Compare the2022 Honda CivicVS 2021 Volkswagen Jetta

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Honda Civic have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Jetta doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Civic are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Jetta doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Honda Civic has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Jetta doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Civic deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Civic’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Jetta’s airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Civic Touring/Sport Touring has standard Low Speed Braking Control that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Jetta doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Civic’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Jetta doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Civic and the Jetta have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Civic its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2021, a rating granted to only 72 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Jetta last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Pick” in 2017.

Honda’s powertrain warranty covers the Civic 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Jetta. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Jetta ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The Civic’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Jetta’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are over 67 percent more Honda dealers than there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Civic’s warranty.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Civic’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Jetta’s camshafts. If the Jetta’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Civic has a 500-amp battery. The Jetta only offers a standard 480-amp battery.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda 17th in initial quality. With 49 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 30th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda 27th in reliability. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Honda vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Honda 19 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The Civic LX/Sport’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 11 more horsepower (158 vs. 147) than the Jetta’s 1.4 turbo 4-cylinder. The Civic EX/EX-L/Touring’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 33 more horsepower (180 vs. 147) than the Jetta’s 1.4 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Civic EX/EX-L/Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Volkswagen Jetta (automatics tested):

On the EPA test cycle the Civic Sedan gets better mileage than the Jetta:

On the EPA test cycle the Civic EX/EX-L/Touring Hatchback EX-L 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder CVT gets better fuel mileage than the Jetta 8 speed Auto (31 city/39 hwy vs. 29 city/39 hwy).

Regardless of its engine, the Civic’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Volkswagen only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the Jetta Auto.

The Civic has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Jetta doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

The Honda Civic comes standard with an automatic transmission, for driver comfort, especially in the city. Automatic costs extra on the Jetta.

The Civic has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Jetta doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Civic stops much shorter than the Jetta:

For better traction, the Civic has larger standard tires than the Jetta (215/55R16 vs. 205/60R16). The Civic Sport/Touring’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Jetta (235/40R18 vs. 205/60R16).

The Civic LX’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Jetta’s standard 60 series tires. The Civic Sport/Touring’s tires have a lower 40 series profile than the Jetta R-Line/SEL Premium’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Civic Sport/Touring has standard 18-inch wheels. The Jetta’s largest wheels are only 17-inches.

For superior ride and handling, the Honda Civic has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Volkswagen Jetta has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The Civic has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Civic flat and controlled during cornering. The Jetta’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Civic’s wheelbase is 2 inches longer than on the Jetta (107.7 inches vs. 105.7 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Civic is 1.4 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Jetta.

The Civic Touring Sedan handles at .88 G’s, while the Jetta SEL pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Civic Touring Sedan executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Jetta SEL (26.7 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 27.6 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Civic LX/EX/EX-L’s turning circle is .6 feet tighter than the Jetta’s (36.1 feet vs. 36.7 feet).

The Civic Sedan is 6.1 inches shorter than the Jetta, making the Civic easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

To almost totally eliminate engine vibration in the passenger area, the Civic has a liquid-filled front engine mount. The liquid helps further dampen engine harshness. The Jetta uses conventional solid rubber engine mounts.

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Civic a Mid-size car, while the Jetta is rated a Compact.

The Civic has 4.3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Jetta (99 vs. 94.7).

The Civic Hatchback has .8 inches more front headroom, 1.2 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more front shoulder room and 2 inches more rear shoulder room than the Jetta.

The Civic Hatchback has a much larger trunk than the Jetta (24.5 vs. 14.1 cubic feet).

On a hot day the Civic’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance with the keyless remote or at the outside door handle. The driver of the Jetta can’t use the remote to operate the windows.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The Civic’s headlights were rated “Good” by the IIHS, while the Jetta’s headlights are rated “Marginal” to “Poor.”

The Honda Civic comes in sedan and four door hatchback bodystyles; the Volkswagen Jetta isn’t available as a four door hatchback.

Car and Driver performed a comparison test in its September 2021 issue and they ranked the Honda Civic Touring Sedan first. They ranked the Volkswagen Jetta SEL Premium third.

The Civic Sport was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Ten” for 2 of the last 4 years. The Jetta has never been a Car and Driver “Top Ten” pick.

The Civic was chosen as one of Automobile Magazine’s “All Stars” for 2 of the last 25 years. The Jetta has never been an “All Star.”

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Civic as the 2016 North American Car of the Year. The Jetta has never been chosen.