According to the Salt Lake Tribune, 19-year-old Steven Ray Becky was driving in his 2010 Volkswagen Jetta near 15050 S. Winged Bluff Lane at around 8.30 am on Friday, May 31, when he hit the young girl. Eining said Becky was driving on the wrong side of the road and turned into the girl, who was pushing her electric scooter along. Home surveillance in the area captured the horrific accident. Becky allegedly confessed to the bystander that he was high on Xanax and marijuana, and later, while being treated at the hospital, told the doctors that he had taken LSD and eaten psychedelic mushrooms. During an interview, he then reportedly admitted to investigators that he knew the 11-year-old because he was staying with a family member whose child is friends with her and he swerved his car into her "because she was white". The 11-year-old was taken to a Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City in serious condition. She was luckily wearing a helmet at the time, and Eining expressed that it might just have saved her life. Becky has been charged with attempted criminal homicide and DUI with serious bodily injury over the weekend.
The best part of the new interior is the dashboard (it has a bit of Golf DNA), which wraps around the driver鈥檚 field of vision. The center touchscreen is higher and angled toward the driver (no more fumbling down by the gearshift). All the controls are logically at hand, and the buttons and dials have a higher-quality feel and action. The seats 鈥?cloth for the base, leather at the top and leatherette for most models 鈥?are a new design, firmly supportive and comfortable for a long day of driving. Sadly for the front passenger, however, the shotgun chair is no longer height-adjustable. Comfort over a long drive is enhanced by a cabin that, for 2019, is quiet enough for easy conversation at highway speeds. The new cabin also adds needed practicality, including deep door pockets with big water bottle holders, a larger center console bin and a big soft-surface phone bin at the front of the console. A small but thoughtful detail that others should copy: The console bin has a light-gray interior that makes it much easier to find things at the bottom.
Console storage space is helped by a new electronic parking brake, but we thank you, VW, for not adding one of those complicated electronic shifters to save even more space. The sleeker roofline leaves adequate headroom for a 6-foot-plus adult in the backseat, along with average legroom. Cost-cutting shows, however, in cheaper materials back there. That鈥檚 not uncommon in compact sedans, but some 鈥?notably the latest Honda Civic 鈥?do a better job of disguising the rear penny-pinching. Overall, the backseat is adequate, but it won鈥檛 get a lot of five-star feedback. The Jetta鈥檚 outdated technology has gotten a major overhaul, with a base 6.5-inch touchscreen for 2019 that is larger than the 2018鈥檚 biggest screen (6.3 inches) and an 8-inch upgrade for higher trim levels. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration is standard on all models. The Jetta also has VW鈥檚 latest-generation, user-friendly multimedia system, which is fast, sharp and 鈥?on the 8-inch system 鈥?has beautiful color graphics that are as good or better than those of any other mainstream brand.
The upgraded screen鈥檚 technology also allows pinch and zoom, along with no-contact gesture control to switch between menus or screens. You have to jump to the SEL model, however, to get the 8-inch system. The smaller version on lower trims is just OK 鈥?uninteresting and almost black-and-white unless you鈥檙e using smartphone integration. You also have to jump up to the SEL to get the impressive Digital Cockpit configurable instrument cluster, which is a 10.25-inch display that takes the place of lower trim levels鈥?conventional analog gauges. As with the base multimedia system, these dials seem dull and outdated by comparison. Standard tech on all 2019 Jettas includes useful and fun personalization that can store up to four drivers鈥?settings to select among when you get in; two also can be attached to the key fobs to be automatic. Depending on trim level and optional equipment, those settings (to which you can attach your own cute names) can include driver鈥檚 seat memory, driver assistance preferences, climate settings, Digital Cockpit configuration, ambient lighting color, radio presets and navigation view.
