It was a good car, it was a fun car. A little sporty and zippy. I could sit at a stop light and rev the engine making the most wonderful testosterone filled sound. We had 6 fun filled (expensive) years together. Alas he got old and had to retire. The older he got the more leaks he developed(don't we all). Had to go to the Dr. (mechanic) way too often. And needed too many parts replaced.
I hated to get rid of him (I say him because the licence plate was RIK). Plus it is the only way I got a man to drive me around. ;) Anyway he gets to retire in the Tri-cities (for now anyway).
I traded the Jetta towards a 2003 Honda CRV. I needed something that I could haul things with like small furniture, camping stuff, luggage and such. I also wanted the ability to tow. Someday I would love to have a small camper and/or a 4 wheeler. I thought about a truck but I wanted to be able to hold 4 adults comfortably with out having a large vehicle. I have also found that I need something higher off the ground and with 4WD/AWD for the lovely winters we get up here.
I was able to find one with a manual transmission (my preference), all wheel drive, moon roof, and an OK amount of miles (67,000). I have been able to talk to many CRV owners and they love their car and it lasts for a long time. A couple people I talked to have a 1999 CRV's (2 years younger than the Jetta) and have had no major repairs. One of them has 130,000 miles and it is still running great. Hopefully mine will last at least that long and be great in the winter.
