2025 Volkswagen Jetta GLI Autobahn Is Way More Fun Than A Crossover And Just As Practical

Photo: Logan K. Carter

Volkswagen Unveils the Jetta GLI Performance Concept

I don’t take life too seriously, and if you need proof just look at my car. I’m a 6-foot-8 Mini Cooper S owner with a license plate that reads as “Yeah, I fit.” I revel in the opportunity to have fun, especially behind the wheel of a zesty sport compact, so suffice to say I was stoked to get a 2025 Volkswagen Jetta GLI with a six-speed manual for a week. How was the United States’ last manual transmission-equipped People’s Car? In a word, fun.

Full disclosure: Volkswagen invited me to the launch event for the facelifted 2025 Jetta, and I got to take a Jetta GLI home with me for a week. I lived with my frankly beautiful Kings Red 2025 Jetta GLI Autobahn as my daily driver and had a blast doing it. If you’re looking for info on the standard Jetta, read that review here. Thanks for the fun, VW!

Photo: Logan K. Carter

The first Jetta GLI was introduced 40 years ago, and this 2025 model retains the spirit of the original as an engaging sporty car with all the practicality and usability of the spacious and affordable Jetta. What’s new for 2025? Not a ton, and that’s okay. VW restyled the front end, which now aligns better with the rest of Volkswagen’s lineup and looks far more modern and attractive. The rear gains a full-width tail light bar, and inside there’s a new dash design with a larger tablet-style infotainment screen and touch-sensitive climate controls.

Unfortunately for serious bargain hunters, the Jetta GLI is now only offered in top Autobahn trim; all other trim levels have been eliminated. This means the cheapest GLI now costs a still-reasonable $33,940 (including $1,225 for destination), and neither transmission option saves you any dough. My test car rang in at $35,045 thanks to its optional gorgeous Kings Red paint job and Black Package that blacks out the mirror caps and the roof.

Photo: Logan K. Carter

What doesn’t change in the 2025 update is the powertrain. Volkswagen’s much-loved EA888 turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4 engine still lives under the Jetta’s restyled hood, and it produces the same 228 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque as last year. It can be mated to a six-speed manual transmission like my test car or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, if you insist. I’m not an automatic transmission hater, but the 2025 Jetta GLI is the only new Volkswagen offered with three pedals in the U.S., so it deserves to be celebrated for that. The GLI also retains the outgoing car’s independent rear suspension and limited-slip front differential, two very important pieces of the fun-to-drive puzzle.

Driving the GLI is a joyful experience regardless of the setting, but let’s start with the fun stuff. Be warned — driving the GLI like a hooligan may produce side effects like excessive grinning and giggling, because this thing is a hoot. Select Sport mode, and the GLI’s steering and adaptive dampers firm up while the speakers let the fizzy EA888’s sounds fill the cabin. Drop the clutch, let the front tires find grip, and ride the hefty wave of torque to the 6,500 rpm redline.

Photo: Logan K. Carter

The GLI has the same impressive shove that it’s had for years, and it’s still playful and fun to toss through twists and turns. It is prone to torque steer, especially if you’re on an uneven road surface, but that makes it feel lively and rowdy. The exhaust note sounds great without the piped-in engine noise, which I actually turned off because it bothered me. Unfortunately, the car is let down by its standard all-season tires that inhibit the GLI’s otherwise impressive front-end grip. The manual transmission is both easy and a lot of fun to use, with a light clutch and a reasonably precise shift feel. The GLI delivers on fun just like it has for decades, but as sedans become rarer and rarer, we can no longer take its existence for granted.

Cut to the bustling city streets of Los Angeles where the Jetta GLI felt incredibly solid and composed, and yes, still fun. The independent rear suspension does a great job keeping the back of the car settled over broken pavement, and the manual transmission’s light clutch prevented any left leg ache. The EA888’s intoxicating power paired with the manual transmission made it difficult for me to drive frugally; I kept catching myself driving aggressively and using traffic lights like drag strip christmas trees. The car possesses an enchanting character that makes you want to drive it harder.

Photo: Logan K. Carter

On the highway, the GLI suffers from terminal tire noise in a way that the Jetta’s more modern competitors have already solved. All Jettas come standard with Volkswagen’s Level 2 driver’s assistance system called IQ Drive, which blew my mind a bit given the manual transmission. It’s a very effective system that does a good job keeping things centered in the lane and moving smoothly with traffic, but it’s such a strange feeling to be shifting your own gears while the car does most of the rest of the work. It’s not a bad feeling at all — in fact it worked great with the manual and would remain active through shifts, even continuing to decelerate when the car is in neutral — it’s just an intriguing mixture of digital and analog. The GLI’s highway fuel efficiency is impressive too. Cruising around 75 mph in sixth gear returns miles-per-gallon numbers in the mid-to-high 30s. The manual is rated at 26 mpg in the city and 36 on the highway, with both of those numbers being one mpg higher than GLIs equipped with the automatic transmission, surprisingly.

The function of the Jetta’s interior doesn’t change much from the current car, aside from the unfortunate decision to switch away from physical climate controls with knobs and buttons to a Climatronic Touch display. It’s not totally hateful, but it does require you to look away from the road to ensure you’re engaging with the touch slider you meant to. It’s illuminated at night at least, unlike other VWs from the past few years, and the fact that there’s a dedicated climate display is better than having everything hidden in the infotainment, but the 2024 car’s physical controls were more idiot-proof.

Photo: Logan K. Carter

The steering wheel feels great in your hands, but also suffers from touch sensitive buttons. I had an infuriating experience with these touchpads when I adjusted the cruise control’s follow distance and then tried increasing the cruise control speed. I successfully adjusted the follow distance, but when I tapped the + button to increase my speed, the car thought I was still pressing the follow distance button over and over. I had to let it rest for a moment and then try increasing the speed again. It’s not a deal breaker, but it’s unnecessarily complicated.

You get the same capacious interior as the standard Jetta with ample room up front, in the back seats and in the trunk. The infotainment is typical VW, so if you’re familiar with the company’s UX then you’ll be right at home. If not, some things may take a while to find, but you’ll learn it pretty quickly. For 2025 the Jetta gains standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a cooled and increased-output wireless charger, and faster charging USB-C ports. The front seats sit weirdly high up and come standard with a nice but slightly underwhelming ventilation function, and there are heated outboard seats front and rear. The only thing I really disliked inside the car was the standard BeatsAudio system, which just sounded bad and not befitting of a $35,000 car.

Photo: Logan K. Carter

My biggest challenge with the Jetta GLI comes when you bring its competitors into the picture. Since VW only offers the Autobahn trim, the GLI costs almost the same as a Hyundai Elantra N, a car that takes a fun-to-drive demeanor to the next level. The Elantra N offers a manual like the GLI, and it’s a significantly more powerful focused driver’s car, but the GLI offers a more refined everyday experience.

The Jetta is starting to show its age, but it’s still an incredibly versatile vehicle that has actual space for a family of four while still able to become a canyon carver at a moment’s notice. If you care about your car’s driving experience, you should consider the GLI before you look at any crossover. And don’t be afraid of the manual!