what car???

[BadDSM]

Cavaliers are junk. Total junk.
Jettas of the 97-98 lineage are the lastgeneration models but economical and attractive. The 2.0l 4 cylinders have been in use for a long time and will run forever. How about a 97-98 Jetta GT? It had the same drivetrain but came with alloy wheels, spoiler, etc.

[tmckay]

I second what someone else said, having owned a VW and known a lot of people who have:  little stuff goes wrong, like switches, air vents, seatbelt assemblies jam, stereo wiring, door locks, door handles, window cranks, etc.
Mechanically, drivetrain and engine, I haven't heard a lot of complaints.


(I personally think Honda Civics, Toyota Corollas and Nissan Sentras rule but you didn't ask about those.  Newer Sentras have pretty big engines for a small car, too)

Trevor

[octane]

Some might call me unAmerican, but given this choice I have to go with German engineering. The build quality on the Cavalier/Sunfire is trash. And like someone said, there ain't nothin' cool about a Cavalier. My 72 year old grandmother drives a Z-24, the coolest Cavalier money can buy, and it's still an old lady car with cheap ground effects.

Again, as someone said, certain year VW's have electrical gremlins, so pick up a copy of the Consumer Reports used car guide at the library and figure out which years to avoid. Otherwise the Vdub is solid. I had a '84 GTi that was bulletproof. Bought it with 172,000 miles on it and sold it 20,000 miles later for what I paid for it. Fun car to drive and the only problem I had was a busted timing belt (which damaged nothing else in the motor even though I was doing 70 when it popped -  and with that mileage you have to expect that kind of thing), and some easily replaced bent shift linkage caused by worn motor mounts.

[glenn9171]

I have never driven a Jetta, so I have no real information on it.  My girlfriend bought a new Cavalier in '95.  Put about 100,000 miles on it.  No major problems, but you could tell it was what it was intended to be...a cheap car.  Price-wise and build-wise.  I would never buy one.  Like Tmckay said, try a Sentra or Corrolla.  You should be able to find a used one in good shape for a very good price.  The new Sentra is called the mini-Maxima by magazine reviewers.  Excellent power from a $11,000 car.  Nice build standards, too.  It doesn't feel like a cheap or economy car.

[70 Cam Guy]

I guess they are evenly split so far...however if you ever were picking up any one...not just hotties...stay away from the Mattel Cavalier... Aka never get laid mobile (to quote Leno)...OTOH...if you looked like Matt Damon it may not matter...
Cool.
Srinath.

LOL
You don't want to know what me and most of the guys I know say about guys who drive Jettas.  They always seem to have rainbow stickers on them    

Seriously though, I would not buy either car.  The 4 cyl Cavelier might be okay for a while but steer clear of the GM 2.8 V6.  I can guarantee that Jetta will cost twice what any Honda or Toyota will cost you on parts or service.  I've worked at shops and VW's were just about the most hated cars to work on.  That included Audi's.  Parts were a nightmare to get even from the dealer.  German and European cars in general will cost 2-3 times what American or Japanese cars cost in parts.

I would look at older Corolla's, Civic's, Accords and Toyota trucks.  The Toyota 4 cylinder is absolutely bullet proof.  We had all Toyota trucks for delivery at the parts store and they all had 250,000++ miles on them.  They were still going strong (couple burned oil though).  The one I drove regularly had 296,000 miles and still got 25mpg in city/short freeway driving.  In the last 2 years/20K miles of ownership on my old '85 Nissan 4x4 I've had zero problems.  I paid only 900 for my truck but you could easily find a Civic, Accord, Corolla, or Toyota truck in your price range.  You can probably also find an older Acura selling for a good price.  The Nissan V6 is also supposed to be one of the best in the industry (older Maxima).  The Nissan 4 cyl (SR20DE) is also an rock solid engine with a forged steel bottom end I believe because in other countries it came as a turbo (SR20DET).  You can also look at an older Subaru Impreza.  The Subarus have excellent service records and being AWD is sweet for all weather conditions and fun handling

Call insurance for quotes.  Its harder to predict insurance on sedans/compacts

[pantablo]

Given the choice I'd go Jetta. My wife had one for 8 years that she bought new (92 m.y.?). Worked great but it did have its issues-far fewer than a cavalier though. But I also think Jetta's are chick cars. Most guys would buy a Golf or GTi instead. Why aren't you considering these? If you do go for a 94 or 97-the most trouble free years golfs ever made. I'm guessing since these years correspond to the year before a major model change that they managed to work out the bugs in these years. My good friend is looking at these and has done the research, that's how I know.

At the very least., apply same logic to the Jetta-buy the last year of a given model style.

Buy a GTi!

[chimivee]

Given the choice I'd go Jetta. My wife had one for 8 years that she bought new (92 m.y.?). Worked great but it did have its issues-far fewer than a cavalier though. But I also think Jetta's are chick cars. Most guys would buy a Golf or GTi instead. Why aren't you considering these? If you do go for a 94 or 97-the most trouble free years golfs ever made. I'm guessing since these years correspond to the year before a major model change that they managed to work out the bugs in these years. My good friend is looking at these and has done the research, that's how I know.

At the very least., apply same logic to the Jetta-buy the last year of a given model style.

Buy a GTi!

