It’s no secret that cars are becoming an increasingly rare sight in showrooms these days, as more and more brands eschew traditional three-box sedans in favor of tall-wagon-SUV-type things. But the ones that remain seem to be furthering a special class: enthusiast sedans. The 2025 Volkswagen Jetta GLI is one of a handful of offerings that remain, but what a group of funboxes we still have: the Honda Civic Si, Hyundai Elantra N, and Subaru WRX. All are priced in the mid-$30,000 range or less, and all offer a manual transmission.
Add VW’s Golf GTI if you prefer a hatchback, or the Golf R and Toyota GR Corolla for a bit more money. But if you’re looking for cheap-ish speed, rewarding handling, slick good looks, and the convenience of four doors, you actually do still have some solid choices. And one of them just got freshened for 2025: the VW Jetta GLI you see here.
A (Mildly) Fresh Look for 2025
The cosmetic changes to the Jetta are minor, and they’re shared among all variants. There’s a new front bumper and grille with a much larger lower portion, a slimmer upper section, and a light bar on some trims. Out back, a full-width taillight panel now adorns the trunk lid, tying the edges of the car together with a wider look. You’ll have to park the new GLI next to the old one to tell what’s changed, and even then, it might be tricky to determine which is the new one.
A black wheel and roof package is your only cosmetic extra-cost option for the ‘25 Jetta GLI; it basically comes only one way, equipped with the previously optional Autobahn Package. The only other choices you make for a GLI are what color you want and if you want the six-speed manual transmission or the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic.
Performance Details
The GLI only comes with a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine making a stout 228 horsepower and 258 pounds-feet of torque. It’s sent to the front wheels via either the six-speed manual or seven-speed “DSG,” or direct-shift gearbox — technically an automated manual transmission, but for all intents and purposes, it’s an automatic that has the capacity to shift more rapidly than a traditional torque-converter-equipped automatic transmission.
The Driving Experience
My test vehicle for a brief spin around the back roads of Ann Arbor, Mich., was a manual-equipped version, but VW lets you choose your transmission for free — the automatic doesn’t cost anything extra. I picked the manual for the test because of its novelty, and you should, too. It’s an easy-to-use, super-forgiving transmission that even beginners should be able to pick up on quickly with a little training and practice. Clutch engagement is smooth and progressive, the shift quality is easy and loose, and the overall experience adds an extra bit of fun in what is already a very entertaining car.
Driving a stick gives you something to do when you’re driving in addition to pushing the pedals — you’re part of the experience, working with the machine, bringing your own inputs and efforts into the process of creating motion. But it’s motion as entertainment, not just motion as transportation, and that’s why a manual transmission is something a small but dedicated group of people insist on having in a vehicle. If you haven’t tried one (and chances are you haven’t) and you consider yourself any kind of driving enthusiast, I implore you to find a friend who’ll teach you — or watch a video tutorial — and have a go at it.
