Is this the Diesel version? I heard the Jetta Diesel gets like 45 mpg; like 700-800 miles per 14 gallon tank!!

The GTI is the sports model, turbo charged I believe, gas engine. My wife drives the Jetta TDI (diesel) and it is pretty nice. She gets about 47 MPG in combined driving and can coax out about 51 at 70 MPH on the superslab. I get a little less in both categories when I drive it. ;-)

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This has nothing to do with anything, other than the fact it was a car.


I got my first new car ever in 1978 off the showroom floor at C&C Ford in Horsham, PA for $4500. It was a Pinto wagon with 'California Touring Options', which consisted of some striping, no typical side windows other than two little portholes, and louvres over the back window.


My older brother used to call it the 'Cabesa' party wagon....but that's a whole different story. It had a three speed on the floor. People told me I was and idiot for buying it. I may have been an idiot for other reasons, but that sucker ran like a champ for 14 years (and 200K+ miles) and I got rid of it about a month before I moved down here in 1991.


Ahhhh...the stories I could tell about the adventures in that car.


Well...the ones I can remember anyway....

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The GTI is the sports model, turbo charged I believe, gas engine. My wife drives the Jetta TDI (diesel) and it is pretty nice. She gets about 47 MPG in combined driving and can coax out about 51 at 70 MPH on the superslab. I get a little less in both categories when I drive it. ;-)

 

What are your other impressions about the Jetta TDI, then? Do you like the way it drives? Comfortable? Fun to drive? reliable? inexpensive to own, otherwise?....

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I have a friend who has owned nothing but TDIs for as long as they've been building them.  Both he and his wife, and their son drive them.  He's a VW guy going back to his first car because his dad ran the distribution center here in Jacksonville.  They're good quality cars that are reliable and fairly fun to drive.  The TDI is surprisingly spry for a diesel, but he gets manual transmissions in all his cars.  Right now he's got a new Jetta and Passat with the TDI, and his son drives the last generation Jetta that was a hand-me-down from his dad.  They rarely have any problems with them, and he's meticulous about the maintenance on his vehicles. 

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Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

I have a friend who has owned nothing but TDIs for as long as they've been building them.  Both he and his wife, and their son drive them.  He's a VW guy going back to his first car because his dad ran the distribution center here in Jacksonville.  They're good quality cars that are reliable and fairly fun to drive.  The TDI is surprisingly spry for a diesel, but he gets manual transmissions in all his cars.  Right now he's got a new Jetta and Passat with the TDI, and his son drives the last generation Jetta that was a hand-me-down from his dad.  They rarely have any problems with them, and he's meticulous about the maintenance on his vehicles. 

 

The diesel turbos have that lag don't they? (that split second pause when you step on the gas before they really accelerate - that would be all turbo's too, not just VW... right?)

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The diesel turbos have that lag don't they? (that split second pause when you step on the gas before they really accelerate - that would be all turbo's too, not just VW... right?)

Not with the manual.

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Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

All turbos have lag. Superchargers don't but they aren't as efficient.

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All turbos have lag. Superchargers don't but they aren't as efficient.

Yeah, but you're not really racing a diesel.  I've driven both the Passat and Jetta TDI with the manual transmissions, and that lag just isn't there.

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Never argue with idiots. They drag you down to their level and beat you with experience.

What are your other impressions about the Jetta TDI, then? Do you like the way it drives? Comfortable? Fun to drive? reliable? inexpensive to own, otherwise?....

I love to drive the thing. Hers is actually the sportswagen which is based on the golf platform. The diesel is loaded with torque which makes it feel a lot faster then it is. It handles well and has been completely reliable for us. She's put 60000+ on it so far and gets the service every 8K to 10K miles which is normal for the TDI.


The character of the engine takes getting used to. As rpms climb there is a rush of torque as the turbo kicks in. Performance is adequate with the manual tranny but it's no dragster. ;-)

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Yeah, but you're not really racing a diesel. I've driven both the Passat and Jetta TDI with the manual transmissions, and that lag just isn't there.

Yeah agreed. It's not a lag, it's just that the torque can create the sensation of a rush of acceleration as rpms build. I think some people might mistake that for lag. It's totally different then you'd feel in a high pressure turbocharger in a sportscar however.

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It depends on what you're looking for and what you want to drive.  My wife and I just recently traded in a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee for a 2014 Nissan Pathfinder.  The Pathfinder has an amazing ride, is comfortable and has plenty of power when you need it.  Gas mileage isn't great, but it sure beats the Jeep hands down.  Expect around 18mpg in city driving.  I haven't taken it on the highway yet, but I would guess that numbers over 20 are not out of the question.  It's pretty much loaded with all of the "modern" features such as satellite radio, navigation, bluetooth, backup camera, etc.

 

Granted, this is not the most economical vehicle to drive, but when both of us work within 5 miles of where we live, gas mileage (or lack thereof)  is not really much of a liability.

 

I personally drive a 2003 Dodge Ram 4x4 pickup.  You don't want to know what the fuel mileage is on this thing, because it blows.  However, I only drive a few miles to work daily, and only put it on the highway if I'm towing my boat somewhere.  That being said, the truck has served me well not only as a daily driver, but also the work that I have put it through over the years.  Mechanically, the Dodge has been good, but cosmetically it has sucked and for this reason (among others) I will never own another one.  Once I retire this Dodge, I'll probably look at Ford, Nissan or Toyota for my next truck.

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There are 10 kinds of people in this world.  Those who understand binary and those who don't.

I love to drive the thing. Hers is actually the sportswagen which is based on the golf platform. The diesel is loaded with torque which makes it feel a lot faster then it is. It handles well and has been completely reliable for us. She's put 60000+ on it so far and gets the service every 8K to 10K miles which is normal for the TDI.


The character of the engine takes getting used to. As rpms climb there is a rush of torque as the turbo kicks in. Performance is adequate with the manual tranny but it's no dragster. ;-)

 

What service does it need every 8-10K miles? Other than oil changes/ maybe tire rotation, etc. How much is that service costing every 8-10K miles?

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I'm convinced that the 1989 Honda Accord coupe was the best car ever built for the money. Good looking, reliable, European car-like suspension/ feel, reasonably priced, good gas milage, loved the pop up headlights too. 

 

Anyone else ever own one of these an if so, do you share the above opinion?

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What service does it need every 8-10K miles? Other than oil changes/ maybe tire rotation, etc. How much is that service costing every 8-10K miles?

Basically just those items. One there was a recall to the ecm which they took care of during one of the oil changes. Then at 30k, they changed out air and cabin filter and something else. Service is expensive which sucks but the diesels take more oil than gas engines plus they run a low ash synthetic which is higher. On top of that, we get it done at the dealer. So "normal" service is about $150. The 30K service was around $380 or thereabouts.

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There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

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There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

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There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

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Turbo lag is rapidly becoming extinct across the board.  VW has benefited greatly from their shared tech with Audi in that regard.  

 

My Mom has a 2006 Jetta TDI and you have to really pay attention to notice a fraction of a second of lag.  The newer models have likely achieved zero lag.  The engineering has been in place to do it for many years - it's just a matter of making it affordable and available in mid-tier/ entry level models. (Diesel or Gas)

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There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

 

80 dollars per oil change?....and how many miles between the oil changes? 3K, 5K or 7.5K miles?

 

How much of the gas savings is lost with all of this other more expensive stuff?

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There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

 

 

There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

 

 

There's no lag on the TDI but it does require very specific oil Vw 502.00 if you don't use it you'll damage the engine in a couple thousand miles it'll run about $80 each oil change

 

We heard ya the first time  

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