as long as they've been well maintained they will , well the old pre 98 models anyway. quality slipped a bit around that point by all accounts.
It's always seemed to me that VW put less strain on their engines than most manifacturers if you look at bhp/cc figures.
most VW 1.4 's were @60bhp when most other makes were around 75bhp.
1.6's were 75 when others makes were @90 and so on.
I may be talking out of my arse tho', wouldn't be the first time.