Volkswagen Repair: Car questions, blue book values, motor vehicle division

Question
Hello My name is Alberto as mentioned above. I am resently looking into buying a car. I seem to be very atractive to the Volkswagen golf. I am looking at the models from 2000- 2003. Could you please let me know what king of car quality are they? Should I go for it, or should I stay away from them? If so wich year do you think is the best one between those mentioned before? How reliable are they? How expensive are they in repear, and how often do they break down? how often do they need to be served, to keep it in a mint condition? What are their most common problems?

What kind of diesel engine would I get the most amount of milege? 1.8lt, 1.9lt,or 2.0lt engines?

I had searched everywhere asked so many people, went to the dealership,e-mailed people asking for their help, but so far none of them have actually answer my questions.

Could you please give me a hand?

I am really scared of buying one and discocer later that they are not good. and so far the reviews I have read for the states are awfull, and honestly it has been my biggest turn off in my life so far.

Please help me?
Thanks a lot Alberto.
Have a great day.  

Answer
Alberto, Thank you for your question.  Your question is one in which I hear often.  All i can offer is this advice.  I usually have someone start with Vehix.com then if you are looking at a used car go to Carfax.com.  Both of these sites offer a tremendous amount of information and can give detailed reports on reliability, maintenance, recalls, crash tests, accidents the vehicle has been in, and price comparisons, plus they show “Blue Book” values in your area.  Be sure to always go to a good, repredital dealer.  To find one you can check with your state's Motor Vehicle Division. They will have information on Lemon laws, dealer complaints, and much more.  

In closing, buying a car is no longer as simple as going down to a dealer, throwing down your down payment and driving off the lot.  Much anymore one must do a ton of research on various makes and models before even getting to the lot, in order to not get screwed by the dealers.  

Good Luck.  Hope this helps