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Soda
Supporter
Username: Soda
Post Number: 3775
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:24 am: | 
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It took me five tries to pass my first road test (1966), resulting in my being given the nickname "Parnelli". Later, I was a NYC cabby. I know lousy driving when I see it, and I've seen plenty. You don't need to sell me on safety to get me to buy a car. I drive a Volvo, & have for twenty-six years.
Now, think about Volkswagon: Since the beloved "beetle", VW's had been known as fun little cars (and far-out vans) with no particular claim to horsepower dominance. Or crash-worthiness. Safety wasn't the selling point. VW's were cheap to buy and operate, and cute, and there was even a cult of Zen VW repair Gurus. Then the marketing experts took control of the company.
First, you had the "Drivers Wanted" ad campaign, which effectively shifted VW's image as a brand to that of "Performance"; as well as upping the ante on the muscle in its cars, VW ads deliberately portrayed its customers as a bunch of gleeful, fiendishly aggressive Gen-Xers, careening merrily around with their music blaring...
Now comes an ad campaign targetting the same hard-core zanies who delight in zipping in and out of lanes on the Parkway in their little Jettas and Cabrios, but now the ads show them having accidents. Bad accidents. Accidents where they get hit from the front, or the side. (Mind you, these are always accidents caused by other drivers...) And what happens? Air bags activate, and the uninjured twenty-somethings in the VW's gratefully turn to each other in dazed amazement: "Wow, man, that coulda been gnarly!"
Okay. So VW's have airbags. Even optional side airbags. It says so in the ads. So now the nudnicks I see tooling around in VW's are thinking, "Hey! I'm driving a SAFE car! I'm invulverable!" Yeah, that's just how we want some of our most inexperienced, speed-crazed young drivers to feel.
This morning I saw the latest VW ad campaign touted on "TODAY" as "bold and courageous, creative and ground-breaking". Well, no, not so much really. All it does is sell dangerous, inconsiderate young drivers on the idea that they can still act like idiots on the road, and get away with it.
Thanks VW. You make me feel all the safer in my Volvo.
-s. |
Innisowen
Citizen
Username: Innisowen
Post Number: 1997
Registered: 3-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:50 am: |
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ground-breaking? No. Neck-breaking or maybe rib-cage- and vertebrae-breaking, yes.
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ML
Supporter
Username: Ml1
Post Number: 2981
Registered: 5-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:54 am: |
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you mean this ad? it's pretty upsetting to watch, even though you know it's not real.
http://www.salon.com/ent/video_dog/ads/2006/04/18/jetta/index.html |
Hoops
Citizen
Username: Hoops
Post Number: 1132
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:55 am: |
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farfegnugen! |
Duncan
Supporter
Username: Duncanrogers
Post Number: 6223
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 9:06 am: |
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ML I think you meant to add this to your post...
http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?g=99df8058-3cba-44b2-a084-62600d3c4276&f=00 |
greenetree
Supporter
Username: Greenetree
Post Number: 7315
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 9:28 am: |
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Well, I gotta tell ya. I am on my 3rd VW. The first was a Jetta, selected for a balance of safety, price, ratings, etc. The second was a Passat for the same reasons, but I wanted more upscale without paying for the Audi. The third was a trade in because it made finanical sense at the time.
Passat #1 was in a couple fender benders which were quite costly to fix. For example, I slid into the back of an SUV at about 5 MPH on an icy night & the damage was $5k (the SUV bumper being much higher than mine.
Passat # 2 was also in an accident. I was going north on Cherry Lane in W.O., crossing Northfield, when a south-bound car jumped in front of me to turn left onto Northfield. I slammed on my breaks, missing him by about a foot. The Ford Expedition behind me was estimated to be going about 45mph when he hit me.
Not only did I walk away with nothing but a major case of whiplash and a 3-day headache from my head slamming against the headrest, but my car was drivable. Not safe, but able to get to the shop. You couldn't even tell it had been hit until you noticed the slight crumpling of the rear wheel wells. It was in the shop for 10 weeks.
I don't know if the commercials are misleading or a scare tactic. But VW ain't lyin'. I'm a devoutee for life. |
Glock 17
Citizen
Username: Glock17
Post Number: 699
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:04 am: |
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Soda....you are obviously not in touch with your inner fast. (Nyuk nyuk nyuk)
"Time to unpimp ze auto." *crash* "Oh, snap!"
-9x19mm |
Tom Reingold
Supporter
Username: Noglider
Post Number: 13759
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:24 am: |
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I agree that it's not so cool to play up this style of driving, but actually, Volkswagens are very crashworthy cars in their respective classes. They don't even play that up. If, for example, you want a crashworthy compact hatchback, you can't do better than a Golf. It beats the pants off the Honda Civic in the crash department.
