My Dream Car, But...
Certainly not without it's flaws. Driving the L4 2.0 ABA engine Jetta GT, myself, I'll say the handling (especially cornering) is superb, and there's a considerable zippiness to the car once it launches from a start; this is especially noticeable in 3rd gear, where the powerband seems to be strongest. The engine is a measly 115HP that leaves something to be desired when you're in 5th gear on the freeway; that said, pushing back down into 3rd will give you enough oomph to smoke most modern cars, even stock.
Mine being 20 years old now, it has some other issues as well, such as having had to replace the driver's side lock (the mechanism from the original had literally crumbled to dust from wear), and an airbag check light that seems to indicate that the contacts for the instrument cluster need to be cleaned, which is apparently a not too uncommon issue with the Mk3/A3 platform in general.
The cushions are a little firmer (but still in very obviously good condition) than I'm comfortable with, and there's not quite enough legroom in the back if you've got a taller passenger in the front, but the driver's seat is positioned in a way (along with boxy windows that are simply larger in size than most other rounded ones) that gives great visibility when driving.
Most everything else I've dealt with myself has been more the car's age than anything wrong with the initial build quality of the car itself, however, so there isn't much more I could say other than I absolutely adore my Jetta despite its flaws.
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