2019 Volkswagen Jetta
The 2019 Volkswagen Jetta is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact sedan with 4 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Jetta, is EPA-rated at 34 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 11 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 549 complaints, most often about the power train. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy
Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov| Configuration | Powertrain | Drive | Engine / motor | City | Hwy | Comb | Annual fuel* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jetta | Gas | FWD | 1.4L 4-cyl turbo | 30 | 40 | 34 | $1,950 |
| Jetta | Gas | FWD | 1.4L 4-cyl turbo | 30 | 40 | 34 | $1,950 |
| Jetta GLI | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 25 | 32 | 28 | $2,400 |
| Jetta GLI | Gas | FWD | 2.0L 4-cyl turbo | 25 | 32 | 28 | $2,400 |
*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 39875, 39876, 41202, 41203.
Emissions & certification
Source: EPA emission certificates| Configuration | Smog rating | Emission standard | Where it can be sold new | SmartWay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jetta | 7 / 10 | California LEV-III SULEV30 / Federal Tier 3 Bin 30 | All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards | SmartWay |
| Jetta GLI | 7 / 10 | California LEV-III SULEV30 / Federal Tier 3 Bin 30 | All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards | — |
Certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S.
The smog rating scores tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, 1 (worst) to 10 (best), and is comparable only within a model year. The standard is the federal bin or California tier the configuration was certified to. Both come from the EPA certificate behind the window sticker.
Specifications filed with NHTSA
Source: NHTSA vPICDimensions Exterior
| Body style | Sedan/Saloon |
| Doors | 4 |
| GVWR class | Class 1: 6,000 lb or less (2,722 kg or less) |
Engine Basics
| Cylinders | 4 |
| Displacement | 2 L |
| Engine configuration | In-Line |
Engine Output
| Horsepower | 228 hp |
Fuel Economy
| Fuel | Gasoline |
Seating
| Seat rows | 2 |
| Seating capacity | 5 seats |
Transmission
| Transmission | Manual/Standard |
| Transmission speeds | 6 |
Driver assistance
Standard: Adaptive cruise control, Anti-lock brakes, Automatic emergency braking, Backup camera, Blind-spot monitoring, Electronic stability control, Forward collision warning, Lane departure warning
Filed by the manufacturer with NHTSA under the federal vehicle-identification rule and decoded from the VIN pattern — not a manufacturer press kit, so it describes the configurations we could identify rather than every trim (seen: GLI (S, 35th Anniversary Ed., Autobahn), S, S, SE, R-Line, SEL). Figures for the trim you are looking at may differ.
Dimensions & weight
Source: Transport Canada| Length | 185.8 in |
| Width (body, without mirrors) | 71.3 in |
| Height | 57.5 in |
| Wheelbase | 105.9 in |
| Track, front | 60.6 in |
| Track, rear | 60.6 in |
| Curb weight | 2,976 lb |
| Weight distribution, front/rear | 59/41 |
Measured by Transport Canada for its Canadian Vehicle Specifications database, which covers the North American versions of each model — here one configuration: 4-door Sedan. Where a range is shown, those versions differ. Width is the body without mirrors, which is why it can read narrower than a brochure figure. Before we used it we checked it against the US manufacturer press kits we hold (27 Sep 2026): wheelbase agreed within 1% on every vehicle we could compare, length on 98%, and the curb weight fell inside the manufacturer's range on 96%. Source dataset. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Licence.
Factory warranty running out?
The 2019 Volkswagen Jetta is in the years where transmission, electronics and drivetrain repairs land on the owner. What an extended plan does and does not cover is worth reading before a dealer quotes you one.
What to check before you buy →Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
Recalls (11)
Source: NHTSA recall databaseElectrical System
90W7Electrical System
28H7Tires
AU:45J7,VW:45J6,45J8Wheels
40P1Unknown Or Other
01D7Suspension
42J5Air Bags
69Y7Suspension
42J2/42J3Electrical System
90L3 / 90L4Exterior Lighting
94L1These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above. nhtsa.gov/recalls shows both for a VIN.
