Our long-term Jetta TDI has 4300 miles on it now, and even though it's been in our local VW dealer's service department twice due to faulty seatbelt sensors, today's news of the Jetta's win as Green Car Journal's 2009 Green Car of the Year gives us another reason to smile when we see our blue TDI sitting in the parking lot. We've been achieving fuel economy numbers around 41.5 miles per gallon so far under our normal driving habits, and we're impressed with how powerful this engine is while still being quite economical.

“The Volkswagen Jetta TDI rose to the top as Green Car Journal’s 2009 Green Car of the Year for some very important reasons,” says Ron Cogan, editor and publisher of Green Car Journal. “Hybrids have dominated the discussion of environmentally positive vehicles in recent years. The highly fuel efficient, 50 state emissions certified Jetta TDI shows that advanced clean diesel has arrived and is poised to change this dynamic. With its affordable price point, refined ride and handling, and high fuel economy, the Jetta TDI shows that hybrids now have a strong competitor in the marketplace.”

Congratulations, TeDI. Click through the post to read Volkswagen's official press release.

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In order to compete in the 634-mile-long 41st Annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 desert race, Volkswagen seemingly forged, machined, and filed away at a giant block of steel until the Touareg TDI Trophy Truck was born. To be unveiled at the L.A Auto Show, and christened with the name Touareg, the only similarities the truck has with its road-going relative are its four wheels and its name. Knowing that, it would certainly be quite a blunder to take this beast of a machine lightly.
 
A 5.5-liter V-12 clean turbo diesel engine growls somewhere underneath its sharp and cutting exterior and is able to produce 550 horsepower and 625 pound-feet of torque. And will need every bit of that power considering it weighs in at a massive 5650 pounds. Hopefully, its Xtrac six-speed sequential transmission will be able to hold up to that combo.

+ Carscoop: VW To Unveil Touareg V12 TDI Race Truck at L.A. Show

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Caption:

ACURA TL

Last Generation: 2004 - 2008
Current Generation: 2009

A lot of controversy has been stirred over the contrasting chevron grille that Acura has put on most of its new models, and while the last-gen TL wasn't necessarily a huge step forward in sporty expression, we prefer its cleaner lines and less-contrived aesthetic.

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Most of the time, when an automaker completely overhauls one of their models, it's a good step forward for not only the car, but for the brand it represents. However, there are other times where the design teams make some questionable decisions and the new products end up looking worse than their predecessors.

Thus, we present our list of ten cars that, from a design standpoint, we think looked better in their previous generation. Scroll through our gallery to see all of the contenders, and leave a comment with any cars that you think we may have missed, and/or maligned.

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Great news! We took delivery of our long-term Volkswagen Jetta TDI this morning, and we're quite excited about spending the next 365 days with the little diesel-burner. Since we normally only keep cars in our test fleet for a week or two, it will be interesting to see how our Jetta holds up after one year of driving. More importantly, we're curious to see what kind of overall fuel economy numbers are observed.

Since the Jetta will indeed become a trusty steed for our staff, we'd like to give it some extra personal touches, including a name. Thus, we're looking to you, our readers, for suggestions on what to name our Laser Blue Jetta TDI. Leave a comment with your best suggestion for a name, and if your name is picked, we'll send you some free Winding Road swag, including a couple of t-shirts, mugs, pins, and keychains.

Click through the images in the gallery above to see a bunch of shots of our new long-term Jetta TDI.

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Badge engineering. This is the common practice in the automotive industry of taking a vehicle designed for one brand, and tweaking to work for another. But is this a good thing or a bad thing? We all know examples of the Chevy that is also a Pontiac or a Ford that is also a Mercury with little but trim differences. That cynical approach to marketing has led to a tarnished reputation for badge-engineering, among the pundits at least. The term even sounds pejorative.

Realistically, though some Lexus models are pretty closely related to Toyotas, yet they manage to be distinctive cars for different markets. And some Audi models don’t seem too far removed from Volkswagens, yet they look and feel rather different. Some badge-engineered cars are actually pretty good -- which would seem to be what matters.

