Safety being a top priority with Volkswagen, ABS brakes can be found standard at all four corners, assisted by Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD). A brake wear indicator is on the dash as well, plus dual front air bags. Also, a seat-belt tensioning system and lower anchorage and tethers for children (LATCH) in the rear outboard seats allow the safest installation of new, upgraded child seats.
 |
| It's a mystery why Volkswagen's trunk release doesn't open via the electronic latch under the lip of the trunklid when all the doors are unlocked, but rather needs a click and hold of the remote (which also doesn't open the trunk) and then press of the aforementioned latch. Incidentally you can also slot the key (under the VW logo) or click the interior switch, the first at least a redundancy if the remote doesn't work. (Photo: General Motors) |
On the negative I'm still finding the fact that the trunk doesn't open when all doors are unlocked a pain. There's an electronic actuated latch under the lip, but it does nothing unless the trunk is first unlocked either by the keyless remote or via a switch on the door. I'm sure I would get used to it if I lived with it every day, but I'd really like to know Volkswagen's reasoning.
 |
| Although rated top multi-line automaker by Strategic Vision, some Volkswagen customer's have reported below average quality. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
The only other negative has to do with reliability. While the Jetta's perceived quality is ahead of all in the compact class, its actual quality is suspect. Some owners swear by their Volkswagens, while others spend more time swearing at them. And I'm not going by hearsay. I've spoken frequently to VW owners in supermarket parking lots, have received various letters, and only just experienced the longest voice mail (tirade) ever received after publishing the news that Strategic Vision, a California based research company, recently released its annual Total Quality Index, ranking Volkswagen the top multi-line automaker. While a great victory for Volkswagen, the woman who called had nothing positive to say, about both the quality of her car and poor response she had received from the company.