2011 VW Jetta: Cheaper Than The Chevy Cruze?
Published: June 15th, 2010
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It’s all speculation until we get official pricing from VW of North America, but according to Autoblog, the new Jetta will be priced starting “around $16,000” when it shows up stateside this October. With Chevy’s Cruze starting at $16,995, we face an interesting prospect: VW’s entry sedan might well be cheaper than Chevrolet’s. Of course the base Jetta will continue to be saddled with its predecessor’s agricultural 2.5 liter, but the Cruze’s base 1.8 hasn’t exactly earned many accolades either. Of course the base Cruze comes with a goodly amount of equipment, but it’s got an uphill fight on its hands if the more desirably-branded Jetta pips it on pure price point.
More by Edward Niedermeyer
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I also wonder how many people who bash the 5-cylinder engine as crude, agricultural, and loud have actually driven a newer VW with this engine? I just replaced my 2000 Jetta (2.0L) with a new 2010 Jetta. The new engine is very quiet, very smooth, and has plenty of power. It does have an iron block, but that bodes well for durability. It is a modern engine with drive-by-wire throttle, DOHC with variable intake valve timing, and Motronic engine control system. I regularly drive my folks vehicles as well...a Mercedes E320 wagon, a Land Rover LR3 V8, and, of course, a Volkswagen EuroVan. The EuroVan has a 2.8L VR6 engine, DOHC 24V...201hp, 181lb-ft. The smaller 5-cylinder in my Jetta only makes 4-lb-ft less torque. That engine is way noisier and thrashy-sounding than the new Jetta. And while the Mercedes 6 and Rover 8 cylinder engines are very smooth, the Jetta 5 is definitely in the league with them. So again, I'm at a loss of what people are saying about this engine. One thing to note is that the saleman did tell me the new 2011 model Jettas were seriously cheapened compared to the mark 5 models. But still, I imagine, in another league compared to the lowly Cruze and Korean junk.
Leather seats (or V-Tec or whatever the heck it is) is as waste of effort and money in this class of car - not to mention hot, sticky, and annoying. Be better to use cloth across the board and install a fuel efficient 140 HP regular-octane-gasoline 4-cyl. Toyota gets about 140 HP out of its 1.8 - go knows why Volkswagen insists on some ancient, inefficient, underpowered 2.0 liter. Geez. VW consistently only makes a half-effort in the US...and the reliability and service will probably still stink. The new, excellent Chevy Cruze will easily outsell the Jetta 5 to 1.
So how much of it it leather and how much of it is vinyl. On my current 13 year old VW the surfaces that touch me are supposed to be leather. The rest is vinyl. I have one car which is cloth and the VW is leather. I see some serious advantages to both. For one I don't worry about sweating on the leather like I do on the cloth seats. Flip side, cloth is warmer in winter.
So how much of it it leather and how much of it is vinyl. On my current 13 year old VW the surfaces that touch me are supposed to be leather. The rest is vinyl. I have one car which is cloth and the VW is leather. I see some serious advantages to both. For one I don't worry about sweating on the leather like I do on the cloth seats. Flip side, cloth is warmer in winter. These days I'm leaning towards the pleather as the seat coverings of choice.