Which brings us to the badge-engineered Volkswagen Routan minivan. For the 2009 model year, VW partnered with Chrysler to get back into the segment that some would say VW invented. While many had hoped that VW would return with a Microbus-influenced retro machine, that’s not what we’re getting. What we do get is a pretty nice minivan with some distinctive VW touches.

(Click through the post to read the rest of our Routan review.)

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We have already been able to hip you to the details regarding Volkswagen’s latest GTI (read all the details regarding that car here) so we thought it high time to bring you a gallery of live images of the original hot hatch, live from the Paris show floor. The visual changes to the GTI may be more evolution than revolution but we think the new V-dub makes for a pretty nice piece of kit anyway. Have a look at the images above and weigh in with your own opinion, in comments.

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We got wind not too long ago that Volkswagen would be dropping its new sixth-generation GTI in Paris, but images and details have now been released prior to the car's official launch.

The revised exterior appearance shows Scirocco-inspired design cues, and the GTI's signature red-accented grille rounds off the more aggressive fascia. Under the hood is the latest version of Volkswagen's TFSI 2.0-liter turbo which will pump out 208 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque -- an increase of 11 horsepower over the Mark V GTI. A new XDS electronically-controled limited-slip differential should help manage torque steer as it delivers torque to the wheels that have the most grip.

Stay tuned for our full impressions and details when the car debuts in Paris next week. Click through the jump for a translated version of VW's official press release.

More news of the Paris Motor Show pours in and it seems that the sixth iteration of Volkswagen's Golf (or Rabbit), along with the not-so-humble 2009 GTI version, will be unveiled at said show next week.  Though no information has been revealed or discovered about the GTI's engine options it's guessed that the model will be fitted with VW's latest 2.0-liter turbocharged TFSI engine, and mated to either a six-speed manual or the highly acclaimed DSG dual-clutch semi-automatic transmission.

Stay tuned to NextAutos as we bring you live images of the Volkswagen stand and much more from the Paris show.

+ Carscoop: Insider: VW to Unveil Golf GTI VI in Paris

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—Santa Monica, California

As recently as just a few years ago, Volkswagen sold a wide range of diesel vehicles in the States. In fact, the company has a long history of selling oil-burners in the U.S. that dates back to the 1970s. These models were slowly jettisoned throughout the years due to stricter emissions laws, and by 2007, the Touareg V-10 was the only diesel Volkswagen that Americans could buy. However, in light of today’s higher fuel prices, the automaker is once again getting serious about broadening its turbo-diesel offerings in the States.

(Click through the post to read the full review.)

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Volkswagen might be bringing back the iconic Microbus. The 2001 Microbus concept was killed off in 2005 but a VW official told reporters recently that they were, "looking at ways to produce the Microbus that will make it competitive in North America."

While VW boss Bernd Pischetsrieder decided that it wasn't worth the time, his replacement Martin Winterkorn thinks otherwise. The 2001 Microbus concept was based on the T5 commercial van and was scheduled for production in Hanover.

The Original Microbus, or Kombi as other territories know it, is still made in Brazil and powered by a 1.4-liter water-cooled engine. Still loved by peace loving people who commonly display their hand with a V sign facing forwards (not backwards mind you), a modernized Microbus could be a hit the same way the BMW Mini and Fiat 500 were.

If the Microbus does in fact make it into production, it will most likely be built at the new plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which is set to build a four-door sedan in 2011 for the North American market. According to VW spokeswoman Jill Bratina, the company has been considering production of a second model at the plant.

+ Squab: VW Microbus: resurrected?

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Just a day after official photos of Volkswagen’s sixth-generation Golf leaked into the public domain, the automaker has chosen to give up all of the technical details a bit early as well.

Despite VW North America’s suggestion that this Golf will indeed go on sale in the U.S., and the prevailing opinion that it would be foolhardy for the company to do otherwise, Volkswagen does not specify a launch date for the car here. VW makes mention that North America is on the list of target markets though, after Africa, Asia, Australia, and of course Europe; fingers crossed that they aren’t just gunning for Canada.

