Yesterday, VW India finally pulled the dust sheets off the new Jetta for the Indian market. The old Jetta was launched in India is early 2008 and always remained in the shadow of the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Chevy Cruze and its cousin sister Skoda Laura.
Unlike all these cars which had their own specific USP, the Jetta was a jack of some trades. So VW India decided to can the old model and bring the sixth generation Jetta in India.
The 6th Generation Jetta was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in 2010. The new Jetta was a whole new product with little or no components shared with the VW Golf (unlike the 5th generation which was a Golf with a boot).
Because everyone had already seen the car, VW India was testing the car with little or no camouflage. Yesterday there was no camouflage business as the Jetta was pushed into the market with an entry level price tag of 14.12 lakhs.
So let’s find out what the new Jetta is all about?
If you are thinking why does this car look like the VW Vento, Polo and Passat, here is the answer - the new Jetta is designed in such a way that it is matches up to the design language of the VW Family.
VW is trying to incorporate a unified design language for all models. So you can think of it as a brawnier Vento or a sleeker, smaller Passat.
Horizontal lines flowing throughout the body is the distinguished characteristic of VW’s ‘Design DNA’. The new Jetta is no different. You have sharp lines flowing throughout the body. The front has a very imposing presence because of the wide body and dual reflector head lamps.
The fog lamps are integrated in the front bumper with a small splitter for better airflow at high speeds. The splitter also gives it a very sporty appeal.
Coming to the side profile of the car, you have a single line passing though the bottom called as the ‘tornado line’. The slightly muscular wheel arches and ‘Navarra’ alloy wheel design give it a very ‘Sporty yet Restrained’ appeal. The rear profile of the Jetta seems to be inspired from the Audi models.
The rear profile is complete with two sectioned tail lamps, dual reflectors and dual exhaust pipes on one side.
The new Jetta is based on the PQ35 platform which also supports its sister (and rival) Skoda Laura. However, the new Jetta is 8 cm longer than the outgoing model. The new model is 182.7 inches long, 57.1 inches tall and 70.1 inches wide. Compared to the previous model, it now offers 2.6 inches (6.7 cm) of more leg room.
Despite of the sloping roofline, the Jetta has ample headroom for an averagely proportioned person. The current Jetta is also wider than the old one which gives it oodles of road presence.
Overall the design and the shape of the Jetta is striking yet conservative. It is not have a very ‘Look at me’ design but some how manages to catch to eye in a pleasant way. Some might say that the design is very boring and they wouldn’t be wrong because we have seen it on many other cars.
But you can’t find faults with the design; it is pin-point precise. In other words – Its very German.
Step inside the car and you will see a very familiar but trimmed down Passat dashboard. You get a leather wrapped three spoke steering wheel with a pinch of brushed aluminum at the bottom to give it a plush appeal.
You get audio controls and Bluetooth controls on the steering wheels. The model equipped with the DSG gearbox gets paddle shifters behind the steering wheel.
You also get a multifunctional touch screen display for your infotainment needs. It has 8 speakers along with iPod and aux connectivity.
You also get climate control and cruise control. The dashboard is rubberized to give a soft touch but other parts such as the center console are plastic. The fit and finish of the Jetta is just perfect. No complaints at the all!
The front and the rear seats are very comfortable. In fact, they are the same seats from the Passat but a little less luxurious. The rear passengers have an ample legroom along with dedicated AC vents and arm rest. This is purely a 4 people car, cramming the third one on the rear seat is very difficult.
The Jetta is only offered in a diesel engine – a 2L, 4 cylinder CRDI with 140 PS of power at 4200 rpm and 320 NM of torque at 1750-2500 rpm. The top model is offered with a 6-speed DSG gearbox and the other two variants get 6 speed manual. There is no petrol variant neither do we get a blue motion variant.
The new Jetta also gets features such as ESP and 8 airbags. Other features that catch your eye are electronic engine mobilizer, hill hold control and 12 way seat adjustments.
The Jetta is offered in 6 colors – candy white, reflex silver, toffee brown, deep black pearl, platinum grey and silver leaf.
Overall, the Jetta is very quality product, is feature rich product and has a good amount of road presence as well. Do you think at an entry price of 14.12 lakhs it might make a considerable dent in its segment?
