Volkswagen is really excited about the arrival of the 2019 VW Jetta, but did you know that the Jetta has been around since 1980? 38 years ago, VW released the first ever Jetta, which was originally dubbed a “Rabbit with a trunk.” To celebrate the original Jetta, VW recently restored a 1982 Jetta and is showing it off next to the 2019 Jetta.
Back in 1980, the VW Jetta was powered by a 1.6L four-cylinder with only 76 horsepower, which is about half of what the 2019 Jetta has with its 152 horsepower four-cylinder. The original Jetta was tiny compared to today’s Jetta, at only 167.8-inches long, just over 17-inches shorter than the 2019 Jetta.
While the original Jetta is much smaller than the current model, the differences inside are bigger. Back in 1982, a cassette player and intermittent wipers were considered a big deal, but today the 2019 Jetta’s technology is way beyond what anyone would have dreamed of back then. The 2019 Jetta features a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus the new Jetta is the also the first Volkswagen in the U.S. to offer a BeatsAudio system.
Source: Volkswagen
