10 Things You Need to Know About the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta

The Volkswagen Jetta is not the best-selling VW ever made. That honor still belongs to the venerable Type 1 Beetle, with 21.5 million sold. But with more than 17.5 million units sold since 1980, the Jetta is solidly in second place and quickly catching up to its famous cousin.

The reasons why the Jetta has remained popular for 38 years are simple: VW has kept its small sedan affordable, with great fuel economy and reliability, and the Jetta has always been peppy and nimble. For 2019, the Jetta has been completely revised and updated, and there are plenty of new features to talk about from the engine to the sound system and more. With that in mind, here are 10 things that you need to know about the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta.

Volkswagen went to great lengths to make the new Jetta quieter than the last generation. Engineers reduced the aerodynamic drag coefficient of the body to just 0.27, which means that wind noise is almost nothing. In addition to revising the floor, door, and under-dash insulation, even the new panoramic sunroof was aerodynamically and acoustically optimized to reduce cabin noise.

VW also changed the car’s unibody platform and suspension to help reduce tire and road noise. The result is that you can hold a conversation in the Jetta without ever needing to raise your voice.

This improvement is also about that new chassis platform and suspension. The new Jetta is built on the same MQB modular unibody structure as the Tiguan and Atlas SUVs, and the Passat sedan. The idea with MQB is that you can scale it up or down to the size you want, without losing the nice ride.

VW also redesigned the suspension to use long-travel coil springs. The reason you care about all this is that it helps the Jetta ride like a premium mid-size sport sedan instead of a compact economy car. Some luxury brands don’t have a ride as refined and comfortable as the Jetta. But don’t think for a minute that it’s soft and squishy — it just feels like a much more expensive car.

The base Jetta S trim is available with a six-speed manual transmission, which will please enthusiasts, and it’s the lowest-priced of all the trims, coming in at $19,395 including destination fees. But the stick shift is available only with that base trim, so if you want all the goodies, you’re looking at the automatic.

But don’t feel bad about that, because the Jetta’s eight-speed automatic is a crisp, smooth gearbox that takes nothing away from the driving experience. VW gave the Jetta a shorter first gear for fast takeoff, and seven more gears to use for acceleration and cruising. 

Every 2019 Jetta comes with Volkswagen’s 1.4-liter turbocharged and direct-injected 16-valve TSI engine. While 147 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque aren’t exactly big numbers in the modern world, the Jetta never lacks for power. That’s mainly because of the transmission, but the turbo-enhanced variable-valve-timing powerplant comes up with its peak torque right off idle at 1,400 rpm. So we recommend you forget about the numbers and just enjoy the drive.

Even with the turbo and very good performance, the Jetta's engine isn’t working too hard. You’ll enjoy EPA-estimated fuel economy of 30 mpg in the city, 40 mpg on the highway, and 34 mpg combined, regardless of transmission or trim level. One more thing: You can run the Jetta on less-expensive regular (87-octane) gas.

All Jetta trim levels feature some kind of touchscreen infotainment system, all supporting Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, and VW's own Car-Net connectivity system. The S, SE, and R-Line models get a 6.5-inch screen that works like a smartphone or tablet screen. You can swipe and even use gestures to zoom in and out. That system gives you an AM/FM radio, Bluetooth, and a single USB port for phone streaming or a memory stick with your tunes.

The top SEL and SEL Premium trims get a fancy upgraded 8-inch touchscreen and a really nice 10.25-inch programmable all-video driver information display in place of analog gauges. The SEL sound system includes a single-disc CD player, AM/FM/HD radio, Bluetooth, and two USBs. The SEL Premium trim adds GPS navigation to that package.

If you buy the SEL or SEL Premium trim, you get the 400-watt BeatsAudio system as standard equipment. That’s a powerful incentive to upgrade — because this stereo sounds really good.

The overall quiet cabin becomes a blank canvas for the Beats system to do its work. We spent time listening to folksy singers, complex jazz, hard-driving rock, and some classical music while we were driving, and the Beats system performed like a top end home stereo system. Every instrument and voice was clear and precise. The BeatsAudio system includes nine speakers, counting the subwoofer.

As we mentioned, the Jetta is built on the scalable MQB platform. This allowed VW’s designers to make the new Jetta longer and wider, and to push the wheels out to the corners of the car. In addition to giving the Jetta great ride and handling characteristics, the new platform allows the designers to give the Jetta a much more mature look and feel. It looks more grown-up than prior generations, and it follows the design cues you’ll see in the Passat, Tiguan, and Atlas. The grille is larger than before and the standard LED headlights are smaller. From the back, the standard LED taillights also give the impression of a much more expensive car.

By the way, if you buy the sporty R-Line trim, you’ll get 17-inch wheels, a more aggressive rear bumper with dual exhaust, a gloss-black grille, black side mirror caps, and special R-Line badging.

Automakers won’t bring out a new car without all the safety gear, but you often have to "plus up" the trim levels to get it. Standard safety equipment on all Jetta trims includes a rearview camera, a full set of airbags, and automatic post-collision braking, which stops the car in the event of a crash. For $450 on the base S model, you can get forward collision warning with autonomous emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, and a rear cross-traffic alert. Those features are standard on all other trims.

To get more safety gear, choose the SEL or SEL Premium trims. You’ll further enjoy adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, and automatic high beams.

One very important feature to call out on the new Jetta is the seats. They’re comfortable, even if you’re what we like to call a generously sized adult. VW clearly spent some money to make these seats appealing for commuters and road trippers alike.

If you spring for the top SEL Premium trim, the seats are covered in leather, and they include eight-way power adjust with power lumbar support. But even the basic cloth seats are comfortable. The front seats are heated in every trim except S, while heated outboard rear seats are available on all trims above S, and standard on SEL Premium.

When the new Jetta arrives in July, it will cost less than the 2018 Jetta costs today. Including all fees, the most basic 2019 Jetta S starts at $19,395 with a manual transmission. If you go with the automatic, the S is $20,195. The SE trim starts at $23,005 and offers a good upgrade feature list, including the sunroof and heated front seats. The SEL starts at $25,265, and that’s where you’ll find the Volkswagen Digital Cockpit driver information display. The SEL Premium adds navigation, all the safety gear, and heated leather seats for $27,795.

Sport-oriented drivers get a bargain, too. The first-ever Jetta R-Line trim comes with a bunch of mostly cosmetic features, but you also get 17-inch wheels and the XDS Cross Differential System, which works like a high-performance limited slip front axle. The R-Line comes in just above the SE price point at $23,845.