Jett a vs. its poor cousin
The Jetta GL I tries really, really hard to persuade you it’s not a Golf GTI with a trunk
Overview A sporty compact sedan that’s less hellraiser, more entry- level luxury Pros Mature styling inside and out, spacious interior, long list of standard equipment Cons Not as lively as you’d think it is, platform is becoming dated, Apple CarPlay isn’t foolproof Value for money Good What I would change Add all-wheel drive and turn it into a Jetta R, just like the Golf R How I would spec it Like this, but with the six- speed manual
‘This is not a Golf GTI with a trunk.” Now, repeat 10 times. Got it? Good, because trying to justify the Volkswagen Jetta GLI as a Golf GTI with a trunk is pointless. I know, I know, they’re essentially the same car. They’re brothers, part of a troubled family because a few sneaky cousins cheated on a bunch of exams. They’ve moved out from their parents’ house and these days, they only chat during the holidays or through Facebook. They should be just like each other, but at the end of the day, the GLI and GTI are worlds apart.
It’s difficult to imagine how two cars cut from the same cloth could feel so vastly different. The GLI has the same running gear as the GTI; it’s powered by a 2.0- litre turbocharged four- cylinder engine good for 210 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. That kick is sent to the front wheels through a dual- clutch automatic or a manual transmission, both with six gears. Yet where the GTI is a raucous hot hatch with a civil day- to- day personality, the GLI is far more tame.
The GLI is smooth — almost too smooth for its own good. It’s a very sharp- looking car; the 18- inch wheels, red brake calipers and more aggressive styling compared to the standard Jetta certainly suggest the GLI has a sportier side. You expect a throaty exhaust note, telepathic steering and sharp handling at the expense of a stiffer ride, but that isn’t what you get.
The GLI is deceptively quick. There’s barely a hint of turbo lag and the dual- clutch automatic transmission is one of the best in the business, but you simply don’t feel the speed.
This is a blessing and a curse. The exhaust’s bassy thrum — thanks to Soundaktor, an artificial engine noise-generating cabin speaker — isn’t intrusive. When you’re getting set for a highway run, the red speedometer needle steadily climbs as you effortlessly merge with traffic. The suspension soaks up bumps and potholes just as well as a Sleep Number bed swallows your partner’s tosses and turns, but you feel the car’s weight on tight on-ramps and in corners. If a feisty compact sedan is what you’re after, the GLI will leave you pining for the Honda Civic Si’s snickety-snick shifter action or the Subaru WRX’s trademark burble and cartoonish hood scoop.
None of this means the GLI has no purpose. You might want it to be a Jetta with hot sauce drizzled on top, but in fact, the GLI is a sportier alternative to an Audi A3 or a Mercedes- Benz CLA with far more bang for your buck. Base GLIs start at a hair under $ 30,000, though the one you want is the top- spec Autobahn. You get a ton of good- ies for $ 36,195, including the dual- clutch automatic, HID headlights and LED tail lights, a kick-butt Fender sound system and Volkswagen’s newest MirrorLink infotainment system with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. But do yourself a favour: Go for the manual. You’ll save $1,400 and wake up the car while you’re at it.
In practical terms, the GLI doubles as a solid daily driver or family transportation. The solid materials, flat- bottom steering wheel, splashes of red trim and crisp touch screen will i mpress your new boss on the way to your first business lunch just as well as the cavernous t runk could swallow a stroller. Legroom in the rear is impressive; the GLI definitely won’t punish you if you didn’t call shotgun fast enough.
Infotainment has always been something of a sticking point with Volkswagen. Previous systems were intuitive enough, but they just didn’t cut it in graphics, speed and features. Not so with MirrorLink; this is seriously excel- lent. The touch screen is responsive, Bluetooth is a breeze to connect and — hallelujah! — you can use standard USB cables. No more proprietary cables here.
Apple CarPlay is one of the GLI’s strongest features to help it keep up with the Joneses. Ironically, it’s also one of the biggest drawbacks. Yes, you can easily integrate your phone’s functions with the car — it reads text messages, streams music and GPS directions and, of course, dials contacts hands-free — but there are many teething issues.
For instance, CarPlay as a whole supports a limited set of apps so far. The only maps you can stream, for example, are your iPhone’s very own. Oh, you jump between Waze and Google Maps? Sorry mate, you’re out of luck. But that one’s on Apple. Voice recognition, however, has to be the biggest sticking point. You’ll catch yourself shouting at your dashboard more often than you care to admit.
By nature, you face a fair bit of compromise in a compact geared toward either the sporty or the luxury end of the spectrum.
The Audi A3 and MercedesBenz CLA give you the badge and refinement, but you’ll be missing some key features if you want to keep the price tag closer to $ 35,000. On the flip side, the Subaru WRX is an allweather rocket, but the refinement isn’t quite there. This is where the Jetta GLI excels.
Yes, the drive may not be as lively as you want it to be, but it comes close to offering the best of both worlds. and the bang-for-your-buck factor blows the German competition out of the water.
On its own, the Jetta GLI is a well- polished proposition. Trouble is, the Golf GTI is the GLI’s worst enemy; it’s infinitely more practical, it’s the same car underneath and it’s sportier, yet just as easy to live with day to day.
Unless you really, really can’t do a hatchback — and you can forgive Volkswagen for its transgressions — you’re better off with a Golf GTI.