I'm late to the party but I have to chime in on the turbo issue. VW's 1.8T problem was on the early engines because they had a small sump (3.5 liters) and came with non-synthetic oil. The result was major sludge. Two changes alleviated the problem: synthetic oil and a larger oil filter were specified. The filter was a quick band-aid to add capacity. After that the engines were bulletproof.

Turbo engines today when run with the proper synthetic oil are very reliable. The only reason to not get the turbo is cost of purchase and cost of operation (lower fuel economy). For me it was worth the expense.

My car has been trouble free except that my bluetooth quit pairing last week and my windows magically lowered themselves last month when it was COLD outside. I've also heard the cold start rattle a few times (sounded like an exhaust shield was rattling at certain RPM's) and my second gear syncro was appearantly left out at the Getrag factory. I'm taking the car in for it's first look over tomorrow morning. I have about 8500 miles on it. I still love the car.