Unfortunately I think VW's resale/reliability aren't up to Japanese standards...though they do have nice interiors. How much is diesel now? $5.00/gallon?

I still dig the Honda Fit Sport myself for a gas saver @ $15k.

There is big hot cup of STFU for all those VW fans talking about 50mpg.
What a joke.
Dont forget to take it every month to have the rattles, squeaks, breakdowns fixed.

@ Noya:
Diesel here is about 4.65 while gas is 3.85 about 20% difference, while gas mileage is about 25% better... so yea you still pay less and drive a bigger car... o yea i almost forgot, Jetta has 236 ft/lbs of torque while the fir a mere 105...
you go ahead, squeeze to that tight Fit and enjoy the utter lack of torque...

@ zippy:
yea well 44 mpg means it gets between 40 and 48 mpg depending on driving and conditions.... up to 48 is still damn impressive, while the prius owners complain about pretty unrealistic rating o their cars... and last time i checked Prius, or other hybrids weren't on the top 10 most reliable new vehicles on the road.... si zip it zippy...

I'm not a vw fan, but I could easily get 50mpg, and probably 60mpg out of it.

Huh...
I got an '88 Chevy Sprint for $300 9 years ago....
202,000+ miles and I still AVERAGE (year 'round) 46+ MPG.
Sure, I ain't stylin' like the VW...but I've still got that $21K in my pocket.

This is a car I am going to keep my eye on. Hopefully it will sell nicely optioned with an automatic for under $25K.

Hopefully the Civic diesel rumors are true also so we have a little more choice. I rather have a solid diesel than a hybrid.

Can somebody explain to me the logic in having a third party company certify the car's gas consumption. I mean, isn't it all relative. If a car gets 25mpg according to the EPA then a car which is rated at 30mpg from the EPA will get 20% better gas mileage. Personally I never see the gas mileage the EPA claims any of my cars make. So if from my experience I find the EPA is conservative relative to my driving style, than what good is it to me that some third party is able to squeeze out some number that is absolutely unreplicable in real life. As a fan of previous VW diesels, this smells like scam all over it. To me the new VW feels like the new Apple, all marketing and no substance.

@ Cashmoney:

For what it's worth, I actually get better fuel economy than what the EPA rates my car (2005 GTO).

New EPA rating: 15/23
My Actual rating: 17/25

you are going to save about 800 bucks every 100,000 miles with this car over a honda accord. EEERRRRR sorry this does not compute!

you are going to save about 800 bucks every 100,000 miles with this car over a honda accord. EEERRRRR sorry this does not compute!

dont forget VW and their many electrical problems.

@Cashmoney,

Man your numbers on your GTO are dangerously close to my grand am lol. City MPG at least.

I don't believe that there are a lot of people who will switch to considering a Jetta because of the TDI. It seems this is marketed at people who already considered a Jetta, but were turned away by MPG.

So let's compare apples-to-apples. Even with the EPA's 29/40, that's a 30% improvement overr the 20/29 of the i4t or 21/29 of the i5. Disel is $5, but premium (i4t) is $4.50. There's a monetary advantage there.

To compare it to an Accord is, generally, to compare different drivers. Its real competition would likely be the Civic Si.

@ cashmoney

The logic behind EPA ratings is the same logic behind standardized testing. If it weren't up to a single test manufacturers could basically test any way they wanted to get the best fictional mileage out of their cars. The EPA recently updated the test (in MY 07 or 08 if I recall) and the majority of cars results were lower than the previous test. Why? A combination of things: Cars were programmed for the test but not for overall efficiency resulting in real world results not matching the test. The second factor the initial test was designed in the late 70's and early 80's and didn't accurately reflect a number of things like air conditioning use and the increase in traffic (resulting in more idle time).

Are the EPA test accurate? No, are they closer to real world observations? Maybe. Do they allow the avg consumer to compare "apples to apples". Well its slightly better than nothing! :-D

Last TDU we had was a 2002 and it had many issues that in the end was not worth it. Trans issues, windows that needed new switches, inner fenders that would shatter if bumped(replaced 3) seats that felt like a park bench. slow on the highway. many recalls and in the end it was replaced by a Scion tc.

Low quality car made in mexico. Never got the MPG then that it claimed as well. Perhaps this one is better? hey test it with your money i wont even at 6$ gas.

Maybe I missed something but when did VW become known for being so unreliable? I had an 02 passat wagon and it was issue free for the year I had it. I'm more than happy to be wrong if I've missed the boat somewhere, but the vw owners I know have not had any issues, so if someone could point me in the direction of some articles or something substantial I could read about vw's reliability being this poor, I would appreciate it. I've been considering buying one in the next few years, so I'd be very interested in finding out they suck, if indeed they do.

