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TheCarConnection.com has driven the 2010 Volkswagen Jetta to bring you this hands-on review that covers styling, performance, safety, utility, and features from on-the-road observations. TheCarConnection.com's editors also researched reviews from other sources to give you a comprehensive range of opinions from around the Web-and to help you decide which ones to trust.High Gear Media drove a manufacturer-provided Volkswagen Jetta to produce this hands-on road test.
Likes:
- Dual-clutch automatic transmission
- Tight handling
- Spacious interior, impressive materials
- Clean-diesel gas mileage
Dislikes:
- Bland, unremarkable styling
- Lack of options
- Five-cylinder thirst, sluggishness
With a five-cylinder gasoline engine, a new clean diesel option, and even a station wagon model, the Jetta provides a European alternative to compact sedans from Honda, Toyota, Nissan, and Ford-none of which offers a diesel. It vastly outsells the five-door Golf hatchback with which it shares some running gear, proving once again that sports sedans are a safer bet than hot hatches for U.S. buyers. The gasoline models start at $17,605, and the clean-diesel TDI starts at $22,660.
The current Jetta saw a restyle in 2006, when it became significantly roomier but adopted a design that critics think is too close to its Japanese competition. Some critics have grumbled that the new Jetta looks too much like a large Toyota Corolla and not enough like its crisply European predecessors. The interior, though, is superbly Volkswagen, with a sophisticated look and feel to the materials, switches that work smoothly and crisply, and even grab handles that are nicely damped. For 2010, the cabin trim and instrument panel are lightly restyled.
The base engine in the 2010 Jetta is a 170-horsepower, 2.5-liter inline gasoline five-cylinder with 177 pound-feet of torque. (The turbocharged 2.0-liter four offered in former years has been discontinued, along with the sporty GLI model.) The aging five is neither particularly fast nor fuel-efficient paired with either a notchy five-speed manual or a six-speed automatic. A five-speed manual transmission is standard on the S and SE models; the SEL comes with a five-speed automatic, which is optional on the other two. The EPA rates gas mileage at 22 mpg city, 30 highway for the five-cylinder with the manual, and 23/30 for the automatic.
