First Look video 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Edition not your dad’s diesel

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Usually two words that don’t go together are “diesel” and “sport”.

Volkswagen would strongly disagree.

And here’s why: the 2010 Jetta Cup Edition.

VW took some of the sporty go fast suspension parts from the Golf GTI and Jetta GLI, added a big-mouthed front fascia as well as side skirts and a spoiler and sprinkled it all with diesel power in the form of a 140 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque diesel engine that’s also available in the standard 2010 Jetta.

What you end up with is a fun, fast, and sporty sedan that sometimes makes a few too many visual promises it can’t keep.

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Don’t get us wrong, the Jetta TDI Cup Edition handles the twisty bits of the road with the best of of them…it’s just that the diesel engine has a few too many limitation for pure sports car fun.

Specifically:

1) There’s is crazy long turbo lag below 2000 rpm

2) The usable power band of the engine makes it hard to keep on the gas ( ah…make that diesel) when driving the car beyond typical commuting duty.

That doesn’t mean that the car won’t scoot when you need to pass that slow moving camper or hunker down like a dedicated sports car around the fast right hand off ramp. It will, but in real word driving it does sometimes mean that the power to keep it in that sports car zone is slow in coming and hard to maintain.

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We found that 3rd and 4th gear were almost perfect for spirited driving, but that came at the price of reduced mileage with an as tested 30 MPG. That’s a far cry from the 41 MPG promised by the gov on the highway.

The 2010 Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Edition is however still perhaps the best economy you can buy in a sport car today.

Check out the video below as we took a half a day road trip in the Jetta TDI Cup Edition through the Rocky Mountains to the Beana Vista, Colorado and/or click HERE to watch as we take the all new  2011 Jetta for a spin.

Editor’s Note: Often first impressions are the most honest. This video review was shot on an iPhone and represents an initial impression. We use it like a reporters note pad to give you an inside glimpse of what we are doing before we formally review the car.

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