[soulmax]

Hello everyone.

I have been reading a lot of discussions on this forum for about a month now and I have just joined. I actually have deposit on incoming Taos which is super delayed. (It's been 2 weeks AFTER their maximum ETA date. It's still in Mexico factory as of today)

I have test drove one and it drove fine of course I didn't get super long time with it. I wasn't super impressed but I did enjoy the low-mid torque for a compact suv at this price point. And most importantly the car fits my needs and criteria. I need a car to be cheap(Trim S FWD with NOTHING on it), spacious(as I carry large items often for work) and good Highway MPG (I drive 120 miles a day and over 110 is highway).
I got $500 off msrp and I was pretty happy as everyone in my area is doing unreal mark-ups on pretty much all cars these days.

I have never owned a VW and I'm not here to start arguments of any sort but I wanted some honest opinions from you guys in terms of reliability on your Taos. After reading some discussions, it seemed that Taos are having some major reliability issues such as fuel, cv boots/axle, infotainment system, car turning off, hesitation from engine or tranny and etc. Of course car being so new and anything and everything is hard to get these days, parts from VW seems to be running low and sometimes without a certain eta on those parts that are necessary to repair the problems even under warranty.

I know other brands/models have issues/problems as well and not just Taos. And I do understand that car is fairly new and most people may not have put enough mileage on the vehicle to chime in. However in HONEST opinion, would you be able to RECOMMEND Taos as a reliable vehicle?

I do have an option to cancel my deposit without any penalty even after the car arrives at the dealership.
I am actually very excited about owning Taos, but am super worried due to many problems people been having and mostly those problems are pretty major where the car can't be driven OR parts aren't available so car can't be driven. I wanted some honest opinion from actual owners before I pull the trigger.
Thank you very much for reading this crazy long story and please chime in if possible.

 

[derekdal]

as you've highlighted, you're not going to get a perspective on reliability considering the age of the Taos fleet, its too new. We love ours and would buy it again. we replaced a jetta that we put 265,000mi on. the jetta had some larger reparis in that time period but most cars would. paying for the repairs to keep it going was less expensive than getting a different car.

some of the items you've listed from your reading are guesses at issues (CV and related in that thread, I don't think it is a CV issue for that person). many of the other issues have been fixed via software that youread about and listed. I'd say most has been addressed.

the parts issue is a world wide problem across many industries, not much to do about it.

I"d say you'll be very happy with it. it is a great driving car and you are not loosing much by getting the S. its the same engine, transmission, suspension as all the FWD models. other manufacturers out there, you are getting lower end core components with the cheapest model. usually smaller, cheaper engines and transmissions with fewer gears.

 

[BobU]

Just turned 1200 miles. Did a 200 mile trip yesterday with 38.2 mpg highway and 35.4 combined

been reliable. My only complaints are things omitted like glove box light, turn indicators on mirrors, lumbar only in and out and no height adjustment, a handful more and inexpensive materials used like cheaper hard plastics, interior carpets etc.

 

[karen.forgash]

Hello everyone.

I have been reading a lot of discussions on this forum for about a month now and I have just joined. I actually have deposit on incoming Taos which is super delayed. (It's been 2 weeks AFTER their maximum ETA date. It's still in Mexico factory as of today)

I have test drove one and it drove fine of course I didn't get super long time with it. I wasn't super impressed but I did enjoy the low-mid torque for a compact suv at this price point. And most importantly the car fits my needs and criteria. I need a car to be cheap(Trim S FWD with NOTHING on it), spacious(as I carry large items often for work) and good Highway MPG (I drive 120 miles a day and over 110 is highway).
I got $500 off msrp and I was pretty happy as everyone in my area is doing unreal mark-ups on pretty much all cars these days.

I have never owned a VW and I'm not here to start arguments of any sort but I wanted some honest opinions from you guys in terms of reliability on your Taos. After reading some discussions, it seemed that Taos are having some major reliability issues such as fuel, cv boots/axle, infotainment system, car turning off, hesitation from engine or tranny and etc. Of course car being so new and anything and everything is hard to get these days, parts from VW seems to be running low and sometimes without a certain eta on those parts that are necessary to repair the problems even under warranty.

