Why We’ll Never Buy Volkswagen Again

Owning a car should be simple. Buy it, maintain it, drive it. Our VW Taos turned that into a full-time saga—one filled with dealership trips, strange noises, and way too much tape holding things together.

The Beginning: Love at First Sight

In April 2023, our almost-new Jeep was totaled after a distracted driver slammed into us on the interstate. We scrambled to find a replacement and landed on a bright blue 2023 VW Taos. It looked sharp, drove well, and with our rental deadline closing in, we signed on the dotted line.

The honeymoon lasted a few months. Then the problems started.

The GPS Debacle

First came the navigation system. Apple Maps and Google Maps thought we were in random cities instead of where we actually were. VW of Kirkland blamed Verizon cell towers (??). It took nearly a year before that issue was mostly fixed.

The Coolant Leak

By February 2024, things escalated. We spotted coolant under the car. VW topped it off and sent us home, but the leak came back—bigger. This time, it was the head gasket. Parts were backordered, and we had no loaners for weeks. We had to rent a car ourselves until they eventually found one.

Oh, and while it was in the shop, they replaced the rear brakes for a recall.

The Never-Ending Brake Squeak

Not long after, a new issue popped up: squeaky brakes. At first, it was subtle. Then it turned into nails-on-a-chalkboard loud.

The dealer insisted it wasn’t a safety issue and repeatedly tried to fix it—cleaning, greasing, replacing parts, even swapping the brakes entirely. Nothing worked. At one point, I had to drive with a technician so that they could finally hear the noise. The service manager’s advice? Contact Volkswagen for a buyback.

However, after several loaner cars and service visits, the issue seems to have been resolved.

Disaster

Just when we thought things might stabilize, we brought the Taos in for a routine oil change. Surprise—the rear brakes were bad again. They told us VW had fixed the issue with new parts and sent us on our way.

Minutes later, warning lights lit up the dashboard. Then, while driving down I-405, we heard a loud dragging sound. We pulled over and found a plate hanging under the car. The tape didn’t hold, so we limped six miles back to the dealer with the part scraping the road.

Turns out, it hadn’t been reinstalled correctly. They fixed it, updated the software, and gave us a loaner in the meantime. Credit where it’s due: our service advisor, John, was helpful. However, the Service Manager never came out and talked to us, and never apologized for the issue.

Where We Stand Now

The car is running fine for the moment, but after everything—the GPS mess, coolant leak, head gasket replacement, brake nightmare, and dragging parts—we’re done. VW has burned through all our trust.

We won’t be buying another Volkswagen.