"Jorge:

Man your numbers on your GTO are dangerously close to my grand am lol. City MPG at least."

I know what you mean; I have a 2000 Grand Am GT that doesn't do a whole lot better. Short shifting the 6-speed in the GTO definitely helps the numbers.

To akkadain:

I owned a VW GTi for 3 years before totalling it in a roll over accident. The only non-oil change related maintenance I had to perform while I owned it was from when I hit a deer doing 60 mph. After hitting that deer, I drove another 70 miles before getting home and going to my local body shop! I have no idea where these people are imagining these issues from. I would assume it might have something to do with 70's VW's. I can definitely say, when compared to early 2000's domestics I have driven, my Dub's build quality was great. I have driven many cars (I used to work for a manufacturer of car audio systems for automobiles) most of them domestic or japanese. The VW's I have driven have all been the best bang for the buck in my opinion, and that is why I am a fan. Honestly though, you will have your own opinion. Go drive one and see...

Nice to see more diesel options, too bad its a VW, but still good for the market.

i have a 2002 1.8t jetta. reliability on these things are hit and miss...some people report no problems, most people report the same problems. just do a search on www.vwvortex.com on all the problems that people have had on vw's.

specifically, on my jetta, the problems i've had were / are:
- ignition coils
- rear window platic clip breaks causing window to remain open
- ignition coils
- driver side door ajar sensor doesn't work
- ignition coils
- water pump impeller blade broke
- ignition coils
- brake light switch went faulty
- ignition coils
- sqeaky doors since day 1
- and again, ignition coils.

well ask any garage.. vw needs to change lots of pieces frequently... its not about issue its about visiting the garage too often....

civic :
30 mpg city and 40 mpg highway

jetta
38 mpg city and 44 mpg highway
epa say : 29 mpg city and 40 mpg highway
whats the truth? dont know

not much differences.... between civic & jetta & corolla
just reliability.... civic/corolla 5k less

as for the accord 31highway

too bad all magazines doesnt even include the jetta in top 3...
probably bcause of reliability!

--> "not much differences.... between civic & jetta & corolla
just reliability.... civic/corolla 5k less"

There's a great deal of difference in those cars. The Jetta is far more refined a driving car. It has a more sophisticated suspension, better performance (the TDi being discussed was over 200lb/ft torque compared to just over 100 for the Civic/Corolla), the fit and finish are different... it's a whole different driving experience.

The corolla, to us the more extreme end, has a solid rear axle, drum breaks (in the back), is not available with leather, and in the MPG you are mentioning, has around 120hp.

I own a corolla (about to give it away after 5 years). They are great cars. They do not resemble Jettas in how they drive.

As to reliability, from Edmunds/Consumer Reports/my mechanic/the lady in the cube next to me with a 2001 Jetta: the previous (pre 2005) Jetta, particularly the turbo, suffered from pretty signifigant reliability problems.

Per Edmunds, the newer ones are performing far better.

44mpg. I owned a 2003 TDI and the only thing I had to do was put diesel in it, have maintenance done every 10000 miles, and it would get 44mpg at 80mph with the A/C on. The only reason I traded it was I lost it after I got cobbed by the dealer when 80000 miles ticked over and it was time for a timing belt change. A $600 repair bill, but that wasn't the issue. Long story, but turned me off VW forever. It was a nice car, would get to point B from point A without much fuss, always reliable, had a power band comparable to 4 cylinder sedans of that time period (and as peaky, no power until 1900rpm or so, then it 'woke up').

This one looks prettier, but with diesel approaching $5/gallon here, and the bad dealer/service response, nope, I'll hang on to my gasser, thanks.

germans make great cars if you spend over 40K but dont buy an economy german sedan i had a passat and it was junky, it actually had FWD and when i accelerated hard it produced a phenomenon i was unaware could even hapen called "wheel hop" this son of a bitch was useless and then the tiptonic auto tranny broke so i got rid of the car. you want good MPG's get a honda or toyota, you want an auhtobhan car save your money for a premo german brand i will never get another vw.

@dennisil

Actually, the Mercedies have an equally bad record for reliability... though I love my BMW.

If you are after the German driving experience in a Japanese car, the closeist I've come are the Mazdas.

I couldn't help it but LOL'd at this piece of marketing B.S....

"While the Environmental Protection Agency estimates the Jetta TDI at an economical 29 mpg City and 40 mpg Highway, Volkswagen went a step further to show the true fuel economyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_efficiency of the Jetta TDI. Leading third-party certifier, AMCI, has tested the Jetta TDI and found it performed 24 percent better in real world conditions, achieving 38 mpg in the City and 44 mpg on the Highway.*"

Wow really? They might as well say, "...but VW went a step further and made up the numbers themselves to show 'true fuel economy'". EPA rating is there for the relative comparrasment and no, this is not a good alternative to similar gas cars.

