The Volkswagen Jetta has to be one of the more popular vehicles on the road today. Sure, the New Beetle is far more recognizable, but if you look carefully, you'll see a lot of Jettas driving around. There are several good reasons for this popularity. First, the Jetta is a good size. Unlike the Golf, which VW still sells, much to my surprise, the Jetta is a true for-passenger vehicle with room for a fifth passenger if the need arises. Legroom front and rear is excellent, and the trunk has enough volume to accommodate a small family's luggage for a reasonable trip. Second, the Jetta appears to be well made. I have to qualify that last statement because of some mail we've received about cars whose quality fails them after a few thousand miles. Please realize that we only get to drive these cars for a week or so, and many quality issues never surface in that period of time.
But I'll still go out on a limb and say the Jetta is well-built. Third, there is an assortment of powerplants to appeal to any driver. The base engine in the Jetta is a 2.0-liter four-cylinder mill rated at 115 horsepower. Next up the line is the 90 horsepower 1.9-liter turbocharged engine. Diesels are practical, but they also come with inherent problems. At the top of the line is the GLS, powered by a 2.8-liter narrow V-6 with 181 horsepower. Like most V-6 engines, this engine provides good solid power and torque. New for 2000 is the 1.8-liter turbocharged four in our tester that is rated at 150 horsepower. Having had the opportunity to drive all three engines in an assortment of Jettas, I have to say the 1.8T is my favorite. I'll be the first to admit that I have a heavy foot, but the performance aspects of the 1.8T go far beyond pure power. The engine has great flexibility than the six-cylinder.
With "light" turbocharging (Saab offers a similar option) the power surge isn't even noticed and the four acts more like a six. At 150 horsepower, it has enough power for the Jetta, yet it's not overpowering. My guess is that the engine's great appeal lies in the torque curve, which is essentially flat from 1,750 to 4,200 rpm at 155 lbs-ft. With a flat torque curve, you can fully enjoy the full rang eof engine revs. Volkswagen has introduced the 1.8T in several cars in its range. You can get it in a Golf or Jetta, and it may appear in other cars as 2001 moves along. Coupled to a great five-speed manual transmission, the Jetta 1.8T is a sweet car. Shifting up and down through the gears is a pleasure, and you always seem to be able to find the right gear ratio for whatever you want to do. We had a couple of other cars in the driveway the week we had the Jetta and the VW was always the car of choice. But the Jetta is more than just a great engine and gearbox. The suspension is comprised of an independent strut front suspension and a track-correcting independent torsion beam rear suspension with VW's skid control, called Anti-Slip Regulation, or ASR. It has rack-and-pinion steering and four-wheel disc brakes with ABS. Our tester also had height-adjustable front seats, cruise control, a 60/40 split folding rear seat back, power windows, leather-faced seating, a Monsoon sound system, and front and side impact air bags for safety. Trunk volume is a decent 13 cubic feet, more than many American sedans. 22,145. This is slightly below the going average selling price for new cars these days.
What would happen if i trade in the tiguan for the GTI? I want to lease the GTI too. You need to go to the dealer and see what can be done. Basically a lease is paying for the depreciation on a car while you use it. The dealer may have other options for you. You might be able to change the length of the lease to lower the payments a bit. Your problem is you are leasing a vehicle to try and get a car you can't afford. You should only lease a vehicle if you can write it off on a business. You're stuck unless you can get the dealer to break the lease which I doubt they will do unless you buy something outright worth more cash! Good luck- first of all, you need to contact VW Credit and ask them about early termination. There will be a HUGE penalty on this. Also, you have to understand something about leasing, it is based on not only the price of the car, but its residual at the end of the lease term. Finally, there is another thing you should know, a GTi is not cheap to insure. Frankly, I think you do not like the Tiguan, and you want something that has more testosterone, that is if you are a male. Should have gone with the GTi in the first place.
