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"  New York City: In a lavish world premiere at Times Square that featured the singing of pop star Katy Perry and cooking of super chef Mario Batali, Volkswagen unveiled its all-new 2011 Jetta sedan. The car, now in its 6th generation, is based on a new chassis developed specifically for the United States, where the has been a perennial best-seller.   As you can tell from the photos, the 2011 Jetta is clearly a larger car, with a wheelbase and overall length both increased by almost 3 inches. And although the width of the Puebla, Mexico-built Jetta has increased by nearly an inch, the most important measurement is in back seat, where those seated on the split/folding rear bench will have noticeably more leg room. What&amp;#039;s more, a large trunk\u2014always a Jetta strong point\u2014remains a vital part of the recipe.   This Jetta, unlike all others before it, is not simply a with a trunk. Rather, the 2011 Jetta is based on an all-new chassis, one that may also be employed in the upcoming new version of the New Beetle. In an effort to keep both weight and cost down, this new chassis has a semi-independent torsion beam rear suspension. The one exception is the GLI, which, owing to its sporty nature, will boast a fully independent 4-link rear, as in the current car.   Four engines will be available. Carryover powerplants include the 2.5-liter inline-5 and the 50-state-legal 2.0-liter TDI diesel, whose particulate filter, NOX catalyst and relatively modest displacement preclude any need for urea treatment of exhaust. There&amp;#039;s also the familiar turbocharged and direct-injected 2.0-liter gasoline powerplant, which will exclusively power the GLI. And last, again to help lower the price of entry, is making the 2011 Jetta available with the old 8-valve 2.0-liter inline-4, a sohc engine that produces approximately 115 bhp.   A larger car with only 115 bhp? Yes, it concerns us too, but VW tells us that the new Jetta is nearly identical in weight to the current car, even with its added size. And we&amp;#039;re also told the suspension tuning will be much like that of the current Jetta, supple enough for everyday comfort but still firm enough to be fun on a twisty road.   There will be five models, but not all will be available when the car goes on sale October 1. The S is the price-leader Jetta, a 2.0-liter car that starts at about $15,000 but will be closer to $16,000 when basic niceties such as power door locks, air conditioning and a CD player are added. The S is available with either a 5-speed manual or a 5-speed automatic gearbox. Moving up a notch there&amp;#039;s the SE, fitted with the same gearboxes but a choice of the 2.0-liter engine or the 2.5-liter 5-cylinder. Both the S and the SE are fitted with drum brakes at the rear. Next up is the SEL, the likely volume leader\u2014it&amp;#039;s better equipped than the SE, and fitted exclusively with the 2.5-liter.   At the top of the 2011 Jetta food chain are the efficient TDI diesel and sport-tuned GLI versions, both available with a 6-speed DSG gearbox or a 6-speed manual. No prices have been announced for these models, but VW says they should remain close to what they are today. Moreover, the sporty 200-bhp GLI might even be cheaper than the last version\u2014around $23,000 would be a good guess. The TDI is slated to arrive in February or March, while the GLI shows up at dealers in May. For the record, there are no plans for a wagon version of the new 2011 Jetta. But don&amp;#039;t fret; the current Jetta SportWagon\u2014which is actually the same car as the Golf Wagon available in Europe\u2014will continue to be built in Puebla. And get this: A whopping 85 percent of Jetta SportWagons sold in the U.S. are the TDI models.   VW sees the new 2011 Jetta competing more effectively against the likes of the and . And just how will it do so? By being the largest and most spacious compact available, says VW, at a much more competitive price. You won&amp;#039;t have to apologize to passengers in the back seat. And the car will also be well equipped, with six airbags, standard stability control and VW&amp;#039;s 3-year/36,000-mile Carefree Maintenance plan, not to mention available Bluetooth and an affordable touch-screen navigation system.   Will it succeed? Too early to tell, but the new 2011 Jetta is a handsome\u2014if a touch plain\u2014design that sure wowed the onlookers at the Times Square world premiere. And VW did its homework studying the American market, ensuring that, for example, the cupholders are appropriately sized and that the air conditioning blows cold right away. The solution for the latter was simple\u2014insulating the air ducting so the hot dash wouldn&amp;#039;t absorb all the chill out of the cold air.   With the new Jetta coming in October and the as-yet-unnamed midsize sedan arriving early next year from the new Chattanooga, Tennessee, plant, VW has aggressive sales plans for North America. In fact, the Volkswagen Group would like to go from 300,000 in annual sales to 1 million by 2018, with a mix of approximately 800,000 VWs and 200,000 Audis. Aggressive, yes, but this new 2011 Volkswagen Jetta is a great first step. And we&amp;#039;ve heard that the new midsize sedan is a much better-looking car than the , which is due for a facelift soon but never has sold especially well in the U.S. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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