The resemblance is plain to the eye; the V-shaped grille (the new face of VW cars from here on), raked side profile, and the high but truncated boot lid spells junior Passat rather than booted Golf, and perhaps recognising that the rest of the world have different preferences compared to Europe, VW has applied a generous amount of chrome on the radiator grille and copied the Passat's 'brilliant' LED rear lamp design, both of which might just prove to be a big hit But instead of just grafting on a boot to the Golf, every panel aft of the B-pillars is distinct to the Jetta, and for inspiration, VW looked to big brother Passat. With the underpinnings all well and sorted, the styling would have to be the major factor. The new Jetta based on the Mk5 Golf- is supposed to change all that. Closer to home, the Bora has lived a relatively quiet existence, regarded by many as 'boring' next to its more illustrious hatchback sibling and the iconic Beetle. In fact, the Jetta has the rare distinction of being launched first in North America before Europe, and it is only produced in Mexico. In America where additional space of whatever form in an automobile is always welcomed, the Jetta (that's Bora for the rest of the world) is the most popular European passenger car for many years running, accounting for 40 per cent of all Volkswagens sold there. Outside the continent of Europe, four-door saloons are generally more popular over hatchbacks. The name change isn't just for kicks.
