2014 VW Jetta TSI: Turbo-riffic

Posted by hpayne on March 20, 2014

The Jetta 1.8T SE and SEL models feature a new EA888 Gen 3 turbocharged and direct-injected four-cylinder engine that is made in Silao, Mexico. This 1.8-liter engine produces 170 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque – the same power, but seven pound-feet more torque, delivered lower in the engine speed range than the 2.5-liter five-cylinder powerplant. (Volkswagen)

Auto watchers have long predicted the demise of gas engines. The rising cost of fuel justified the premiums of diesel and hybrid engines. But as the turbocharged 1.8-liter 2014 VW Jetta TSI I’ve been flogging around Detroit shows, gas power is a moving target. It just keeps getting better.

The gas engine is dead. Long live the gas engine.

The 1.8-liter gas turbo replaces the unloved five-cylinder 2.5-liter gas engine with better fuel efficiency but without sacrificing any grunt. Indeed, the new, smaller displacement engine actually gains seven more pound-feet of torque over the old nail. The bigger news, however, is the new gas model gives up just 13 percent in fuel economy to the Jetta’s 34 mpg diesel offering.

That means my Jetta SE gas turbo, with 30 mpg and a sticker price of $21,240, costs about the same as my $21,295 Jetta diesel turbo — but causes less pain at the pump. Do the math.

Conventional wisdom says Americans have resisted popular European diesels like the 2.0-liter VW Jetta TDI because they are haunted by the black smoke-belching oil-burners of the 1970s. Don’t you believe it. The real reason is price. Diesel’s high fuel costs negate the 25-40 percent better fuel economy advantage they have traditionally enjoyed over their gas-juiced counterparts. You had to rack up a lot of miles to earn back diesel’s $4-a-gallon premium over $3.40-a-gallon gas.

Only Volkswagen has been able to translate its diesel success in Europe to the States, where diesels made up a paltry 2.7 percent of new vehicle sales (similar to hybrid sales, incidentally) in 2013. VW owns the American diesel market with 75 percent of sales. They hope to grow that market if only … they can overcome their own turbo-riffic gas engines.

TDI vs. TSI

Before we go any further, a brief lesson in acronyms.

VW brands its turbo (T), direct-injection (DI) diesel a TDI and its turbo (T), direct-injection (DI) gas engine a TSI. Huh? Both are direct-injection turbos so both deserve the TDI label. To sort things out, VW bestows the TDI label on the diesel, while calling the gas version TSI (for Turbo Stratified Injection). There’ll be a quiz at the end.

The TDI has long been a favorite of truckers with two-thirds of heavy-duty pickup sales powered by diesels. Truck buyers love the TDI’s inherent low-end torque for pulling boats up a ramp out of Lake Michigan. In an ice storm. With a full bed of mulch. With Chris Christie riding shotgun.

The Jetta’s TDI will run rings around the TSI in torque with a jaw-dropping 236 pound-feet vs. 184. But unless you’re planning to trailer boats (or Chris Christie), torque is less a priority for sedans. Meanwhile, the TSI’s mpg gains are a game-changer — and you don’t have to consult Google Maps to find scarce diesel stations.

Beyond the fraternal TDI vs. TSI competition, you’ll find the Jetta stands up well to its compact class competition. In part, that’s because the Jetta’s interior feels less compact — and more midsize. The Jetta’s rear seat leg and headroom is second in class only to the new Toyota Corolla. Indeed, it’s on par with a midsize Honda Accord — with a trunk bigger than a Toyota Camry. Really.

That means ex-college ball-playing, 6-foot, 5-inch author can do his bracketology in the backseat in comfort.

Quiet interior

But if the Jetta cabin has midsize room, its quiet is luxury quality. This particularly benefits the diesel’s loud WOKKA-WOKKA-WOKKA at idle that sent owners of previous generation models to the mental ward. At 80 mph in the 2014 Jetta’s serene cockpit, you can turn on the Fender Premium Audio System — the same Fender that put guitars in the hands of rock legends like Springsteen, Clapton and Hendrix — and hear every note.

The rest of the Jetta’s interior is nicely appointed with aluminum trim and intuitive controls. The climate dials are especially helpful, allowing the driver to control the ratio of air/defrost to the feet and head compared to most systems that simply switch between the two.

Such attention to detail goes missing, however, when it comes to USB ports. The Jetta offers none for its iPhone generation buyers. Once clueless about the live-in-my-car American’s demand for cup holders, German manufacturers (though they aren’t the only ones) seem slow again to the demands of the digital crowd. LOL-texting BFFs need USBs ASAP.

Anchoring the Jetta SE’s interior is a little German joystick called the stick shift.

The thought of it will give stick-averse Yanks the yips. But master it and you will not only save a healthy five grand over the automatic Jetta SEL, but you will become one with VW’s wunderbar turbo engine. Volkswagen — and its athletic cousin Porsche — build the best manual trannys in the business. Precise and predictable, they fit your hand like a glove.

Natural resources poor, Germans are paranoid about their reliance on outside energy sources (see Vlad Putin), and have taxed their fuels to $8 a gallon to force engine efficiency. VW engineers have mastered the art of squeezing power out of small engines with four valves per cylinder, lightweight materials, turbochargers and direct injection. All this wizardry is at work in the 170-horsepower TSI which beats its bigger 2.5 liter predecessor in torque while saving 4 mpg.

Row the box and you’ll feel a kick in your pants and a smile creep across your face.

Homely mug returns

But, oooooh, that face (no, not you; the Jetta).

The last-generation Jetta (along with its sibling Golf) broke from family tradition with a sexy, full fascia grille. The once homely Jetta was suddenly picking up chicks with its chrome “soul patch” under the upper grille opening. Alas, the conservative styling returned in 2011, meaning the front end has all the appeal of — dare I say it? — a 2004 Chevy Malibu.

Fortunately, the Jetta gets more interesting further back with sharply-creased flanks sweeping over nicely sculpted wheel wells into a curvaceous caboose that will get whistles from Audi lovers.

Conventional wisdom says that TDI and hybrid engines will inevitably be a big chunk of the U.S. market. Just as Toyota rules hybrid sales, VW is positioned to corner the diesel market. Twenty-four percent of VW sales were diesel last year. Only, um, the success of its own TSI diesel beaters stand in the way.

All hail the gas engine.

2014 VW Jetta TSI

Vehicle type: Front-engine, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger sedan
Price: $20,420 base ($21,240 as tested)
Power plant: 1.8-liter, turbocharged, direct-injection, in-line four-cylinder engine
Power: 170 horsepower, 184 pound-feet of torque
Transmission: Five-speed manual
Performance: 0-60 mpg, 7.2 seconds (Car & Driver); 126 mph top speed
Weight: 3,040 pounds
Fuel economy: EPA 26 mpg city/36 mpg highway/30 mpg combined
Highs: Easy-on-the-legs backseat; Turbo power
Lows: Vanilla styling; USB ports, please
Overall:★★★

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