VW Jetta to Turn Hybrid

At about the same time German carmaker Volkswagen pulled the wraps off the new Jetta, presenting all its three petrol and one turbodiesel direct-injection engines, some within the German group already began previewing a hybrid version of the model.

Of course, such a news is not surprising. Some would call it even predictable, with Toscan Bennett, a VW product strategist, saying such a model will arrive in 2012.

“VW as a brand takes the electrification of the automobile very seriously, and we have a longtime strategy for growing that business,” Bennett was quoted as saying by The New York Times. “The Jetta hybrid is our first entry in that strategy.”

According to initial information, the Jetta hybrid will come with the best-in-class fuel economy. Sure, best-in-class is a relative term, as Volkswagen will not go, as you might have imagine after the Toyota Prius (VW apparently considers the Prius to be a class in itself), but after the Civic hybrid.

But, until the hybrid Jetta gets here, we'll have to make due with the recently launched one. With a starting price of only $15,995, the new Jetta is likely to leave its mark much more than its previous versions did.

“If you did a search for cars under $17,000 right now, no Volkswagens would show up,” Bennett added.. “With the new Jetta, we’ve kept everything people liked, but also made the car more accessible to the entry-level buyer in the compact segment. We want people who had considered Jettas too expensive to put us on their shopping lists.”