The Jetta is a difficult car. The Mk7 comes at a time when it鈥檚 almost guaranteed to look unsuccessful as sedans fall increasingly out of fashion and subprime lending and cheap gas lead to more and more luxury SUV sales. The whole industry is going upmarket but making an economy car feel luxurious without costing a fortune is an especially tall order. But, Volkswagen volume in America still depends on the little betrunked Golf and so Volkswagen鈥檚 engineers have had the task making a thousand little cuts to make up for the expenditures in infotainment and quality. These are all expensive features, so something鈥檚 gotta give. And that鈥檚 where VW鈥檚 been wise, cutting out things that you鈥檙e likely never to notice. Except that I鈥檓 bringing them up here, so-okay-you might notice, but you won鈥檛 miss them. Things like the latch on the cover of the armrest cubby hole. If I asked you to mime opening the storage compartment between the driver and the passenger, your fingers would instinctively curl to open the latch that guards your treasures.
It鈥檚 instinctive because that little latch is in everything. It doesn鈥檛 really do anything and unless you鈥檙e jumping your car across downed bridges like the General Lee, there鈥檚 no real risk of the armrest ever opening. So why not simplify the production process and just get rid of it if? I鈥檒l give you another example. You know how whenever you open the hood on a car nowadays, you鈥檙e greeted by a piece of plastic with a brand badge on it hiding everything in the engine compartment? Yeah, that doesn鈥檛 happen in the Jetta. It鈥檚 almost unnerving to just see an engine with nothing covering it in a modern car, but you don鈥檛 really miss it. I know that these are used as sound deadening material, but if I hadn鈥檛 looked under the hood I would have never known. So it鈥檚 not like the Jetta is loud or unrefined inside. Remember when the NC Miata came out and Mazda was shaving grams off every little thing to make it as light as possible? Volkswagen鈥檚 kind of doing the same thing with the Jetta, except it鈥檚 shaving cents off it wherever it can.
It鈥檚 not the type of exciting engineering that grabs headlines, but it really is important and useful for an economy car like this. Not all of the cost-cutting measures were so small, though. The elephant in the room that is the Jetta is the torsion beam suspension. It鈥檚 antiquated technology that you can find as far back as the 鈥?0s. Effectively, your axle becomes part of the suspension, locating the wheels. It鈥檚 anything but ideal for performance applications (the GLI will eschew the torsion beam), but here鈥檚 thing: who cares? Sure, it鈥檚 old technology, but so is the wheel. What really matters is does it work? For the Jetta, the answer is yes. During an average day鈥檚 driving it feels great: soft over bumps, steady through high-speed corners. And when you do engage in some spirited driving the Jetta can handle it just fine. In fact, one of the 鈥渄isadvantages鈥?of the torsion beam is that it has a tendency to oversteer, which, thanks to VW鈥檚 Arizona Proving Grounds test track, I can confirm is what this car tends towards. But it鈥檚 still a FWD car, so it鈥檚 not like it was eager to swap ends or anything.
Same goes for the 1.4-liter engine (making 147 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque). Sure, it鈥檚 small and it doesn鈥檛 sound all that great, but-along with better aerodynamics and an AC unit that has an eco mode-it contributes to the car鈥檚 40 mpg highway rating. Sure, along with the literally brand new 8-speed auto, it鈥檚 not exactly fast (0-60 hasn鈥檛 been announced yet, estimates put it at 7.6 seconds) but it moves. And in the 6-speed manual, with which you can hang on to revs, it can actually hustle. It doesn鈥檛 feel like a GTI, but there is a pleasing wave of torque to ride. It seems odd to be talking about fuel economy in an era of SUVs and Hellcats, but it makes sense in the class. And that sacrifice, along with the rest, means that the Jetta punches above that weight class in a number of areas. Offering the digital cockpit (SEL and SEL Premium only), which allows you nip at an Audi鈥檚 heels, an honestly very good infotainment system (MIB II), and a design that really looks good, you鈥檙e more than getting your money鈥檚 worth.
I was recently in a BMW X2, and while it鈥檚 a little more powerful, I would honestly rather spend time inside the Jetta. Both use soft-touch plastics extensively, both have colorful interior lighting, and neither is particularly cheery, but the Jetta鈥檚 design is a little cleaner and it doesn鈥檛 really miss out on any meaningful features. Automotive journalists often come down hard on accountants, accusing them of stealing fun for profit. But really, our problem isn鈥檛 with the accountants, it鈥檚 with automakers that see their responsibility to investors as more important than their responsibility to consumers. Those automakers take money out of the car and put it into their pockets, effectively cheating buyers. And while Volkswagen has taken money out of the car, saving wherever it could, the money feels like it went right back into the Jetta. VW didn鈥檛 cheat you, it just had a budget. You still get all of your value and then some. Look, it鈥檚 not the most exciting, nor the sexiest car VW鈥檚 ever made. It鈥檚 a Jetta. But, in that it鈥檚 a good product, made well, for not very much, it鈥檚 among the cars that most deserves its VW badge. It鈥檚 good. Now, for God鈥檚 sake buy it.
