1975-1981 Volkswagen Dasher
The Dasher was Volkswagen's second front-drive car. Most of the technology used to make it (and the Audi Fox, which was basically cloned from the
Dasher) came from the NSU and DKW/Auto Union companies, which were absorbed into VW in the late 1960's. The NSU connection came through the
K-70, VW's first front-drive, which was originally destined to be an NSU but ended up a VW after NSU was absorbed into VW in 1970. Of course, most
everything else came from VW. VW had high hopes for the Dasher, as a replacement for the moderately successful 411/412 series of the sixties and
early seventies, but it didn't work out so well for the Dasher.
Problems with the electrical, cooling, exhaust, ignition, air conditioning, and carburetor
systems all cropped up by 1980. Five engines were offered in the Dasher, a 1.5 liter gasoline powered four-cylinder, a 1.6 liter gas four, a 1.7 liter
fuel-injected gas four, and 1.5 and 1.6 liter diesel fours. None of these engines ran particularly well, and all the gas motors are known for rocker arm wear
and rough idle. The diesels were barely able to move the cars, and those engines had problems too. The rear suspension of the Dasher had a nasty
reputation for bottoming out when bearing a heavy load of people and stuff, not something thatĘs pleasant to experience or good for the car.
Today, the
Dasher has the distinction of having the lowest trade-in value of any car currently in the online Kelly Blue book used car guide (www.kbb.com), a
whopping $40. Stay away from the Dasher, no matter how good the deal is. 
