Compare the2024 Volkswagen JettaVS 2024 Toyota Corolla

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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The Jetta has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. A system to reveal vehicles in the Corolla’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Jetta has standard Rear Traffic Alert and automatically engage the brakes. Toyota charges extra for Rear Cross-Traffic Alert on the Corolla and the Corolla’s Rear Cross-Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

Both the Jetta and the Corolla have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the Volkswagen Jetta is safer than the Toyota Corolla:

	Jetta	Corolla
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.9 inches	.9 inches
Hip Force	317 lbs.	330 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The Jetta comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car. The Corolla’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The Jetta’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Corolla’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Jetta has a standard 540-amp battery. The Corolla’s 360-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Jetta third among compact cars in their 2023 Initial Quality Study. The Corolla isn’t in the top three.

Engine

The Jetta’s 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 33 lbs.-ft. more torque (184 vs. 151) than the Corolla’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Jetta Automatic’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Corolla doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Volkswagen Jetta uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Corolla requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Jetta’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Corolla:

	Jetta	Corolla
Front Rotors	11.3 inches	10.8 inches
Rear Rotors	10.7 inches	10.2 inches

The Jetta stops shorter than the Corolla:

	Jetta	Corolla
70 to 0 MPH	176 feet	179 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	121 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	138 feet	143 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

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

The Jetta has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Corolla doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Jetta’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (59% to 41%) than the Corolla’s (60.9% to 39.1%). This gives the Jetta more stable handling and braking.

The Jetta Sport handles at .87 G’s, while the Corolla XSE pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Jetta S executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Corolla XSE (27.3 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

Chassis

The front grille of the Jetta uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Corolla doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Jetta Sport is quieter than the Corolla:

	Jetta	Corolla
At idle	40 dB	42 dB
Full-Throttle	75 dB	77 dB
70 MPH Cruising	69 dB	71 dB

Passenger Space

The Jetta has 6.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Corolla (94.7 vs. 88.6).

The Jetta has .2 inches more front headroom, 1.9 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear headroom, 2.6 inches more rear legroom, .1 inches more rear hip room and 2.3 inches more rear shoulder room than the Corolla.

Cargo Capacity

The Jetta has a larger trunk than the Corolla (14.1 vs. 13.1 cubic feet).

Ergonomics

When different drivers share the Jetta SEL, the memory seats and mirrors make it convenient. Each setting activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position and outside mirror angle. The Corolla doesn’t offer a memory system.

The Jetta’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Corolla’s power window (except driver window) and power lock switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The Jetta’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Corolla’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent. The Corolla SE/Nightshade/XSE’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are standard on the Jetta SEL to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Corolla doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the Jetta SEL has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Corolla doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The Jetta’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Toyota charges extra for heated mirrors on the Corolla.

The Jetta’s standard rear view mirror has an automatic dimming feature. This mirror can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on it, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Corolla doesn’t offer the luxury of an automatic dimming rear view mirror.

Both the Jetta and the Corolla offer available heated front seats. The Jetta SEL also has standard heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Corolla.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Jetta SEL keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Corolla doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

On extremely cold winter days, the Jetta SEL’s standard heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Corolla doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The Jetta SE/SEL’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Corolla doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Jetta is less expensive to operate than the Corolla because typical repairs cost much less on the Jetta than the Corolla, including $521 less for a timing belt/chain.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Volkswagen Jetta and the Toyota Corolla, based on reliability, safety and performance.

Car and Driver performed a comparison test in its October 2021 issue and they ranked the Volkswagen Jetta SEL three places higher than the Toyota Corolla.