re: Buying a car. Loan question

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I'm scared it's going to start having some costly issues now that it's about to hit 100k miles

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Jetta TDI

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I don't think you're going for the best option here. I have a 2011 Jetta TDI, but the general consensus is that VW is are not the best option for high-mileage reliability and cost of maintenance. Since you said the car you wanted was ~$11k, I'm guessing you're looking at something with at least 65k miles and probably more (maybe upwards of 85k).

The TDI engine should have minimal issues for a long time (250k+) but if you're going automatic, I believe that issues with the DSG transmissions are not uncommon in the 100-150k range. Also, other issues (A/C, etc.) are not surprising in older VWs. Lastly, I know there are differing opinions on this strategy, but the regular, preventative maintenance schedule for TDI's is not cheap at all.

Coming from a Jetta TDI owner, if you are short on cash but want some increased fuel economy and decent value, I would look for something more along the lines of an Elantra, Corolla or Civic. None of them are fancy at all but the hwy mileage on recent models is pretty solid and the maintenance costs should be low for a long time.