BlueMotion 1.6 TDI 5dr Hatchback

Very poor reliability and expensive to repair

A 2009 VW Golf! Pinnacle of motoring reliability, right? Wrong! We bought a diesel because we were mainly doing long motorway journies at weekends/holidays. After 1 year, car lost power on motorway, went into safe mode. All four fuel injectors needed replacing at a cost of 2000 pounds. A year later, the EGR valve died - 750 pounds to replace it. The spongy heat/noise mat under the bonnet came loose/brittle - needed replacing. On top of that, this car had the engine number that was affected by the VW emissions scandal. The build quality and ride were all good - as was the interior trim and body work. But poor reliability and expensive repairs meant that after 6 unhappy years, we sold it on - but warned the new buyer of its history. As a stop gap, we purchased a 17 year old Toyota Yaris mark 1 for 650 pounds. Its still going! It starts every time whether standing in the sun, or covered in ice/snow. It passed its MOT with only a minor advisory for faded headlamps. 12 pounds to replace both windscreen wipers and 30 pounds to change oil/filter and replace fluids. This is how motoring should be! Suffice to say, we still have the Yaris as we haven't felt the urge to "upgrade" from our stop-gap solution.

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