NHTSA defect investigations
Fuel System, Gasoline — Fuel Leak due to Suction Jet Pump Failure within Fuel Tank (Remedy Effectiveness of Recall 16V647) closed
On December 12, 2023, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened RQ23-007 to investigate the remedy repair effectiveness and scope of Volkswagen (VW) recall 16V-647. Recall 16V-647 was issued on September 2, 2016, for a defective suction jet pump (SJP) inside the fuel tank. Failure of the SJP could lead to a fuel leak from the vehicle. This recall covered certain model year (MY) 2015-2016 Volkswagen Golf and Audi A3 passenger car vehicles. The recall remedy repair replaced SJP Version 1.0 with an improved version, Version 1.1. The SJP is designed to purge fuel from the evaporative emissions (EVAP) system. VW’s recall filing stated the SJP may have been damaged during assembly, which c
Opened Dec 12, 2023 · closed Jul 1, 2024 · action RQ23007 · the investigation’s page →
Power Train:Manual Transmission — Vehicle Stalling - Manual Transmission closed
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has completed its review of a defect petition received on 14 August 2019 requesting an investigation of an alleged defect of the manual transmissions in Model Year (MY) 2019 Volkswagen (VW) GTI, Golf GTI and Jetta GLI vehicles. The stalling incidents cited occurred without warning as the vehicle slows to a stop or prepares to make a turn across traffic with the clutch pressed in and the vehicle in neutral. The hazard posed by a vehicle stalling event is manifested in the inability of the vehicle to move with the flow of surrounding traffic. Two factors have a major impact on the potential hazard to the vehicle, its occupants and surrounding vehicles:
Opened Sep 3, 2019 · closed Jun 30, 2020 · action DP19003 · the investigation’s page →
Whether any of this applies to one specific Jetta
A campaign covers a build range, not a model year, so two identical-looking cars from 2019 can differ. Both of these check a VIN against the manufacturer’s own list, free, in about ten seconds. Volkswagen publishes its own lookup because federal rule 49 CFR 573.15 requires it to, and to keep it current to within seven days.
Hear about a recall before the letter does
The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.
Parts & accessories for the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta
Search by fitment on eBay Motors — OEM take-offs, aftermarket, and the trim pieces dealers no longer stock. The listing and the price are the seller's.
Find parts for this Jetta →Owner complaints
Source: NHTSA complaint database19 involved a crash · 3 a fire · 36 injuries · 0 deaths reported
31 per 10,000 built · Volkswagen reported 179,768 Jetta built (its Early Warning production report to NHTSA)
Filed per year: 2018: 19 · 2019: 156 · 2020: 81 · 2021: 32 · 2022: 30 · 2023: 96 · 2024: 58 · 2025: 40 · 2026: 37
Most-cited components
In depth: transmission and drivetrain problems → · electrical problems → · engine problems →
In owners' own words
Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.
Trunk lid does not stay open all the way unless it is pushed and locked into place. Could knock someone out if you forget to do this. Never seen a design like this. VW should address and fix this hazard
The tail lights of my new 2019 VW Jetta, are a hazard for anyone washing the vehicle. They are very sharp at the bottom edge and you can cut your self. As a matter of fact that happened to the sales agent that I negotiated with on december 27th at VW gunther on delray beach florida.
It appears that the majority and or all of the new 2019 Volkswagen jetta's have torque converter defects. The defect causes the vehicle to emit a loud scrape and grinding noise which can distract the driver. The could cause drivers to pull over and potentially cause an accident.
Windshield wipers on medium and high settings, hits a pillar and make a loud tapping metallic every wipe. It's a poor quality sound that gets worse at highway speeds because of added wind stress to wipers. My 2005 beater nissan sentra wipers operating sounds like a lexus compared to this 2019 Jetta sel.
The vehicle suspension harness system was damaged by VW roadside assistance's contracted tow company
The Jetta does not maintain speed when cruise control is engaged. The Jetta increases speed up to an increase of 20 miles and hour, with cruise control engaged while going down hill
Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.
Reported by Volkswagen itself: 56 death-or-injury claims on this model year in its quarterly Early Warning reports to NHTSA (49 CFR 579.21): 65 injured, as claimed, not verified — about 31 per 100,000 built. Every Jetta model year, by year and system → Dated and by system, they are exhibit F of the defect dossier.
When owners reported it
miles, typically
Half the 251 owner reports with an odometer reading on file fall between 1,000 and 18,000 miles. That is when problems get reported, which is not the same as when they start — and not a failure rate, because nobody knows how many of these cars never had a problem at all.
Median mileage by component
| Component | Reports | Median miles | Vs same age |
|---|---|---|---|
| Power Train | 105 | 2,050 | 0.08× |
| Engine | 70 | 940 | 0.02× |
| Electrical System | 38 | 35,000 | 2.29× |
| Unspecified | 31 | 2,500 | — |
| Service Brakes | 18 | 17,995 | 1.8× |
| Visibility/Wiper | 16 | 16,700 | 1.59× |
| Structure | 13 | 6,000 | 0.35× |
Vs same age is this model year’s median for the system divided by the median of every 2019-model-year complaint about the same system, all makes: under 1× means owners of this car reported it at lower mileage. Here, owners reported earlier than same-age vehicles: power train (0.08×), engine (0.02×), structure (0.35×); later: electrical system (2.29×), service brakes (1.8×), visibility/wiper (1.59×). Which systems go early across the whole fleet: the component study.
