I also love cars, specifically VAG products. My first car was a '98 Audi A3 TDI with 160,000 miles on the clock. It is now my 17 year old cousins and it is still going strong, not a squeak or rattle, doesn't use a drop of oil.
I am very fussy when it comes to build quality, and no other car manufacturer builds cars like Audi, not even Lexus. The extensive use of stainless steel bolts, nuts and screws, laser seam welding, forged steel door hinges, 9 layers of paint add up to cars which are built like tiger tanks. In Europe, one of the most durable engines available isn't an American V8 from the 80's, but the 1.9PD TDI diesel which was used in Audis, VW's, Skoda and Seats during the later 90s up until only 5 or 6 years ago, replaced by the more efficient common rail TDI's.
Volkswagen group cars reach spaceship mileages. They are still sellable at 150 - 200k. It is all about how they are looked after. They are highly tuned, precision made pieces of kits. I know, I have been to Volkswagen Wolfsburg, as well as being able to get the opportunity to go to the R&D facility. They have every other make of car their, stripped down, comparing their parts to see how they can make theirs better. One of the engineers said to me "our last real rival was Honda. Not anymore" Tells you a lot.
There are people who claim VW's are unreliable, getting bad rep for reliability and DSG problems, but considering that Volkswagen sold more cars than GM and Ford for the last 2 years, you are going to have more VW's in than Toyotas for example, who only sold 18,000 units, compared to Volkswagen 110,000.
They are excellent cars. Love my A6. I get just over 50PMG on a long run, mid 40's around town. Lovely cars.
