Compare the2024 Subaru WRXVS 2024 Volkswagen Jetta GLI

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Subaru WRX 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 GLI doesn’t offer pretensioners for its 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 WRX are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Subaru WRX has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The WRX has standard Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats, which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Whiplash-Reducing Front Seats system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The WRX has all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The WRX’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 GLI doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

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

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Subaru WRX is safer than the Volkswagen Jetta GLI:

	WRX	Jetta GLI
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	24.5%	31.7%
Neck Stress	348 lbs.	354 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	156	315
Chest Compression	.5 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	34.4%	41.6%

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

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 and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Subaru WRX is safer than the Volkswagen Jetta GLI:

	WRX	Jetta GLI
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Abdominal Force	165 lbs.	188 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	208	239

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

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the WRX, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 4.1% less likely to roll over than the Jetta GLI, which received a four-star rating.

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, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the WRX its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 131 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Jetta GLI last would have qualified as only a standard “Top Safety Pick” in 2017.

Warranty

Subaru’s powertrain warranty covers the WRX 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Jetta GLI. 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 GLI ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

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

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the WRX has a standard 150-amp alternator. The Jetta GLI’s 140-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Subaru vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Subaru above average in initial quality. With 64 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Subaru vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Subaru 21 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The WRX’s 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder produces 43 more horsepower (271 vs. 228) than the Jetta GLI’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Subaru WRX is faster than the Volkswagen Jetta GLI (manual transmissions tested):

	WRX	Jetta GLI
Zero to 60 MPH	5.5 sec	6.1 sec
Quarter Mile	13.9 sec	14.6 sec

As tested in Car and Driver the Subaru WRX is faster than the Volkswagen Jetta GLI (automatics tested):

	WRX	Jetta GLI
Zero to 60 MPH	5.4 sec	5.6 sec
Quarter Mile	14.1 sec	14.2 sec
Top Speed	134 MPH	126 MPH

The flat cylinder configuration of the boxer engine in the WRX lowers its center of gravity, enhancing handling stability (That’s why Porsche uses boxer engines.). The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer a boxer engine configuration.

Fuel Economy and Range

The WRX has 3.4 gallons more fuel capacity than the Jetta GLI (16.6 vs. 13.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Transmission

The WRX offers an optional 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 GLI doesn’t offer a CVT.

Brakes and Stopping

The WRX stops much shorter than the Jetta GLI:

	WRX	Jetta GLI
70 to 0 MPH	153 feet	174 feet	Car and Driver

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the WRX has larger standard tires than the Jetta GLI (235/45R17 vs. 225/45R18). The WRX Premium/Limited/GT’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Jetta GLI (245/40R18 vs. 225/45R18).

The WRX TR’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 35 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Jetta GLI’s 45 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the WRX TR has standard 19-inch wheels. The Jetta GLI’s largest wheels are only 18-inches.

Suspension and Handling

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the WRX is .9 inches wider in the front and 1.1 inches wider in the rear than on the Jetta GLI.

The WRX Limited handles at .95 G’s, while the Jetta GLI Autobahn pulls only .86 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

Chassis

The WRX is 3.1 inches shorter than the Jetta GLI, making the WRX easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

Passenger Space

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

The WRX has 5 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Jetta GLI (98.9 vs. 93.9).

The WRX has 1.3 inches more front headroom, 2 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more front hip room, .8 inches more front shoulder room and 1.6 inches more rear shoulder room than the Jetta GLI.

Cargo Capacity

To allow full utilization of available cargo room, the WRX’s trunk lid uses concealed beam hinges that don’t intrude into the trunk. Its intrusive beam hinge reduces the Jetta GLI’s useful trunk space.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the WRX. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Servicing Ease

The WRX uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Jetta GLI uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the WRX is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Jetta GLI. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

Ergonomics

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the WRX Premium/Limited/GT/TR’s exterior PIN entry system. The Jetta GLI doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Car-Net can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

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 WRX’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Jetta GLI’s headlights are rated “Marginal” to “Poor.”

The WRX’s standard rear view mirror and optional side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Jetta GLI has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends the Subaru WRX, based on reliability, safety and performance.