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Glock 17
Citizen
Username: Glock17
Post Number: 701
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:41 am: |
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Sure doesn't in price... |
greenetree
Supporter
Username: Greenetree
Post Number: 7320
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:47 am: |
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No, but dollar for dollar, you get almost the same car (and more) than an Audi. |
Glock 17
Citizen
Username: Glock17
Post Number: 703
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:48 am: |
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And the new GTi looks so much better than anything Audi could ever put out.
I'd still rather get a Toyota Corolla S and lower that sucker down onto some big rims and low profile tires |
blackcat
Citizen
Username: Blackcat
Post Number: 569
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 12:31 pm: |
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I would love to find out how "crash worthy" my VW would be but it keeps breaking down! If it's not one thing it's another. I love how the VW people keep telling me, "Well, some cars have problems and some never have any."
It's a 99 Passat for God's sake. I'm still waiting for their assesment of my breakdown yesterday on the Turnpike bridge on my way to work. |
Tom Reingold
Supporter
Username: Noglider
Post Number: 13768
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 12:51 pm: |
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Yes, the latest Consumer Reports annual car issue lists Volkswagen as the brand with the most problems over the years, for both new and used cars. Oddly, they left out some big brands, such as Nissan.
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Glock 17
Citizen
Username: Glock17
Post Number: 704
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 12:59 pm: |
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And this is why you get a toyota. |
greenetree
Supporter
Username: Greenetree
Post Number: 7322
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 1:07 pm: |
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I'm desperately looking around my tin-and-formica cell for some wood to knock on.... |
blackcat
Citizen
Username: Blackcat
Post Number: 571
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 1:13 pm: |
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I bought the Volkswagon back in 1999 based on the Consumer Reports ratings. Of course, over the years, after we all fill those surveys out, we find the problems. I just had the pleasure of filling it out last week |
Bob K
Supporter
Username: Bobk
Post Number: 11270
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 1:17 pm: |
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Glock and don't forget the tinted windows and free flow exhaust. Nothing like a couple of kids drag racing their sport compacts in front of the house at 1:00am. |
Glock 17
Citizen
Username: Glock17
Post Number: 705
Registered: 7-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 4:55 pm: |
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I'll be sure to add a NOS injection system and greenglow. |
Soda
Supporter
Username: Soda
Post Number: 3781
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 5:26 pm: |
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The performance characteristics of my old 240-DL Wagon could best be described as "stately".
I donated it to the American Lung Association when it was 18 years old and had 200K+ miles on it.
Anybody have a VW with 100K+ original miles?
-s. |
Tom Reingold
Supporter
Username: Noglider
Post Number: 13781
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 5:31 pm: |
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What's an original mile, and what other kinds of miles are there? I've seen that term over the years and never understood it.
For what it's worth, I had three Saabs, and they went to about 200,000 miles before I got tired of them. But they still ran fine and had no body problems, either.
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ina
Citizen
Username: Ina
Post Number: 342
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 5:43 pm: |
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My 93 Ford Taurus has over 200k and while I've had to fix littler stuff, it hasn't broken down on me. Yet. |
chroma
Citizen
Username: Chroma
Post Number: 30
Registered: 3-2005
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 6:18 pm: |
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We had three Volvos,(sequentially) and while we felt quite safe while we were riding in each of them, we eventually gave up. Each of them required lots (meaning LOTS) of work when they hit around 110,000 miles. So, we assumed that you might be seem to be driving a Volvo to 200,000 miles, but by then you will have changed a majority of the 40,000 parts that it is made of,and are therefore driving, essentially, a completely refurbished car.
We now drive a Honda and a Toyota, both of which have fine safety records. And we don't have to make generous monthly payments into our mechanic's retirement fund...
And, yes, we have found those VW ads creepy...What were those ad people thinking? Clearly, they do not have any young drivers at home! |
greenetree
Supporter
Username: Greenetree
Post Number: 7328
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 8:20 pm: |
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My coworker finally got a new car when her 99 Passat hit 150k. Believe it or not, it was still running just fine.
FWIW, we have "one of the worst cars ever made" (91 Navajo) and it runs just fine. We don't take it further than local errands, although TS drove it into the city when she worked the night shift last year. |
Soda
Supporter
Username: Soda
Post Number: 3785
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 9:14 pm: |
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Tom: "Original miles" refer, as I understand it, to miles driven only by the original owner.
(Thread drift alert)If you buy a used car, there's always the chance that the odometer has been pushed back, ergo you really have no idea (unless you know & totally trust the seller) how much mileage is on the vehicle. "One-owner" used cars should come with all pertinent warranty documentation and service receipts, but many don't. I'd pass those by...