Across 2019–2019 model years the Volkswagen Jetta ranks 8 of 79 nameplates in the odometer-at-first-complaint study: owners reported problems at 0.36× the mileage of vehicles the same age (median 6,500 miles against a fleet 23,512).
Odometer readings as filed by owners with NHTSA. Readings under 100 or over 400,000 miles are dropped as data entry rather than history, and a component needs at least 12 readings before a median is shown for it.
Crash ratings
Source: NHTSA NCAP| Configuration | Overall | Frontal | Side | Rollover | Rollover risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 DR FWD | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ | 13% |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.
Service bulletins & campaigns
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications- 8.5 years or 85,000 miles, whichever comes first · Volkswagen warranty extension VWP-25-16For applicable Settlement Class Vehicles, the New Vehicle Limited Warranty will be extended to cover 50% of the repair or replacement of the Turbocharger by an authorized Volkswagen Dealer for 8.5…
- Term not in NHTSA’s summary · Volkswagen warranty extension VWP-24-04These documents are for the Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) Limited Warranty Extension as part of the Class Action Settlement
The term and the vehicles it covers are the manufacturer’s, as NHTSA’s summary of each filing states them; a dealer checks one particular car by its VIN. Every Volkswagen warranty extension (9) → · Every warranty extension on file, all makes →
Most often about: Equipment, Engine, Electrical System, Unknown Or Other, Equipment Adaptive/Mobility.
- V0116152014815_20 Service bulletin2026-09-17 · Engine
- Suggested fuel additive
- SM 39-2026 Other2026-09-09 · Unknown Or Other
- This special notice is to inform dealers to return the parts listed if it meets the criteria provided.
- V4622022067177_5 Service bulletin2026-08-27 · Service Brakes
- Repair or Replace Information
- VOS-26-47 Service bulletin2026-08-14 · Electrical System
- This is a notice for software changes with the ODIS diagnostic program to correct the communication during vehicle programming function: A software fix is needed to correct the issue: Part number 3Q0-959-435N software version number 1307 has incorrect coding.
- SM 04-2026 Other2026-08-11 · Power Train
- This special notice is to inform dealers to return the parts listed if it meets the criteria provided.
- V4015022033347_8 Service bulletin2026-08-10 · Power Train
- Replacement instruction
- TT 00-13-04_7 Other2026-08-06 · Unknown Or Other
- Permission to change Daily Order upgraded to RED Order
- V0026012081638_2 Service bulletin2026-08-04 · Unknown Or Other
- Differences between a leak and seepage
A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.
Diagnostic trouble codes on file
Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications and complaintsCodes documented against this model year in the federal record. A code appearing here does not mean this vehicle will set it — it means the code is part of this nameplate-year's documented history.
| Code | What it means | Most often filed under | Where it appears |
|---|---|---|---|
| P0456 P0456 on Volkswagen → | A very small leak in the evaporative emissions system. | Equipment · Gas cap → | 52 bulletins |
| P0496 P0496 on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 50 bulletins |
| P0442 P0442 on Volkswagen → | A small leak in the evaporative emissions system. | Equipment · Gas cap → | 43 bulletins |
| P11AD P11AD on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 33 bulletins |
| P11AE P11AE on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 33 bulletins |
| P11AF P11AF on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 33 bulletins |
| P0556 P0556 on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 32 bulletins |
| P0133 P0133 on Volkswagen → | The upstream bank 1 oxygen sensor is responding too slowly to be trusted. | Equipment · Oxygen sensor → | 29 bulletins |
| P0463 P0463 on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 29 bulletins |
| P1429 P1429 on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 22 bulletins |
| P0116 P0116 on Volkswagen → | The engine coolant temperature sensor reading does not track the engine's actual warm-up. | Equipment | 20 bulletins |
| P11A1 P11A1 on Volkswagen → | Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard. | Equipment | 19 bulletins |
Generic codes (the second character is 0 or 2) mean the same thing on every vehicle sold in the United States. Manufacturer-specific codes (1 or 3) mean whatever the automaker assigned, and no honest source can define them for you — which is why the ones here carry the evidence instead of a definition. A code is a link when enough separate federal documents name it across the catalogue to be worth a page of its own; the rest are listed here, where the vehicle is the context that makes them mean something.
Affiliate disclosure: some links on this page are affiliate links. If you request a quote or buy through them we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Nothing on this page changes because of it.
