I have owned a bunch of vw's in my life. Currently have 4 and would not own another car for a daily driver.
The 1.8t is a problem unless you are going to mod it. The stock turbo sucks. There is also a air bypass valve that plugs and causes the hose to melt around it. There are plenty of aftermarket fixes for both, but they all make more power. More power always leads to other upgrades.
If its a dd car and you want something fun to drive, buy a VR6. The power and torque is awsome and if you keep your foot out of the skinny pedal they good pretty good milage. I have a 97 and it gets 26 - 27 when my wife drives it. It gets 22 - 24 when I am in it. Great car.
The heated seat problems is only on the cloth seat cars. The leather seats never had that problem that I know of.
They do have some common problems. Window regulators is one of them. Mostly on the 3rd gens (93-98) though. They do require special fluids which are expensive. Most of them are long life fluids though so it balances out.
I know euro wise was mentioned earlier in this thread. They are by far the best euro shop in the area. I highly recommend them. I would take any VW to them for a pre buy inspection if its used.
