Why does volkswagen have a bad reliability rating? Is the Golf an unreliable car?

I'm interesting in possibly buying a Golf TDI. The only thing holding me back, is that JDPower (and some other places) seem to claim that Volkswagen has poor reliability. Are these findings based on, perhaps, a particular model? Is it all volkswagens in general? I don't want to purchase a car that is going to keep breaking...Why does volkswagen have a bad reliability rating? Is the Golf an unreliable car?I am a firm believer that those type of magazines get paid to say one thing or the other, my 32 years of being around Volkswagen's (as my dad is a general manger at a VW dealership) has shown me they are very reliable.. that being said it all depends how you take care of your car too, I have seen brand new cars that a lady never changed the oil in for 50,000 miles seize up and she had the nerve to blame VW for the problem! so it all depends on the owner in the end.Why does volkswagen have a bad reliability rating? Is the Golf an unreliable car?Vws are great cars very reliable, but the maintenace schedule has to be kept up on them, or problems accumulate, and things go south quick! Make sure the car has a good service record, if it does, it will let you know what you will need to do in the near future, and what has already been done! If you buy a car with no service records, you are just guessing. The timing belt, waterpump, and tensioner has to be changed at 75-80k, and this MUST be done, other than that, keep the oil changed , change the filters, it will go a LONG time! Go to TDIClub.com, read up on some of the FAQs and forums, learn about them. Sticks are a lot better than the automatics, autos can cost 4K to rebuild! I have had VWs all my driving life, wouldnt drive anything else!Why does volkswagen have a bad reliability rating? Is the Golf an unreliable car?Dude, not sure what planet you're living on exactly, but VW (like all German cars) have a fantastic reliability rating, and always have done!