KNOXVILLE, Tennessee鈥擶hen I was a little kid, my dad owned an A3 Volkswagen Jetta GLI in Tornado Red, with cloth seats, a spoiler, and BBS wheels. In 2019, the Jetta finally gets what it deserves in the form of the redesigned GLI performance variant, which no longer plays second fiddle to the Golf GTI. The GLI also gets the GTI鈥檚 honeycomb grille, a pair of actual exhaust tips, LED daytime-running lights, a driver-oriented center stack, and a suspension lowered by 0.6 inch compared to the regular Jetta. Patterned heated cloth seats are standard, while ventilation is available. The only-for-2019 35th Anniversary Edition and the top Autobahn trim receive standard Dynamic Chassis Control. It offers five settings鈥擭ormal, Comfort, Eco, Sport, and Custom鈥攖o adjust the powertrain and steering feel, and they offer clear, well-defined differences in character. The modes also affect the adaptive dampers that are (for now) exclusive to the 35th Anniversary car.
VW also includes a limited-slip differential and its XDS brake-based torque-vectoring as standard. The former helps manage wheelspin and improve power delivery, while the latter will brake an inside wheel to aid turn-in and mitigate understeer. Part of our drive took place on the hellaciously windy Tail of the Dragon, the perfect showcase for the aforementioned bits given its 318 corners in just 11 miles of tarmac. They worked well, dialing out push and allowing the car to sprint away from each corner exit with as much grip as possible given the occasionally damp conditions. That said, the manual version鈥擨 wrung out a stick-shift S on a road loop near Lake Santeetlah鈥攊s simply more enthralling. Shift effort is light but precise, and the lever sinks into place with just the right amount of feedback. The clutch is calibrated near perfectly, with a clear engagement point, and the pedal placement and responsive throttle facilitate easy heel-and-toe downshifts.
The brake system includes standard 13.4-inch vented front discs straight off the Golf R. The brake pedal is progressive and communicative, with gentle pressure delivering gentle deceleration and firmer, deeper squeezes giving big stopping power. A passel of driver-assistance technologies is among the standard features the GLI has over the base GTI, which also include dual-zone automatic climate control and LED headlamps. Post-collision braking, forward emergency brake assist, blind-spot monitoring, and rear traffic alert are all included. All GLIs also get VW App-Connect, which allows for phone projection through MirrorLink, Android Auto, or Apple CarPlay, controllable through a touchscreen that measures 6.0 inches by default or 8.0 inches if you pony up more cash. The new Jetta GLI perhaps isn鈥檛 quite as sporty in terms of character or styling as the GTI, but it鈥檚 better than it鈥檚 been in several generations and is a feature-packed, budget-friendly choice for enthusiasts that requires little compromise. I should let my dad know.
When the current-generation car arrived seven years ago, then common compact-car features such as an independent rear suspension, rear disc brakes, a modern infotainment system, and a decent engine were restricted to the richer SEL and sporty GLI models. VW has since added those items to the lower half of the Jetta lineup. Last year, it crowned the Jetta鈥檚 list of recent improvements by replacing the base Jetta鈥檚 ancient eight-valve, 115-hp 2.0-liter inline-four with the thoroughly modern 1.4-liter turbo four evaluated here. We鈥檙e glad Volkswagen finally gave lesser Jettas the same quality mechanicals that elevate the SEL and the GLI. The multilink rear suspension delivers supple ride quality and above-average handling, and the benefits of four-wheel disc brakes are well known. Next to the 170-hp 1.8-liter turbo inline-four that powers the Jetta SEL 1.8T and the 210-hp 2.0-liter turbo four in the Jetta GLI, the 1.4T engine might seem like a pipsqueak.