-s. |
Darren Say Grrrrrrrr
Citizen
Username: Darrensager
Post Number: 381
Registered: 11-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 10:23 pm: |
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VW is bringing back the Rabbit nameplate to replace the Golf nameplate. What's old is new again.
I still remember my dad's 1980 Rabbit with a diesel engine. It got 48 MPG. |
doulamomma
Citizen
Username: Doulamomma
Post Number: 1369
Registered: 3-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 10:39 pm: |
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Darren,
My dad had circa '80 Rabbit too! - convertible silver with red & black stiped cloth interior, stick shift. I fondly remember the day he got it & picked me up from school - we put the top down & blasted the heat even though it was starting to snow. I remember sitting in it waiting for the camp bus, being so bored listening to "All Things Considered" on the radio - something I now love! He sold the car to a friend after many years & got a Volvo...says he saw his old car driving around for another 10 years+! |
Copperfield
Citizen
Username: Copperfield
Post Number: 335
Registered: 1-2004
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 10:44 pm: |
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Interesting Soda.
When I saw those ads, I thought that "hey a VW can help protect me from all those idjuts out on the road, in the event I don't react in time."
Hadn't thought that it might also reassure said idjuts that if they keep up their behavior the people they hit won't get badly injured so keep at it. But you have a point... |
Jersey Boy
Citizen
Username: Jersey_boy
Post Number: 557
Registered: 1-2006
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 10:50 pm: |
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I drove a 1968 VW camper as my only car from 1994 till 2004. I bought another Camper (1970) and swapped everything I could, including the engine and transmission. The odometer had probably turned past 999999 before I bought it, and whatever the miles were they were not "original" to anything except the rusty frame.
Tom, that's what "original miles" differentiates.
Weirdest fact about VW is it was Adolf Hitler's idea.
http://www.hitler.org/artifacts/volkswagen/
Drivers wanted?
J.B. |
eliz
Supporter
Username: Eliz
Post Number: 1402
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, April 20, 2006 - 11:23 pm: |
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I think it is really twisted logic to assume people will see these ads and decide they can buy a VW and drive like an idiot and be okay.
The ads are very jarring - every time I see one it gives me the creeps and reminds me to pay attention when I'm driving. Drivers are more distracted these days than ever before and it makes me nervous.
I'm on my second VW and I do find the ads reassuring to some degree but not in a way that would make me reckless.
They are great ads because everyone is talking about them. |
Jay
Citizen
Username: Jaymon
Post Number: 1142
Registered: 10-2004
| | Posted on Friday, April 21, 2006 - 7:48 am: |
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....I love the ads and love my Passat.
And now for a thread drift......
Mem? YOU ARE HOTTER!!!! |
Soda
Supporter
Username: Soda
Post Number: 3786
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Friday, April 21, 2006 - 10:54 am: |
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Yeah, I'm sure that there are lots of responsible, safety-oriented VW owners out there on the roads, and it's nice that the new ads may make them feel good about their purchases (if they didn't already), and reinforce their conviction (which is shared, I might add, by most of the driving population over the age of thirty) that "it's a jungle out there".
And remember: when most auto makers target the "youth market", they use ads touting little cars that will "put them in touch with their fast", or "set them free", or give them protection from crash injury, or make 'em more sexy or popular or whatever.
But it's still scary (and hardly twisted) to realize that when you see those little cars on the road doing incredibly dumb stuff,
A) they're probably being driven by young drivers who think they're gonna live forever, and
2) the cars just aren't all that crashworthy to begin with, despite the pitch of those "jarring" ads,
... Which means that a lot of those young drivers (and some of us older Volvo Liberals as well) will be making premature exits.
I know it's unrealistic to expect, but I just wish that ads pandering to our grey matter worked as well as those targetting our hormones. But they don't. So I'm betting that out there on the roads this summer, you'll be seeing just as many young drivers involved in just as many grisly accidents as before. That is, if you can afford the gas to leave your driveway. Which is a rant for another thread...
-s. |
Dave
Supporter
Username: Dave
Post Number: 9262
Registered: 4-1997
| | Posted on Friday, April 21, 2006 - 11:23 am: |
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Brett Weir
Citizen
Username: Brett_weir
Post Number: 1472
Registered: 4-2004
| | Posted on Friday, April 21, 2006 - 11:59 am: |
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I'm sorry, but I still harken back to the National Lampoon ad that parodied the VW pushed off a cliff and floating to the top of the water below (It floats!). The NatLamp ad showed a Bug floating on water with the tag line:
}"If Ted Kennedy drove a Volkswagen, he'd be President today". |
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