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Car #1
Make
Model
Variant
Engine
Car #2
Make
Model
Variant
Engine

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2005. - 2011.
C - Small family car
sedan, 4 door
front
Badges
Production
Vehicle class
Body style
Wheel drive
Safety
2003. - 2008.
C - Small family car
sedan, 4 door
front

Marketing

Dimensons & Outlines

4554 mm
1781 mm
1459 mm
527 liters
527 liters
55 liters
Length
Width
Height
Boot (min)
Boot (max)
Fuel tank
4480 mm
1735 mm
1470 mm
345 liters
345 liters
55 liters
2005 Volkswagen Jetta
2003 KIA Cerato

Engine

Volkswagen
1.6 FSI
Petrol
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
1598 cc
115 hp
155 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Petrol
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Nat. Asp.
1594 cc
105 hp
144 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

manual gearbox - 6 gears
1271 kg
11.1 s
194 km/h
9.0 l/100km
5.6 l/100km
6.9 l/100km
166 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
manual gearbox - 5 gears
1153 kg
11.0 s
186 km/h
9.1 l/100km
5.5 l/100km
6.8 l/100km
165 g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km

Expenses

2200 EUR
Price from
1400 EUR

Virtual Adviser's™ opinion

Overview

Well, these are two pretty similar cars we have here! It's only details that could potentially make the difference. Considering they both belong to the small family car segment and utilize the same 4-door sedan body style and the front wheel drive system, it all comes up to the specific petrol engine choice they offer. The first one has a Volkswagen-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 115hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 105hp engine designed by Hyundai.

Safety

The fact that the KIA got tested by the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), while the other contender didn't, isn't really an advantage, taken the poor 3-star rating it received. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. Both vehicles belong to the small family car segment, which is generally classifying them somewhere in the middle safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. Furthermore, when it comes to weight, a factor that most people underestimate, the German car offers a considerable difference of 10% more metal.

Reliability

Reliability is not the best thing to consider on the make level, but it is worth mentioning that both brands display similar results in faults and breakdowns, when all the models are taken into account. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of Volkswagen with an average rating of 4.2, and models under the KIA badge with 4.6 out of 5. Some independent research have also placed Jetta as average reliability-wise, and Cerato is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as the German car rank it on average as 4.4, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.6 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

KIA is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.1 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 186 kilometers per hour, 8km/h less than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 6.9 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (41 mpg), in combined cycle.


Verdict

KIA appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In this case though, it seems that both cars show similar levels of passenger protection all together, so that won't break a tie. But one thing that actually could is the performance, with KIA offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. To make things even better, it consumps less fuel! I believe that, when we take all into account, we have only one winner here - the KIA. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. I suggest you spend two more minutes in order to find out which car, based on your needs and budget, would be picked by the virtual adviser, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.

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