues. Hell I was left stranded on the side of the road twice just in the one year that we used them for our company cars.

 

[Gigantopithecus]

via Imgflip Meme Generator

 

[DejaWiz]

People sleep on VW. Ive been driving GTIs for 20 years and i wouldn't touch any other car. Once youve driven German, if you enjoy driving, there is no going back. Cant wait for an electric GTI!

German cars *when done right*. I drove a 1990 Saab 900 for 8 1/5 years and racked up 192k on the Odo, then jumped to a 2003.5 GTI VR6 (which turned out to be a complete POS, needing both clutch cylinders and a flurry of other parts to the tune of $5k at only 68k miles back in 2008).
After a couple vehicle changes after the GTI, I bought a brand new '11 Kia Optima (designed and engineered by mostly Germans relocated to S.Korea after being hired by Hyundai/Kia) - had it for almost 7 years...it didn't even have any squeaks or rattles, let alone mechanical or electric issues after 108K miles.

My concern is that VW is notorious for cutting corners to save costs, as evident in all the VW's I've driven (mine, my brother's, and my sister's). Couple that mentality with a high capacity battery bank, and I'm left thinking "F that noise".

 

[Kor]

People sleep on VW. Ive been driving GTIs for 20 years and i wouldn't touch any other car. Once youve driven German, if you enjoy driving, there is no going back. Cant wait for an electric GTI!

Word. My Mk7 absolutely shreds after the work I've done to it.

 

[Teenk9]

Had a 2010 Tiguan. I decided to try German engineered after owning only Toyota and Honda cars. That POS had to be serviced so many times the first three and throughout the five years I owned it that I traded it in for a Honda the moment I got the title. Definitely learned my lesson, never straying again.

 

[travisty]

IF.. they actually start mass producing electrics, it will be interesting to see the knock on effects, and how they are to be taken care of.

IE, the power grid for charging, being a BIG one.

As most charging is done at night it will take many years for the power grid to notice.

 

[capt_cope]

Had a 2010 Tiguan. I decided to try German engineered after owning only Toyota and Honda cars. That POS had to be serviced so many times the first three and throughout the five years I owned it that I traded it in for a Honda the moment I got the title. Definitely learned my lesson, never straying again.

Never understood the appeal of VW. All the repair costs of "luxury" cars without the luxury.

 

[notarat]

And they'll have to cheat to make it pass emissions testing

 

[piscian18]

The only VW Ive ever owned was a Jetta. Just seemed like it was always having mechanical and electrical failures due to weird design choices. I think after the second or third time I had to replace a door motor I dumped it. In general my biggest complaint which is probably unfair is finding parts and mechanics for VWs expensive and a pain. Same thing with a Volvo which had a steel radiator with plastic fittings that crumbled to dust during an oil change. Which shit like that.

 

[Joust]

And they'll have to cheat to make it pass emissions testing

Who cares? It was a better tune.

 

[Joust]

As most charging is done at night it will take many years for the power grid to notice.

Most is done at night ,*if it's scheduled to do so* otherwise it picks up right at evening peak time for exactly the same reasons it's the evening peak.

 

[Mega6]

Wonder if this VW will pass emissions without hacking the ECU.

 

[Sodapopjones]

I have driven plenty of Volkswagens over the years, most of them brand new, and you couldn't pay me to drive another one of those pieces of shit. Every issue I encountered seem to be well-known from a simple Google search. In my nearly 40 Years of driving I can say with absolute certainty that Volkswagens have been the most unreliable cars I've ever driven. And the company that I work for can back that up too as we used them for our company cars and they were an absolute nightmare with sometimes 25-30% of the cars being in the shop at one time with non-stop maintenance issues. Hell I was left stranded on the side of the road twice just in the one year that we used them for our company cars.

We have had 5 Golfs/Rabbits/GTIs in this household, I still have an 11 year old one sitting in the driveway that's outlasted many other cars I have dumped, if you think VW is trash, don't ever buy a Subaru lol...

Word. My Mk7 absolutely shreds after the work I've done to it.

I have a MK7.5 and want to move on to a Rustang, SS or Scatpack, but the problem is another 15k out of pocket to get there... GTIs are seriously underrated and sleeper material... But mine is cursed, the brake recall, and then stupid shit the dealer has done to the car, chipped paint, paint sealant over tar etc...

The only VW Ive ever owned was a Jetta. Just seemed like it was always having mechanical and electrical failures due to weird design choices. I think after the second or third time I had to replace a door motor I dumped it. In general my biggest complaint which is probably unfair is finding parts and mechanics for VWs expensive and a pain. Same thing with a Volvo which had a steel radiator with plastic fittings that crumbled to dust during an oil change. Which shit like that.

Let me guess a MKIV?? VWs really aren't that expensive, or hard to work on tbh...

This is the only thing major that I've had to replace on the Rabbit, total cost $89 lol... The problem is if you don't know how to work on cars, VW dealers are the absolute worst place to take you car...

 

[Zarathustra[H]]

If it looks like this I don't want it.