I think the only vw's that might prompt question about your sexuality are cabriolets and beetles.  If you want a sedan, get a Jetta; a hatch, get a Golf.  I'm gonna also disagree on the 94/97 most reliable thing too.  The A3 platform was from 93-98 in the US, so it doesn't really match up to a model change.  My GF had a 94 Golf (cause she's tough like that) and it had the usual vw lame-o problems: broken air vent, broken manual window mechanism, broken power door locks, fading clear coat, and a couple of recalls.  But the engine/trans had 125k mi when she sold it and they were solid as day one.

[Blurple VR6]

gm is uber boring...

vw is fun to drive but f...in expensive to fix...i bought a used 97 gti vr6...lots of electrical and obd problems... :x

imo buy a civic si...fun and reliable  

later

[Rich500]

I agree with everyone who says dont buy either. In one weekend we completely decimated a cavalier rental. I mean destroyed. Like couldnt make it back to the lot without being towed.  I had been jumped, and dry ebrake turns were exectuted, but no matter the abuse, its should have still been able to drive. The Jetta, well its bettert han the Cavalier for sure, but is soft, and squishy. The shifter feels like your rowing through Jello. Have fun with the electrical aswell. As long as its not an 8v that has been revved alot (we rebuilt one 2 weeks ago with 180,000KM on it) your in good shape. Just save yourself the hassle, buy a Civic. Hell, even a Focus would be a better choice.

[chimivee]

Well, hang on now, folks.  He said he's already narrowed it down to the Cavalier and Jetta.  And if the only thing in consideration when buying a car was reliability, we'd all be driving Toyotas.  And as much as I may be fixing my not-so-reliable-sometimes-costly-german cars, I really don't want a boring-as-a-bar-of-soap Corolla or a everybody's-got-a-sister-who-has-one Civic.

[ashman]

Take it from a car guy.
The cavalier is GM which in my book means 7yrs or 75k miles then door handles falling off, trannys going out, headliners falling down. Cheap to fix, which is good cuz you'll need lots of fixes. newer cavaliers are ok w/ the ecotec engine. but PASS on 97-00.
Jetta, mmm german engineering meaning, strong rigid frame very safe. Close the doors and you get a idea of the craftsmanship. VW's come w/ some many great standard options so thats a big plus. Reliablity is not as good as japanese but its high. Overall build quality is excellent. Are we talking 1.8 turbo??? if so man those are F U N !!! The standard 2.0ltr is alright, its not a rev monster but w/ a 5spd it can hold its own with  115 hp. But by all means if you have the funds get a VR6 please? for me? The 6 cyl has quicker response then the 1.8t. If your into handleing look into a Wolfsburg.
Thats my two cents, trust me i've driven both. You won't be let down.
Otherwise settle for a Civic, they keep running till the cows come home.

-Ash

[Toenis]

Where I live the police so called special forces (like chase patrols) have VR6 Jettas , they are fast and reliable, trust me, I have even been on the back seat once  
Civics are much more unreliable here in Europe don`t know if this applies to US Civics too...

[Blueknyt]

AS stated, Jetta's Run good and last a good while, But when they start going, they are expensive to fix, and not all that much is doable for the weekend mechanic, some of us more daily shade tree wrenchers might make out ok but still expensive.  the chevy is a cheap car. it was ment to be a cheap car. if taken care of they will last. someone said a rental ruined their weekend? well, i work at an airport, i see ALL rentals, dont think i would trust half of them.   yes the 2.8 V6 is a trash engine, if you get a fresh rebuilt one from a good builder, they are ok, but for most part they are disposable engines. i know this cuz i rebuilt one, never again. the 2.5 chevy 4 cyl is a good little engine. i know im gonna get flamed here, but the pontiac for the longest time used a pontiac/olds design 4 cyl, and those Were garbage. the 92 or so GM 2.5L 4cyl had a flat  valve cover, and i believe came in some early saturns( not completly sure) everyone of these that i have seen that had be even half assed cared for ran well and lasted a long time.  in prev post i stated i rebuilt the topend of my Inlaws car, to have the head milled 12 thou. and valve job was only 142.$ yes 12thou is alot, it was warped like a rainbow and rocked when you put it on flat surface.   point is, the repair was cheap(i did labor) and it was an easy task . i dont expect everyone to fix everything on their cars/bikes, but some things are cheap and some are not, the chevy has shown me to be reliable if cared for.  If abused, your gonna get stuck. like anything else, more toys and fancy BS you get, the more to break and cost.   the Z24/34 and the RS have alot more toys then standard cavalier. those are not worth the extra $ spent on them.

[zoltan]

i gotta agree with the people saying to pass on both. the cavaliers are just straight junk, plus it has all the redneck appeal of an old camaro, without any of the fun stuff. it's cheap to fix, but you'll being fixing it a lot. steer well clear of those.

as other people have said, the vw's have an almost bulletproof engine and transmission, but once you hit about 100k a lot of little stuff will start to go bad, and pars of vw's are really expensive. a lot of german cars are like that.

i'd suggest getting some sort of japanese car. toyotas and nissans are almost indestructable, and the nissans are pretty fun to drive. hondas are also nearly bulletproof, and are really zippy little cars. any of those there makes will keep going long after you've sold it.