Volkswagen Jetta Review

Awesome Value. Period.

This car looks good, feels good and is a long way from the old Jetta you remember from University. A friend of mine just bought this car and brought it over for a quick detail. I was so pleased with the lines. With his permission I snapped a few pics and decided to write about it.

I was impressed.

This car is big, but it didn’t feel big when I was driving it. A two liter, four cylinder, turbo powerplant delivers smooth, strong, but not neck snapping power. The tip tronic transmission was most fun to use.

The engine doesn’t sound like its straining under full load.

Nothing sounds worse than a four cylinder engine under full load if the acoustics are off. This engine didn’t sound like that, in fact the Jetta has a nice sounding engine…as four cylinders go.

The top five reasons I would buy this car are:

1. Cost. In Canada, you can pick this car up for less than $24k for something a year or two old. The car in this post is a 2007. Probably less in the USA. I challenge anyone to find a non Japanese import as good looking as this rig for similar dough.
2. Looks. It just looks good from any angle. I couldn’t believe how good it looked. You’d be proud picking up a hot date or driving buddies to the golf club. VW did a great job with the sheet metal.
3. Size. It’s big enough for four adults and all their stuff. Would make a great weekender. A body would easily fit in the trunk. Maybe two (see my last photo at the bottom).
4. Economy. The four cylinder provides for enough fun, but won’t suck the fuel dry every time you put your foot down.
5. It’s not American. VW dealt with all their quality issues in the last decade and this Jetta is a great example of excellent fit and finish. Being part of the Audi group doesn’t hurt either.

Road view is excellent. The seats are comfortable. Trunk space is huge and easily accessible. Turning radius is good. Fit and finish is great. Front wheel drive will be awesome when the snow flies.

The dash is well laid out and very European. People used to driving high end brands will appreciate Audi’s influence in the instrument cluster.

This car also had some great looking wheels from the factory, which will be very easy to keep clean.

For the money, I think this is a great pick if four doors, style and good economy matter to you.

The trunk is big enough to easily move a body - a very important consideration for some people…