Bought a new auto V6 in 2000, with the idea that when the 10 yr. service contract expired, we’d sell it (loved how it drove, but knew/know that long term durability is not what this car is known for). Now has only 89K, running fine. We like to hang on to cars, but afraid this one will become a money pit. Anyone have relevant experience with this car?
No experience with the car, but if you’re worried, start looking for a new ride now.
If you don’t find anything right away, you can always check something out later. If the car is running good you don’t have to worry just yet. When/If something big happens to it, then you’ve got a good idea of the car you want to get and don’t have to “hurry up and buy something right away”. The salesmen can usually smell those kinds of people when they pull into the lot and will be able to get more money from them than an informed, patient buyer.
Thanks. What I fear is a cascade of $500-$1000 repairs, each of which makes us feel more invested in keeping the car, and that need to be done even to sell it, but that lead to pouring good money after bad. Would love to know what other owners of this car have experienced. Believe me, I am also looking for a new ride! You responded to a post on that topic as well 
Gosh,I dont know,you have driven this long.Apparently you have taken good care of this Car and it has been rewarding you with good service cant imagine you getting much money out of it.Probaly the halfshafts or cv joints,does it have a timing belt?(if so then replace it) my advice is keep the car-Kevin
Your car is now 13 years old. You should expect $500 to $1000 repair bills on a car that age. An alternator is $300, steering rack $500-600, AC compressor $600, etc. If these kinds of things really scare you, then it is time for a new car.
Why not just budget for $2,000 a year in repairs? You might not need that much, but you can’t expect $0 either at this point. I have an '03 Civic with 120K miles, an '01 Sequoia with 125K miles, and an 04 T’bird with 65K miles and I’m keeping them all for many more years. Yet, I know there are some big repair bills out there running cars this old and with the miles. I just can’t handle car payments for new cars, but I do budget money for repairs each year to keep them going.
The biggest failure is the auto transmission. If it goes bad, you are looking at $2,000 to 3,000. That’s why maintenance on the auto trans is so important. With VW’s they come with “lifetime” fluid and don’t recommend regular transmission maintenance. This causes many VW auto transmissions to fail before 100K miles. If you have not serviced your transmission (as VW recommends) that could be your ticking time bomb.
I would keep driving it and fix things as they occur. It’s cheaper than buying a new car and incurring all that depreciation. A 13 year old car can be very reliable. We just disposed of a very reliable 18 year old car, but it was getting rusty.
Ah, yes I did. Even made another post there, too. 
I’ve heard VW(most euro brands for that matter) are pretty pricey in terms of repairs and maintenance. So I’d say go with your instinct that throwing good money after bad isn’t a good idea. Look at the cars I suggested in your other thread and good luck with your search.
I would keep driving it and when it has too many repairs, get a new car. BTW, almost any repairs at this stage could be considered maintenance. But you have taken care of the car, and that is most of the battle against repairs.
But if you value trouble-free operation, it is time to consider another vehicle. And next time, don’t get that 10 year extended warranty. If you pay for the few repairs you need, it will be a lot less expensive than the warranty.
Your car is almost 12 years old. I don’t know what your car is worth, but it has probably depreciated to the point where you won’t get much either selling it outright or trading it in. What you get beyond this point in time is less expensive than a new car. You might as well get the value out of it by keeping it. If it needs a repair and the repair is more than half the value of the car, then is the time to get the replacement.