I know other brands/models have issues/problems as well and not just Taos. And I do understand that car is fairly new and most people may not have put enough mileage on the vehicle to chime in. However in HONEST opinion, would you be able to RECOMMEND Taos as a reliable vehicle?

I do have an option to cancel my deposit without any penalty even after the car arrives at the dealership.
I am actually very excited about owning Taos, but am super worried due to many problems people been having and mostly those problems are pretty major where the car can't be driven OR parts aren't available so car can't be driven. I wanted some honest opinion from actual owners before I pull the trigger.
Thank you very much for reading this crazy long story and please chime in if possible.

I have a little over 2000 miles on my S 4motion and are very happy with it. I had a tiny issue with a valve go wrong. I was able to drive while the part came in. It took 3 weeks not a big deal. It had to do with emissions. Otherwise everything has been perfect. Mine was made in December and I have not had any issues that others have talked about.

 

[blnewto]

8000 trouble free miles. Had a check engine light come on for a fuel venting part, light was off for 5000 miles, came back on again, I cleared the code and it's been off for 2500 miles. It's a part that doesn't have an affect on the performance of the vehicle.
Takes some seat time to get used to the acceleration/turbo behavior but it's a pretty quick learning curve. I do love the interior room, the overall handling, visibility and fuel economy.

A few things they could improve (or include)
Easier to use trip odometer
Better horn
Power assist hatch
Windshield wipers that you can easily flip up rather than having to use "service mode".
USB ports for data rather than just for charging
Center armrest that's bigger than a muffin top
Better XM radio menu w/ easy channel scrolling and more presets

 

[BobU]

A few things they could improve (or include)
Easier to use trip odometer
Better horn
Power assist hatch
Windshield wipers that you can easily flip up rather than having to use "service mode".
USB ports for data rather than just for charging
Center armrest that's bigger than a muffin top
Better XM radio menu w/ easy channel scrolling and more presets

Agree on most. But my ports DO work for music and media.

 

[SomeDude]

700 miles of my daughter learning to drive on it and no issues so far. It is my 20th VW to date (have a 2021 and a 2019 GTI currently as well).

 

[derekdal]

yeah the usb ports do work for data for USB stick and for phone

 

[blnewto]

Agree on most. But my ports DO work for music and media.

I need to convert to a stick vs. my MP3 as that doesn't work w/ my USBs

 

[derekdal]

yes, it won't work with MP3 player, only sticks and phones

 

[Lskywalker77]

Great thread start soulmax,

I'm a new owner for about 5 days AWD, SEL version. Bought my wife a Tiguan SEL AWD 4motion n in Decmeber which is a similar build. We love both vehicles. Similar to you I was on this forum for the last 4-6 weeks and realized it is hit or miss with what I seem to think is less than 1% that are having issues. I spoke with the dealer about reliability concerns etc. But there's where your two-year (I negotiated 1 more for 3 total at no charge) comes into play, and got $750 under msrp. It's getting 25+ mpg but I do mostly in town driving. I've heard some are getting nearly 40mpg on highway. I'd say keep the deposit since your under msrp as well, test drive it when it comes in and decide from there.

 

[BobU]

 

[soulmax]

I appreciate so many of you replying. I think I shall keep the deposit for now as its still unsure if my car has even been assembled yet. If you are one of the owner/ex-owner who had problems in the past that was serious enough for you to be out of the car until repair was finished, could you please write down your experience with that?
I did hear about the sensitive/abrupt throttle with the car as sometimes it has zero acceleration and sometimes it's a full surge of acceleration. Is it a constant thing where you are used to it after few thousand miles or is it something totally random where it isn't something you can control?

Anyone done any real MPG testing that's not on the trip computer itself? I am still very excited about the car and the fact that it may get 35+mpg on highway on a vehicle that is so spacious without being a hybrid.
Thank you all again and keep the replies coming
Btw what's the correct plural for Taos?

