~2004 jetta. bought for like 3k? used it for a number of years, sold it to a dealership myself for 1k cash. felt like a made man "winning out" an extra $100 on the bid. also remember not using AC just to save on gas. good times. 

"youth is the only privilege"

i also had a 2004 jetta wolfsburg edition for my first car. it smelled like crayons and lit on fire on a highway in north carolina during a roadtrip to florida.

That sounds like quite an adventure, albeit a dangerous one! It's interesting how certain cars have such memorable quirks. Glad you're safe after that incident!