VW Jetta TDI Wagon and Prius v - direct comparison

Check out this fuelly link to all jettas:
Volkswagen Jetta MPG Reports | Fuelly

 

I believe a Jetta wagon is rated 30/42. The Jetta sedans and wagons are listed together on Fuelly. Most of the Jetta wagons on Fuelly are in the 36 mpg average range and lower compared to 40 and higher for the v.

I did notice the Jetta wagon you referenced 2sk21 had high averages when reporting mostly highway driving, but dropped when adding city driving in. The Prius just whips the competition with it's city mpg averages.

I believe over time we will save significant $'s in fuel cost by purchasing the Prius v instead of the Jetta sportswagon.

 

These were the two cars we were looking at when my wife bought the prius v. The biggest issue with the Jetta is that its a VW. At least in my area, the dealers are horrible and I've had poor experiences with everything other than the diesel engine. The automatic has to be the most complex, initially unreliable and most $ to maintain transmission in a sub $40k car. The fact that 90+% of the TDIs in the area are automatics really limits the cars. If we could have found a manual transmission base model TDI wagon with a sunroof in blue, we probably would have bought it. The manual transmission requirement kept # of cars available so low, they were never the right color or options.

With the v, we were able to get exactly the options we wanted in any color combination even though the car was brand new in release. Toyotas dealer and quality reputation were reassuring too. We have three diesels, I prefer them over hybrids, but VW isnt the brand to go with. Now if only Toyota would bring over their diesels...I'd love to trade my CRD Jeep in on a diesel small minitruck 4x4...

 

I wouldn't go about it this way, because it would be rational for people with long highway commutes to consider the diesel more than people with mostly urban/suburban driving. So the owner demographics are skewed towards people choosing the car that saves them more money (all else being equal.) You should too.

Better I think to know your driving patterns and plug them into EPA for a comparo between the two choices
Then add on the diesel price premium
And then add on the maintenance and repair premiums
Then ask yourself why you are going out of your way to pollute more.

Or save some time, and don't even bother.

 

SageBrush our v3 is a highway commuter in mostly 60+ mph traffic with some stop and go when accidents happen ahead. We just filled it up last night and calculated 46.97 mpg. I'd say that smacks the VW right there. Then add maintenance and reliability and that cooks them for me. I looked at them quite closely because I do like the sportiness a little better but when you compare them side by side I see no contest for my top 3 concerns: fuel economy, reliability and maintenance costs. Sure we could get a whopper part but that would be unusual for a Prius (still unknown for a v specifically) and common for VW. W

 

Yep.

I think the only people who prefer VW TDI in the US these days place a high priority on speeding to the next red light. In years previous VW also had a reputation for very nice interior design and trim -- if you did not mind early wear and tear.

 

I really believe the v is a superior vehicle to the TDI. It runs further, on cheaper fuel, and VW is not a strong brand from a reliability standpoint.

 

You have just described my son to a tee, owns a VW TDI, and speeds to the next light......AND, does not brake until the last moment. all sad to say! I hope he corrects before a tragedy occurs. He is actually a very good pilot.

 

Well I'm not in the US, but I found the Golf's handling, driving position, seats, and design to be better for me than the Prius'. And I'm about the last person who would ever try to speed to a red light.

 

You are correct, all the items you mentioned are better on the Golf, the Jetta and the Passat are different species and probably appeal to a diffrent type. Speeding to a red light was of course just a generalization, which never apply to everyone.

 

The Jetta SportWagen is pretty much a Golf wagon, many traits are the same. Outside the US, it's actually sold as the Golf wagon.

 

Actually, The Diesel fuel doesn't seem to be going up as quickly as regular gas...

 

Diesel fuel here in the northeast US is 30 cents more a gallon than regular unleaded. That adds up to a good amount of money in the long run.

 

You have to know your driving style. Prius does much better in city on MPG but TDI has faster acceleration. On highway they're nearly identical. Plus the TDI is more fun to drive, especially with 6 speed manual and has a lot of torque or pulling capacity at 236 lbs/ft which is really nice if you live in a hilly area. Normally many economy cars lose speed going up hill. Factor in longevity, diesel engines last forever, easily 300K+ whereas what is the expected battery life? From what I hear a battery replacement is not cheap. Lastly security, last fall after hurricane Sandy, many gas stations in Northeast quickly sold out of regular gasoline, but diesel seemed to always be available and this went on for at least 2 weeks. Really comes down to driver preferences and what you expect from a car.

 

1st post, thought so.

Welcome to Priuschat. Be around, and navigate through the many posts regarding battery life and price...

 

Factor in the additional cost of diesel over regular. Drive both, I never felt any slow down on any hill in the v though I sometimes accept a slight slow down if I want to save gas and there was no traffic to bother. As for availability, every station has regular, can't say that about diesel. Used right the main batteries in a Prius are good for 250k plus. How many of us care about the possibility of going 250 versus a theoretical 300? And repair costs ... the battery is available refurbished for around a grand, what does a diesel engine refurbish cost? ( I follow diesels on yachts and trucks and they have expensive rebuilds every few thousand hours or 100k miles. I could replace the battery for less.) Factor in more frequent oil changes too and special oil. Both need special knowledge to do serious maintenance. VW's reputation isn't the best where Toyota's has been. My first Toyota, perfect, last VW not so good. First VW in maybe '68 and 4 since.

Have a buddy who loves his TDI wagon, I love my Prius with a mere 7200 or so miles on it.

 

Diesel is not nearly as bulletproof as their reputation implies. A lot has changed in the diesel game in the past few years.

 

If you're looking forward to 300k miles in a CR TDI, check out pricing on diesel particulate filters and turbochargers. I'd be surprised to see either last that long.

 

To those looking for a fair comparison in this forum, take these responses with a grain of salt. One has to first register as owning a prius before posting here. That means people here are mostly those who have bought a prius and likely will justify their decisions.

I test drove a 2015 prius v three and a 2014 jetta sportwagen tdi last weekend. The prius felt stable even under rain and the interiors were okay. However, it had no power at all. Going from 0 to any speed ( like 5 mph) took forever. The car just seemed to not want to move.

The sportwagen can give you 50+ mpg’s in the highway, which truly smacks the prius v right there (and the poster who said that he gets 46mpg’s with his prius v). You can find youtube videos of people getting this mileage. Also, the interior of the sportwagen feels more refined than the prius v’s. It has leatherette and a thick leather steering wheel. The prius v has a hard plastic steering wheel and cloth seats... To finish it off, the sportwagen gives you a lot of torque when you want it; granted, your mpg’s will go down to like 30 if you rev up the engine, but personally, I prefer having that option instead of having to suffer through an unresponsive prius v.

Finally, the jetta sportwagen, as of now, is significantly cheaper than a prius v whe adjusting for mileage and age. Just do some comparisons for your market, but I was comparing a 2014 sportwagen tdi with 52,000 miles against a 2015 prius v three with 75,000 miles. The first was listed at $12,400 with CPO (2 yrs bumper to bumper), the second was listed at $14,700 at carmax with no warranty included. I ended up buying a 2014 jettta sportwagen tdi with 18,000 miles and CPO for $14,000, which was still cheaper than the overpriced and super slow prius v.