Ask the Car People.SM


Jetta vs Civic vs TDI vs GTI

22 messages,  Last post on Dec 26, 2007 at 11:19 AM

You are in the Volkswagen Jetta Forum.

What is this discussion about? Volkswagen Jetta, Honda Civic, Volkswagen GTI, Sedan

Messages Page 2 of 3

#3 of 22 Re: Jetta vs Civic vs TDI vs GTI [pat] by andreg

Aug 06, 2007 (9:06 am)

Replying to: pat (Aug 06, 2007 8:00 am)
Thanks Pat. I actually read a bunch of posts on the Jetta, which were very helpful. I was really hoping to hear back from either Jetta Wolfsburg or TDI owners. And it's always interesting to hear from real owners rather than "experts". I read a ton of posts on MSN from owners reviewing the Jetta and all loved it, whereas the "experts" only moderately liked it. I think the issue was because of the reliability of VW, hence my post to see what real owners were experiencing.
 
Andre

#4 of 22 Re: Jetta vs Civic vs TDI vs GTI [andreg] by pat

Aug 06, 2007 (11:25 am)

Replying to: andreg (Aug 06, 2007 9:06 am)
We have a lot of "real owners" posting in the Jetta discussions here. That's where you'll find them. They may or may not find this discussion, but we'll see.

#5 of 22 Andre by caaz

Aug 07, 2007 (7:34 pm)

My Next door neighbor has a TDI...i go in it with him all the time. It's as quiet as a regular jetta, much more plush than a Civic, And he always gets around 42 to 45 mpg on the freeway, City he gets around 37.He drives from Phoenix to Cal. every other week, Has never gotten under 42.
 
As far as the BMW 335...what a machine...go drive one..Did you know the new one is faster than the M3?....its blistering fast and would be a kick to drive.
 
P.S. he drives about 75 MPH with a/c on when he gets the 45 mpg

#6 of 22 Re: Andre [caaz] by andreg

Aug 07, 2007 (7:53 pm)

Replying to: caaz (Aug 07, 2007 7:34 pm)
Thanks for the info caaz. I've found out the TDI will come back in Feb/Mar. That might be good timing depending on when I sell my current car (IS350).
 
I'm very familiar with the 3 series - I've owned two of them - and BMW in general. I just bought my wife an X3, and in addition to the two 3-series I've owned, I've also had a Mini and a K-1200 motorcycle. They are great machines. I'm afraid to go drive the 335 because it would probably come home with me. I'd really like to try to down size my payment for a while, and if I could do that while I increased my mpg then all the better.

#7 of 22 TDI by esteeze

Aug 28, 2007 (7:53 am)

I've had an 06.5 Jetta TDI for the past 4 months, and I've really like it.
 
About 80% of my driving is hilly urban commuting, and I get about 33MPG (better than the 21 MPG with the Honda CR-V I used to have). I've taken it on a couple of long distance interstate trips, and I've gotten upwards of 45MPG then.
 
I have had zero problems with mine so far (knock on wood).

#8 of 22 Re: TDI [esteeze] by andreg

Aug 28, 2007 (8:06 am)

Replying to: esteeze (Aug 28, 2007 7:53 am)
Thanks for the reply. I'm definitely leaning toward the TDI, unless I sell my current car before the TDI comes out. I appreciate the info. I've yet to hear anything negative from anyone who owns a Jetta - that speaks volumes about the car.
 
Andre

#9 of 22 Re: TDI [andreg] by cz75

Aug 28, 2007 (10:22 am)

Replying to: andreg (Aug 28, 2007 8:06 am)
Or they just haven't owned it long enough to have anything go wrong yet.

#10 of 22 Re: TDI [cz75] by esteeze

Aug 28, 2007 (10:43 am)

Replying to: cz75 (Aug 28, 2007 10:22 am)
That very well could be the case for me... hopefully not.
 
One thing that is very different about the TDI vs the Honda gassers I had been used to is that there is a very specific, hard to find oil that you have to use for your oil changes. It's also turbocharged, so the performance characteristics are different than that of a normally aspirated vehicle; there's not a lot of power from a stand still... but there is a whole lot once it's wound to about 1500 or 2000 RPM.

#11 of 22 Re: TDI [esteeze] by andreg

Aug 28, 2007 (11:20 am)

Replying to: esteeze (Aug 28, 2007 10:43 am)
So are you saying there is the typical "turbo lag" we've all experienced? I had a supercharged Mini and I must say I grew tired of the turbo lag. They changed engines and got rid of that; I'm wondering if VW will have done the same with the '08 TDI? I haven't read about that...

#12 of 22 Re: TDI [andreg] by esteeze

Aug 28, 2007 (12:07 pm)

Replying to: andreg (Aug 28, 2007 11:20 am)
Yes, I guess it's "typical"; I've only driven one other turbocharged vehicle, and it was about 15 years ago on a 4cyl Izuzu Impulse that I used to have, so my experience driving them is limited.
 
My point is that its definitely different that what you would experience with a Civic or perhaps a GTI (can't remember if that one is turbocharged or not... if it is, it may be more similar). I think the diesel plant itself produces more torque at lower engine revs than a 4cyl gasser would (like a Civic).
 
My recent experience is with a Honda CR-V and a Honda Civic, so those are what I tend to compare the Jetta TDI to.

Messages Page 2 of 3

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement