You guys keep talking about the electrical and mechanical problems with VW. My experience has been nothing like that. I have owned three diesel VW's: 1980 Dasher wagon - 1981-1990, 1990 Jetta - 1990-2004, 2004 Jetta - 2004 to present. I have had to replace one headlight in each of the Jetta's and one backup light bulb in the '04. That is it. I had 150,000 miles on the 1980 Dasher and I averaged 48 mpg. My 1990 Jetta had 165,000 miles on it when I sold it to a friend. Last I heard it was still running with 210,000 on it. The current Jetta has 105,000 miles on it and runs perfect and I average 44 mpg and have seen 50 on trips.
My 2002 Explorer has been pretty reliable if you don't count the transfer case solenoid replacement and right rear window motor replacement.
So based on my experience VW has it over Ford. My new job requires a lot of travel, so I will look at the new Passat in a couple of months. I like Ford, but they won't build what I want.