At the New York inspection station
Source: New York State DMVIn New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 10, 2026, the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta failed the emissions check on 4.9% of first inspections — higher than the 2.7% for every 2019 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 2.6% (every 2019 vehicle: 1.7%).
failed emissions
6,102 initial inspections of 5,949 vehicles.
| Measure | The 2019 Jetta | Every 2019 vehicle | Behind it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Failed the emissions check | 4.9% | 2.7% | 6,085 |
| Failed the safety inspection | 2.6% | 1.7% | 6,102 |
| Air-bag warning lamp stayed lit | 0.23% | 0.20% | 6,102 |
| Miles driven a year | 10,206 | 9,904 | odometer at inspection |
| Average odometer | 74,231 | 72,084 | odometer at inspection |
New York’s emissions test on these model years is an on-board diagnostics check: it fails a car whose check-engine light is on or whose self-tests have not finished. First inspections only, so a car that failed and came back is counted once; private and special plates, not taxis, livery or commercial plates. A rate appears only where at least 200 inspections stand behind it. “Every 2019 vehicle” is every 2019 model-year car, SUV and pickup inspected in the same window, all makes. This is the state’s record of test results, not a reliability score by itself. Source: New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Vehicle Inspections (data.ny.gov, Open NY terms).
Jetta by model year
all years, side by side →Common questions about the 2019 Jetta
Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kitsDoes the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta have any recalls?
NHTSA has posted 11 recall campaigns for the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta, 1 of them rated critical. The most serious on file is 19V879000, covering Wheels. There is an active do not drive advisory — act on it before driving. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a recall applies to specific build ranges, not every car.
How safe is the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
NHTSA gave the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta 5 stars overall in its New Car Assessment Program tests — 4-star frontal crash, 5-star side crash, 4-star rollover. WhichTrim also grades it F (53/100) on its recall record, which is a different question from crash protection.
What is the fuel economy of the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
Across the 4 EPA-rated configurations of the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta, the best EPA combined figure is 34 mpg. Figures are the EPA's own, per configuration, and every one is listed above.
What are the dimensions of the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
Transport Canada measured it at 185.8 in long, 71.3 in wide (body, without mirrors), 57.5 in tall, on a 105.9 in wheelbase. Curb weight: 2,976 lb. Those are its measurements of the North American versions; every figure is in the table above.
What do owners complain about on the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
Owners have filed 549 complaints with NHTSA about the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta, most often about power train, electrical system, engine. Of those, 19 involved a crash, 3 a fire, 36 reported injuries. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.
How clean is the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
The EPA smog rating for the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta is 7 out of 10. That score covers tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, and it only compares vehicles within the same model year. It is certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S. Its configurations were certified to different standards — California LEV-III SULEV30, Federal Tier 3 Bin 30 — which the table above lists per configuration.
Are there service bulletins for the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta?
The manufacturer has filed 749 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta, most often covering equipment, engine, electrical system. The most recent is dated 2026-09-17. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.
How does the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta do at state inspection?
In New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 10, 2026, the 2019 Volkswagen Jetta failed the emissions check on 4.9% of first inspections — higher than the 2.7% for every 2019 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 2.6% (every 2019 vehicle: 1.7%). The figures are New York State DMV’s own inspection records, first inspections only, and the table above sets each one against every vehicle of the same model year.
What we hold, and what an empty row means
Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.
| Data | Held | Source | What it covers — or what empty means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel economy & configurations | 4 configurations | EPA certification records | Every configuration the EPA certified for sale, with its own test figures. |
| Emission certificates | 4 configurations | EPA emission certificates | Smog rating, standard and the sales area that decides where the car can be sold new. |
| Recalls | 11 | NHTSA recall campaigns | A complete federal register: every campaign covering this model year, with severity and advisory flags. |
| Owner complaints | 549 | NHTSA complaint database | Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold. |
| Crash ratings | 1 tested | NHTSA NCAP | Only the configurations NHTSA chose to crash-test, which is never all of them. |
| Service bulletins | 749 | NHTSA manufacturer communications | Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall. |
| Investigations | 2 | NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation | Open and closed defect investigations, with the agency's own narrative. |
| Driver-assist crash reports | none | NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01 | No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like. |
| Specifications filed with NHTSA | 12 fields | NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns | What the manufacturer filed under the federal VIN rule — a configuration, not the full trim ladder. |
| Measured dimensions | 7 fields | Transport Canada, Canadian Vehicle Specifications | Length, width, height, wheelbase, track and curb weight, measured on the North American versions. |
| Trims, pricing & equipment | none | Manufacturer press kit | We have not transcribed a press kit for this model year yet. This is our gap, not the manufacturer's — the one row here where an empty cell means we are behind. |
Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-10-26. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.
Sources & method
Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.
EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly.