In the tight competition shared by many automobiles out in the market, the Honda Civic continues to be perpetually the best car to beat. Its wide range of body styles, engines, and equipment can't be truly equaled even by the Best Buy Ford Focus. Leveling with this fame enjoyed by the Civic are the highly recommended picks, the Volkswagen Golf and Jetta, though the latter far outsells the first.

 

Volkswagen's best-selling line has been added more spice with the introduction of the Jetta. Jetta comes as a 4-dr sedan or wagon. Minor appearance changes have been incorporated to this vehicle together with the midyear addition of a high-performance all-wheel-drive Golf. Roughly parallel lineups feature identical powertrains. A 2.0-liter 4 cyl is both in GL and GLS models. A turbo 1.8-liter 4 cyl powers the 1.8T models and Golf GTI. A 2.8-liter V6 is in Jetta GLI VR6 and Golf GTI VR6. All 4-cyl engines are offered with manual or automatic transmission except in the midyear-addition Jetta GLI 1.8T, which, along with the V6 models, comes with manual only.

 

For 2004 Jettas get a new grille and taillights, and GTI and GLI have restyled wheels. All models come with antilock 4-wheel disc brakes, front torso side airbags, and head-protecting curtain side airbags. Traction control is standard except on 2.0-liter and TDI models. The sporty Jetta GLI is likely to arrive as a 4-dr GTI with a base 150-hp non-turbo FSI 4-cyl and an improved 1.9 turbodiesel-4. All engines will be available with 6-speed manual transmission or a new 6-speed automatic option.

 

The redesigned VW Jetta brings in more styling and a slightly larger package. Wheelbase expands by 1.5 inches to 101.4, hydraulic steering switched to electric power steering and a claimed 80-percent increase in structural stiffness. The structure design of 2004 Jetta assumes elegance yet enjoys luxury of simplicity. Its attractive features mix with its versatility. No doubt does it become a best-seller as well as everybody's favorite too.