I'll buy a sedan. I'll even buy a wagon, but I'll never buy an efficiency hatchback, or a crossover or SUV. There are some hatches I'd buy, but nothing with that shape above, also used by the Chevy Bolt.

I'll also never buy a car that looks like it is trying to look futuristic, quirky or green.

Make it look like a normal car, bonus points if it looks sporty and sleek, just give me the electric motor, a reasonable pricetag and 200+ mile range, and ability to seat 4 6'+ adults comfortably and I'm in. Stop it with the nonsense pictured above. I WANT TO buy an electric car, but I'm not impressed with this junk.

Truth is, I'm not thrilled with current car design at all. It's all over-designed. Sheetmetal creases, lines and chrome, overly ornate headlight and taillight assemblies, way too large wheels, you name it. Give me somethign smooth and sleek that isn't trying to stand out.

The Tesla Model S design works. It looks sharp, without looking like it is trying too hard. The design didn't translate as well to the Model 3, but I could still live with the exterior design of it. (I couldn't live with the minimalist interior design though. I demand any car I buy have proper instrument clusters behind the wheel, and physical buttons and knobs for climate control, sound, and anything else I'd want to control while driving, so I can reach out and do it without having to look at it. Minimize touch-screen interfaces.

Give me something like my 10 year old Volvo, before Volvo went all nuts with their current design language, but 200+ mile electric, and I'll buy the damned thing tomorrow.

(though preferably less beige. The color is my least favorite part about my car, I just got a good enough deal on it that I couldn't pass it up. Still my least favorite color of any car I've ever owned.)

 

[exlink]

$23,000 base price. Then additional option packages will be $5k-8k each. Before you know it you'll be out the door at $50,000.

 

[Sodapopjones]

$23,000 base price. Then additional option packages will be $5k-8k each. Before you know it you'll be out the door at $50,000.

Son, VW doesn't do option packages, it will be interesting to see how it comes and what trim levels there will be.

 

[Zarathustra[H]]

Son, VW doesn't do option packages, it will be interesting to see how it comes and what trim levels there will be.

They don't necessarily do packages like Audi, BMW and Mercedes who option you into the stratosphere, but they do segment their cars into submodels.

You might see that $18k pricetag for a Jetta, but but the base S model is pretty barebones go into the builder and select the SEL Premium model and the pricetag has risen by over $8k before we even start building.

The biggest price differential is probably on the Golf. Base model is advertised at $20k. Everyone knows you really want the GTI or the R though, and by the time you are done and have the GTI Autobahn model, we are looking at $35k, or the R we are looking at just about $40k

So, they may not have packages per se, but if they say a model starts at $23k like in this announcement, we all know its going to be similarly sparse to a Jetta S, and the submodel you want is probably going to be $10k more.

 

[Burticus]

Competition is good. Just not a huge fan of VW.

I want an electric Maxima for under $30k. How hard could it be, Nissan? I don't want a $30k Leaf that is like driving a golf cart.

 

[travisty]

Most is done at night ,*if it's scheduled to do so* otherwise it picks up right at evening peak time for exactly the same reasons it's the evening peak.

It's not hard to schedule charging.... Well it was for my 2012 Leaf, but not anymore. The GUIs are much easier to use. My Model 3's is beyond simple. Though i don't use it as I want to charge during the day so my solar panels can charge my car (work from home so, yes, it is plugged in at home and getting the power directly from the panel) (yes it is sunny here the majority of the days, colorado is very sunny)

In places with monopolies (california) or for people who want to save money time of use metering can force people too; make it more expensive for those who are too lazy to take a few minutes to set a schedule.

 

[Iching]

What is the point of such companies as VW? Shite cars for shite people. I will stick to Lexus/Toyota and Honda/Acura. And part of my family is from Germany.

 

[nightfly]

VW does not have the best reputation for electrical systems, and they want to make an all electric car. Hmm.

Don't worry. They're channeling Joseph Lucas, lord of darkness, for electrical design guidance. Vintage British auto aficionados will understand that reference well.
For those unfamiliar with Joe Lucas and his designs, here's a few gems:

• The Lucas motto: "Get home before dark."
• Lucas is the patent holder for the short circuit.
• Lucas - Inventor of the first intermittent wiper.
• Lucas - Inventor of the self-dimming headlamp.
• The three position Lucas switch - Dim, Flicker and Off.
• The Original Anti-Theft Device - Lucas Electrics.
• Lucas is an acronym for Loose Unsoldered Connections And Splices

And of course, the most requested spare part for Lucas electrical systems:

They will if the default setting is "don't charge" and you have to do something to make it charge

Great. So now all the idiots who forget to buy gas, can forget to plug in. Yeah, that's gonna work out real well. Coming soon to a highway near you: The fool who forgot to fill up and ran out of gas, now forgot to plug in and ran out of electrons. Will they make a new 5 gallon jug that the tow truck can use to bring him a 'jug full of electrons'?

 

[Sufu]

16K hybrid diesel car with 4K worth of batteries and 30mi of range? "Electric car"