2018 Update
I took delivery on IBW this month 16 years ago. It now has 364K on it, and it got its annual detail this week, so I thought I'd post an updated photo.
I've now got 364K on the car, about 17K miles more than a year ago. Engine has just over 70K on it, runs excellent. No oil consumption. I had the A/C serviced last spring which included a new compressor, receiver/drier, and expansion valve. A/C now works great. And last month I got a new set of all season tires, General Altimax 43s. $237 at Tire Rack with the rebate before shipping, not a bad deal. I do like 15" wheels.
I've had some difficulty shifting from 2nd to 3rd without the gears grinding, and the transmission has been reluctant to downshift fro 5th to 4th. After two fills of Pennzoil Synchromesh, the grinding is gone and the 5/4 shift is manageable. I do have a BEW transmission with 95K on it sitting in my garage when the time comes to change it out.
Otherwise the car has been trouble free. I haven't used it for as many long drives as I have previously: My GSW went to Detroit in January, partly because there were 4 of us and sitting the back seat of a MKIV has never been much fun. It's been to NYC a few times, and to Western MA a bunch, but otherwise it's my daily driver. I still look forward to driving it, and it still delivers great FE, as shown by my most recent tank:
For years I've been thinking that at some point I'd grow tired of this car or that it would become unreliable or too expensive to keep on the road. Not yet. I've owned a bunch of VWs, but this is hands down the best one. VW really got this car right.