7/28/2019 VW Jetta GLX Review Autoweek June 27 1994

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VOLKSWAGEN JETTA 11 GLXVR6 makes the difference

r I VR6 engine ( top) changes th e Jetta's Iwrsona l l tv from a SO-SO sedan Into anV olkswagen's Monroney sticker iswrong. Fahrvergnugen isn't free. I t car-ries a price tag of $19.975.That's th e basic pr ice o f the 1994 V WJetta I1 1 G L X . T h i s isn' t the Jetta o f ourrecent AutoFile (AW. M ay 9). a G L pulledaround b y a 115-hp. 2.0- l i ter four. This isth e Jetta p o w e r e d b y V W ' s marve lousmighty mite. the 172-hp. 2.8-liter VR6.Wh i le we l iked the ne w inter ior packag-i n g i n t r o d u c e d w i t h th e '9 4 G L . w elamented the car's inab i l i t y t o get ou t o fit s o w n way. Once i t go t mov ing , i t s t i l lwas d r e a d f u l l y slow-as s l o w as m i d -s i z e d d o m e s t i c sedans- th rough th es l a l o m , a p la c e w h e r e , f uh r ve r gnugenshould be abundant. A n d once under way,getting the G L back to a stationary posi-t ion required on e o f th e longest b rak ingzones i n A u u ~ F i l e istory.Our repon noted that we were awaitingou r first dr ive i n the G L X . Wel l , we've hadtha t d r i v e . and i t p r o d u c e d so m u c hfuhrvergnugen that staffers no t only wereasking fo r another turn behind the wheel,hut inqu i r ing what the month ly paymentswould be.Amazing the difference a V6. stiffer sus-pension an d rear disc brakes can make.We pride ourselves on being mature andhardened ca r critics. yet consider the golly-gosh-gee wh iz expressions o f enthusiasmfrom ou r drivers' log:"The G L X is a k ick to drive. the fasterthe better. Th e best V 6 on the market?'"This baby flies. A fanlastic ride. D i d Imention i t flies?""This l i tt le bugger really is terrific.""Boy. is i t a blast."

"I don't usually l ike VWs, ye t I eallylike this car."As one staffer pu t it : "This engine takesthe Jetta-basically an econohox w i th a

trunk-and translbrms i t into a pretty reri-ous sp ins sedan."Bu t i t ' s no t s imply the engine. thoughthat's a good place to stan. Instead o f I Shp and I2 2 Ib ft o f torque from four cylin-ders, the VR6 produces 172 hp and 177 lh ftf rom six.The V R 6 ' s extra grunt meant gearingwith in h e five-speed manual bo x could hechanged (and was in every gear except sec-ond) to lake better advantage o f the avail-able power. (However. the only differencesbetween the optional four-speed automatictransmission in four- and six-cylinder \'er-sions are reverse an d final drive.)The steering rat io also was changed toincrease responsiveness. L i k e w is e . th esuspension has thicker an t i r o l l hars bothfront an d rear. and gas shocks. Front disc*are ll nches (instead o f 10.1 w i t h 8.9-inch discs in back (instead o f inch-smallerr e a r d r u ms ) . W h e e l s are 15 inchea i nd iamete r (not 14) and tires are 205150a(instead o f IX5160rI.Because o f increased frontal area and thefact h e wheelltire combination lifts the carhalf an inch. the G L X has more drag (0.34to 0.321 than the G L . I t also weighs more.29 15 pounds to the GL's 2647.B u t thanks to the strength o f the VR6.you get to 60 mph i n 7.7 seconds. nearlytw o seconds aooner than the four.We haven't ru n the G L X through a testrack. but we suspect slalom scores and b r k -in g distances wi l l be markedly improved, too.V W limits top speed to 130 mph.W e ' v e l i k e d V W ' s V R 6 since h r i n gintroduced to it in the Corrado. Finally. wethink. V W has pu t the engine in a suitablepackage. Suitable. but no t perfect: that. wefigure. is to come later this year when theVR6 goes into the Go l f as the new GTI .Th e Jctta has roonl fo r five psuplc dnd

S P E C I F I C A T I O N S-U mn: $19,975wb.uIn): 97 4L.qfhlrrIdth (In): 173 4166 7Curbd g m lb): 2915P a r m l n : Fron.lranrvene. 12.valve. ~ n w l e a

2 8-l~lerIl70 td V6. cast-iron m k , lloy Ma&. 172 np8 58W rpm, 177 lb H e 42W rpm lronfdrlvsI ~ VB- SO BB~anual rsnsm~ss~on" ph(uc.): 7 7 (S*,TOP .p.d (mPh): 130SY.pnslon:. . . . Ind Iron1 MacPMrronrbuls,toll spnngs. rha*,. anllrdl bar. IM ,ornon.beam resta i ls ,d p m g s . gar r M , nttrollbar

Bnhes: P w r ented dl- fronurearTIms: .. . . . . 205150R-155P"v mll.l"m: Oval lrml almgrYpphanw: 21 mpp IEPAmmb). I 4 5 gal = 3(Ypackage\. A n d thohe peoplc i n !he frontseats l ina l ly can be co~nl'ortahlehince thrmad mice shoulder bcltr have heell rcpl;~cedby dual airbags an d ~i lanual ells. Adding tothe dr iv ing l m d r id ing) pleasure i s thc IL.Ithat yo u sit in the Jeua. not rcclinc.Th e steering i s sharp and the suspe~lhioni s f i n . bu t Tar f rom unctm~fortahle: t', ;Iteml ic balance between \lick ;~nd tick.I f we have any critici*ni. i t ' s o f the t ivc-speed shi f ter . V W ha* swi tched f r t l ~ l ~cab le system to a lever . t h c ~ u g h O I I I ~staffen sti l l think the new gearhux lack* lhcdirect so n o f fecl and function preferred 111 ;Ispun&sedan.Stantlard cquipr i le~it ll the G1.X includcrABS. traction cuntrul. BBS wheels. powerw in d o w s and locks. cru icc c l ~ n t r o l . oglamps. a t r i p c o mp u te r and heated ;bodheight-adjustable rpor t heat*. l o fact. thconly options are leather interior. a \u~ l r cn~ f .C D player and automatic traor lo i rs i

7/28/2019 VW Jetta GLX Review Autoweek June 27 1994

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"Rice Rocket" w a mildly disparaging label probably

L O N G T E R M Iwith open-Pirmaoring, particuluiythistim of year.

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