My 2006 VW Jetta with the 2.0 turbo averages between 36-38 mpg on the highway. With the diesel, I bet people will average around in the 50s. I'd take my VW over a Honda anyday. I actually looked at the accords and civics and finally settled on the VW. Don't regret it one bit.

Great 21999 for the base model how much does the good one cost? Stay away from VW Auto's/DSG. Maintenance on these cars sucks also. To do the Oil change on your own will cost you $30 for 1 gallon of 101.03 oil and ~$20 for an oil filter. Autozone/Kragens does not carry the oil you have to buy from tdiparts.com or dealer. Filter is a canister type filter the only upside is 10000 miles between maint. Ever other Maintenance (20000mi) will cost you about $110.00 Oil, filter, Air Filter, Fuel Filter including shipping. Not from the stealership from TDIparts.com. Whatever you save in gas these will eat in maintenance. @ 100000 you need to do a timingbelt and water pump (almost 300 for the kit) Most bolts are torque to yield on the motor and need to be replaced when diassembling (eg, motor mount bolts, valve train bolts etc) No thanks, I'm lemon lawing mine and never seeing a VW in MY drive ever again. Mine spent 2 months at the dealer getting a violent shake fixed.

I bought my 2006 2.5 Jetta new. It had one broken trim clip when delivered. That is the only thing ever fixed on the car, and it now has 45,000 miles. I'm a Quality Engineer and work for a TS certified Tier 1 automotive supplier, so I knjow I know what I'm talking about. I feel that cars do get built wrong, but there's also a lot to do with clueless drivers breaking thier cars and ignoring problems until they're left stranded on the side of the road. There's too many clueless service technicians attempting to fix cars. I'm lucky, the average tech at my local VW dealer has 5 years of VW experience.

To radkon:

I think you missed what my point was. I was saying that if we are going to keep comparing apples to apples then everycar should be tested by the same agency using the same tests. The reason I brought up the fact that I think EPA is conservative is because I never see the numbers they post. The idea that VW went and "hired" a company that could post 10mpg better than the EPA is what is so outrageous. If I'm usually 3-4 mpg lower than the EPA, then the 3rd party company is either making their figures up or performing tests which are rigged.

To Alex Greene:

Soon there will be a legion of VW fans who are claiming the EPA is out to get VW the same way consumer reports is anti-VW. I will give it to VW that their TDIs seem to last much longer than their Petrol Turbos. Just finding one used with under 100k is impossible. Most of them are between 150-250k. The people who buy these cars buy them to drive huge distances. At that point it becomes a financially beneficial purchase.

to Cashmoney

CR isn't out to get VW. Do you think Car&Driver is out to get them too? They always pant and cheer for every VW they drive for its looks and more importantly its driving dynamics. Then, in the next paragraph, they start to list all the little (granted, mostly little)things that go wrong. Rattles in the dashboard that never go away and other stuff. Sorry, I can buy a domestic if I want a rattle trap. There is no excuse for that kinda crap anymore.

Its too bad really, if they could screw those cars together correctly and get over some of the electrical issues they seem to have I would get one. I have craved a Passat for years, but I just won't trust them.

I owned one VW and never again, it was a litany of stuff breaking. Gas lines, wipers, speedometers, and sorry those problems had nothing to do with "the way I drive".

JerryL:

I know some Mercedes have reliability problems but most of those problems come from the under $40K models. There is no doubt that Mercedes has cut quality in recent years but I have a 1996 which cost $43K new and now has 212K miles on it. I drive it almost daily and the only maintenace I have done is: Oil change every 3-4K miles and changed the brakes and roters twice and a leak in an AC line once. Mercedes CAN make good cars.

Why do I still have a 1996 with 212K? Because I dont feel like the new models are built as well as the older models, Especially after the year 2002, way too much plastic in 2002+.

@ jettto

The VW Rabbit has been consistently on the Car and Drive best compact car list for a while now. They even did a new test which they included all the new cars including the new Corolla and the Rabbit still came out on top.

Personally I own a 07 Honda Civic and im verryyyyyyyyy happy of my car and i love driving it...gas mileage & reliability FTW

Honda and Toyota will have diesels in another few model years. Yes, they are late to the party, but they will get them right.

I bought a brand new 1982 Rabbit diesel in 1982 for $7500 hoping that after a few years mpg ratings would improve and I would update my vehicle. 26 years later and 331K miles later I am still waiting for mpg to match the 50+ mpg I get daily with the 82 (sure its a 1.6L, with no pick up, but I am saving $$$$!)