How much is too much for repairs & maintenance?

I have a 1996 Golf GL, purchased in June 2000 with 43,000 miles at the time. Now I have 76, 500 miles and have spent what I consider a horrendous amount of money in upkeep. Before I list everything, keep in mind that I work with a bunch of "good old boys" that drive Ford and Chevy pickup trucks who constantly tell me to get rid of that "furrin' crap." Some of the money I have spent has been of my own stupidity, by not shopping around for exhaust prices and trying to fix rust when the only real way to do it is to replace the entire piece in question. At any rate, here's my list:
1). Exhaust system...........................$379
2.) Timing belt & tune-up at 60K.........$285
3.) 2 failed rust repairs & paint...........$422
4.) new rear gate (see # 3)...............$1214
5.) 1/2 hr analysis of "check engine"...$35
6.) new upper strut mts & struts..........$456
7.) new tires (all 4) & alignment..........$293
8.) a different exhaust pipe.................$27
9.) Oxygen sensor & vaccuum hose.....$240

Total:..............................................$3351
This has racked up in just 21 months of ownership, where in the past with domestic cars, this amount would have taken 6 or 7 years to occur. The argument I give to the "good old boys" is that my car will last 250,000 miles, and even if I spend another $4000-5000 on it during its useful life, it will still only end up costing me $1800-2000 a year to operate, since it only cost $10600 initially, and I drive almost 20,000 miles a year. I also have yet to see any American car that will go beyond about 180,000 miles before the engine's shot. I need opinions out there....
Does this sound reasonable or am I fooling myself? I know that many people spend thousands on mods, but I just have a stock VW.