 

[k.aoi]

Almost 7,000 miles on mine now, no issues. As others said it's too new to say for sure, but the same vehicle with different badging and sheetmetal has been on sale in Europe for years now and I haven't seen reports of them catastrophically failing all over the place.

 

[blnewto]

I appreciate so many of you replying. I think I shall keep the deposit for now as its still unsure if my car has even been assembled yet. If you are one of the owner/ex-owner who had problems in the past that was serious enough for you to be out of the car until repair was finished, could you please write down your experience with that?
I did hear about the sensitive/abrupt throttle with the car as sometimes it has zero acceleration and sometimes it's a full surge of acceleration. Is it a constant thing where you are used to it after few thousand miles or is it something totally random where it isn't something you can control?

Anyone done any real MPG testing that's not on the trip computer itself? I am still very excited about the car and the fact that it may get 35+mpg on highway on a vehicle that is so spacious without being a hybrid.
Thank you all again and keep the replies coming
Btw what's the correct plural for Taos?

The acceleration has been consistent, it's just different than what I've been used to driving. Never owning a turbo and mainly having driven higher output V6 & V8s which have more linear acceleration it just took a bit to get used to the lag and rather sudden rise in acceleration. It's pretty smooth operation now, just a bit of a learning curve. If you're used to small turbo engines this may not seem so dramatic, and as of now it's no longer dramatic for me too In fact it's quite fun to get on this little motor, it thinks it's much larger

 

[derekdal]

I've now taken it up to very high altitude a few times and it is very impressive climbing the hills and even passing people up the hills. I had a non-turbo 5.7L and it had issues maintaining 60mph at 10,000ft high going up a certain hill on the interstate. the little taos has no issues at 12,000ft accelerating to pass up hill.

 

[CRVW]

yes, it won't work with MP3 player, only sticks and phones

Sticks and phones may break my bones...

 

[Ravenblack67]

Hello everyone.

I have been reading a lot of discussions on this forum for about a month now and I have just joined. I actually have deposit on incoming Taos which is super delayed. (It's been 2 weeks AFTER their maximum ETA date. It's still in Mexico factory as of today)

I have test drove one and it drove fine of course I didn't get super long time with it. I wasn't super impressed but I did enjoy the low-mid torque for a compact suv at this price point. And most importantly the car fits my needs and criteria. I need a car to be cheap(Trim S FWD with NOTHING on it), spacious(as I carry large items often for work) and good Highway MPG (I drive 120 miles a day and over 110 is highway).
I got $500 off msrp and I was pretty happy as everyone in my area is doing unreal mark-ups on pretty much all cars these days.

I have never owned a VW and I'm not here to start arguments of any sort but I wanted some honest opinions from you guys in terms of reliability on your Taos. After reading some discussions, it seemed that Taos are having some major reliability issues such as fuel, cv boots/axle, infotainment system, car turning off, hesitation from engine or tranny and etc. Of course car being so new and anything and everything is hard to get these days, parts from VW seems to be running low and sometimes without a certain eta on those parts that are necessary to repair the problems even under warranty.

I know other brands/models have issues/problems as well and not just Taos. And I do understand that car is fairly new and most people may not have put enough mileage on the vehicle to chime in. However in HONEST opinion, would you be able to RECOMMEND Taos as a reliable vehicle?

I do have an option to cancel my deposit without any penalty even after the car arrives at the dealership.
I am actually very excited about owning Taos, but am super worried due to many problems people been having and mostly those problems are pretty major where the car can't be driven OR parts aren't available so car can't be driven. I wanted some honest opinion from actual owners before I pull the trigger.
Thank you very much for reading this crazy long story and please chime in if possible.

I have owed many cars over the last four decades. Each brand has had its share of good and bad. My TAOS is my 4th VW since 2008. So far, after 6,000 miles and six months, it has been trouble free and reliable.

 

[SomeDude]

View attachment 827

That's it?? This was in my GTI this morning. I think if I did the same route with the Taos, I could go over 50 MPG.

 

[BobU]

Wow!