Used 2023 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

Although sedan sales continue to slide, the Jetta keeps on truckin’. Having gone through a fairly extensive refresh for 2022, the Jetta returns with no noteworthy enhancements. However, the SE grade now provides remote start among its standard content. Cue the confetti drop.

Today, the bulk of mainstream compact sedans thrive among Korean and Japanese brands. Consequently, the German-bred Jetta is a rare bird, indeed.

A more vanilla version of the sporty GLI, the standard Jetta is an affordable alternative to pricier European luxury sedans. Yet it still delivers European-like handling dynamics. With the optional automatic transmission, its estimated combined city and highway fuel economy is a healthy 35 mpg.

Unchanged for 2023, the countless hours we spent in the 2022 version allow us to announce that the 2023 Jetta is indeed impressive.

As you might expect of a German design, the cabin is driver-centric. In other words, VW created the arrangement of the gauges, displays, and controls for the driver to easily see and use. This includes key controls for the infotainment and climate systems skewed toward the driver.

Every Jetta model comes with VW’s customizable Digital Cockpit instrument cluster with its high-resolution display of gauges and other key information. In the S, SE, and Sport, it’s an 8-inch screen. The screen expands to 10.25 inches with the more advanced Digital Cockpit Pro version in the SEL and GLI. Volkswagen also bases the size of the touchscreen display overseeing the infotainment system by trim level. A 6.5-inch touchscreen fills the role in the S, Sport, and SE grades, while the other models use an 8-inch touchscreen.

Comfy without being plush, the Jetta’s ride quality belies this sedan’s athleticism in tackling mountain twisties. To take full advantage of the Jetta’s German engineering, you might want to opt for either the Sport grade or the GLI. Both get the XDS Cross Differential System, which can brake the inside front wheel in a curve to tighten the Jetta’s trajectory through the turn.

Furthermore, Volkswagen also packs the GLI with a multi-link rear suspension, a limited-slip differential, a driver-controlled drive-mode system, and an electric adaptive suspension system.

All models but the GLI source their thrust from a willing 1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. Acceleration is brisk whether using the standard 6-speed manual or optional 8-speed automatic transmission. With this turbo engine, VW manages to straddle the fine line between performance and fuel economy.

For the enthusiast searching for more sports-car performance, VW offers the GLI. The Jetta GLI uses a 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder mated to either the standard 6-speed manual or 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. For anyone preferring to swap gears themselves, the 7-speed offers a manual mode with paddle shifters on the steering wheel. In addition to the other performance elements we listed above, the GLI benefits from front wheels shod with larger brakes from the enthusiast-special Volkswagen Golf R.

From the driver’s seat of the GLI, covered with perforated leather, you quickly realize you’re in a compact sedan that behaves more like a sports coupe. Responsive steering, tight cornering, rabbit-quick acceleration — it’s all here, wrapped up in the skin of a small sedan.

If we had to sum up the Jetta’s interior in a single term, we’d say, “tidy spaciousness.” It may sound like an oxymoron, but it really isn’t. The Jetta’s cabin manages to be roomy despite its compact exterior, while at the same time managing that space for maximum results. Not an inch is wasted.

There is plenty of rear-seat legroom. Moreover, the 60/40 split-folding rear seat provides enough hip and shoulder room to accommodate three adults in a pinch. Two will be much more comfortable, of course. Meanwhile, the front bucket seats are supportive and won’t wear you out on longer treks. They are manually adjustable, including a height adjustment for the driver’s seat. In the SE and higher grades, the driver’s seat provides power adjustments.

Becoming standard in the SE and higher models are several features adding to passenger comfort. For example, dual-zone automatic climate control and heated front seats.

Over the years, the Jetta’s exterior styling has evolved rather than radically changed with each redesign. It has grown a bit but retained its basic lines and structure.

LED exterior lights (auto on-off headlights, daytime running lights, and taillights) allow other drivers to more easily see the Jetta at night while illuminating a longer, wider swath for the driver.

The GLI adds a few distinctive exterior elements, like larger 18-inch alloy wheels and a few red accents.

1. Multi-talented Engine
The 1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine combines responsive acceleration with highway fuel economy up to 42 mpg.

2. Apple CarPlay/Android Auto
With smartphone integration becoming a must-have feature in today’s new cars, VW makes it standard in every Jetta model.

3. IQ.Drive
Volkswagen’s IQ.Drive suite of driver assist and safety features combines forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keep assist, and adaptive cruise control.

4. Volkswagen Digital Cockpit
Every Jetta features a digital gauge cluster that looks good and can be customized to feature the information most important to the driver.

5. Car-Net
A smartphone app allows owners to interact with their VW Jetta and use functions like remote lock/unlock, last parked location, and fuel level. It’s also compatible with Amazon Alexa.

6. Adjustable driving dynamics
The range-topping SEL and GLI models provide four selectable driving modes — Comfort, Eco, Sport, and Custom — allowing the driver to adjust steering feel and throttle response to their liking. The Jetta GLI takes it a step further with an adaptive suspension system that constantly monitors road conditions and adjusts the damping at each corner according to the drive mode set by the driver.

To hold the line on pricing, the base 2023 Jetta S provides the necessities — along with a surprise or two. Among the surprises is the Digital Cockpit. Otherwise, the standard features include cloth seating, power accessories (windows, door locks, and outboard mirrors), Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto. Every Jetta also comes with forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert.

Moving up to the Sport grade adds some black accents, 17-inch alloy wheels, and sport front seats.

We think the SE is the Jetta’s value story. It gains the 8-speed automatic transmission as standard. Moreover, it adds rain-sensing wipers, a 6-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, heated front seats, and dual-zone automatic climate control. Volkswagen also tosses in IQ.Drive, which is the full complement of driver-aid technologies like adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assist. It also includes a semi-autonomous system that can accelerate, steer, and brake the car under certain conditions.

To add leather upholstery, a sunroof, Digital Cockpit Pro, ventilated front seats, and heated rear seats, you must opt for the SEL trim. It also includes the 8-inch touchscreen with navigation and an 8-speaker BeatsAudio system.

Only available in Autobahn trim, the GLI is equipped similarly to the SEL and also includes the 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine. Opting for the 7-speed automatic transmission brings with it the SEL’s IQ.Drive technologies.

Volkswagen doesn’t offer much in the way of factory-installed options for the Jetta. You can add the IQ.Drive bundle of driver-aid technologies in S and Sport models with the automatic transmission. A Panoramic Sunroof Package is available on the SEL.

If the Jetta’s 1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine seems familiar, it’s also used in the VW Taos. Turbocharged and direct-injected, it generates 158 horsepower and 184 lb-ft of torque. Unlike some past turbo engines, this one is fine using unleaded gasoline rather than the pricier premium stuff.

You can mate this engine to either the standard 6-speed manual transmission or an optional 8-speed automatic in the S and Sport trims. The 8-speed automatic is standard in the SE and SEL.

Percolating under the hood of the GLI is a 228-horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder. It also develops 258 lb-ft of torque. VW mates this engine to either the standard 6-speed manual or a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.

1.5-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine
158 horsepower @ 5,500 rpm
184 lb-ft of torque @ 1,750 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 31/41 (automatic, S trim), 29/40 (automatic, Sport, SE, SEL trims), 29/42 (manual)

2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine (GLI)
228 horsepower @ 5,000 rpm
258 lb-ft of torque @ 1,700 rpm
EPA city/highway fuel economy: 26/36 (automatic), 26/37 (manual)