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Member deedle 1.8T over at internet Volkswagen hotspot VW Vortex wasn’t initially a huge fan of the retro plaid seats in his fifth generation GTI. While both the VW’s exterior styling and sparkling performance were big hits, the tartan-covered chairs were very nearly a deal-breaker.

One year of ownership later and deedle seems to have come full circle with his taste. The GTI driver decided to bring the plaid pattern out of the driver’s compartment and onto a very large exterior surface for all the world to see. Taking a page from Mini’s option catalogue the GTI owner, who claims to have always loved black-roofed cars, has topped off his baby with Volkswagen’s “Interlagos” plaid pattern. The fresh design statement is carried over into the engine bay, where the engine cover has received the same Interlagos treatment as the roof.

Have a look at the custom-striped GTI in the gallery above and then tell us what you think, in comments.

+ VWVortex

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Volkswagen has plans to officially launch its sixth generation Golf on Wednesday, August 8, but a few images of the new car have become available just a bit early.

Unfortunately there doesn’t seem to be an overwhelming amount of visual change between Golfs V and VI, with the new car looking marginally larger in nearly every dimension, and wearing a new face with Scirocco-style head lamps. It’s being reported that the Golf will offer 1.4-, 1.8-, and possibly a 2.0-liter gasoline burning engine, with diesels in 1.9- and 2.0-liters in displacement available as well. Standard manual and automatic transmissions, as well as a DSG, will be offered as well.

VW has made mention of bringing this Golf to U.S. shores, but we’ll more than likely have to wait until the late part of next year for the privilege of purchase.

+ Autoblog: Volkwagen Golf VI unveiled a bit early

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What you’re looking at isn’t a four-door variant of the new Volkswagen Scirocco, or even the next Golf. It’s VW of Brazil’s new Gol, unveiled earlier this month. The Sao Bernardo do Campo built Gol looks every inch the Wolfsburg product, with design cues shared aplenty from both the Scirocco and the Tiguan crossover.

Volkswagen may be adding the next generation Polo to its North American lineup in order to meet the demand for more fuel efficient vehicles.

With the ambitious goal to sell more than 800,000 vehicles in the U.S. by 2018, VW will construct a plant in Tennessee to begin manufacture of its American specific models, including a new midsized sedan. The new plant, VW hopes, will improve its cost structure.

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Confirming earlier speculation, Volkswagen has recently announced that their truck in development, the VW Robust , will no longer be sold in Europe or the U.S.

A recent market analysis of demand and rising fuel prices, done by Automobilwoche, has shown that there is just no place for the Robust in Europe. For the U.S., The story is pretty much the same. Even with America's deep history of pickups, truck sales have fallen dramatically over the last few months.

Plans to build the Robust in the Hanover plant in Germany are canceled as a result, putting around 700 workers in limbo until Volkswagen figures out what to do with them.

The truck will be still built and sold in South America it seems, as the report also states that Volkswagen invested $365.5 million— according to European figures— investment in the Pacheco Buenos Aires plant in Argentina, which will start production of the Robust in 2009.

+ Motor Authority: Report: Volkswagen has killed its European and U.S. pickup program

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Volkswagen has been putting some serious time into developing its upcoming Robust small pickup, with these latest photos showing the truck traversing some mountainous Alpine terrain.

The Volkswagen Santana is a ubiquitous sight on the streets of most Chinese cities. The car that the rest of the world would know as a VW Quantum or Passat has been on sale in China since the mid-eighties, and is widely used in taxi services there.

!!!CLICK TITLE TO VIEW WHOLE STORY!!! (It's worth it...I just wish the NextAutos system didn't arbitrarily slice the article-preview like this.) Basically, this is THE FIRST user made blog on this site. I wrote about the cars of China and how the auto-selection contrasts that in the states. I hope you enjoy it. Please "thumbs up" this article, and comment! ~Jon Fung