2005 Volkswagen Bora: First look

By Feann Torr - 19/11/2004

Taking the best parts of the Golf and adding a little a touch more sophistication is Volkswagen's new small sedan, the Bora (or Jetta as it's also known).

Volkswagen yesterday released the first official images of its popular Golf-based sedan, which will make its worldwide public debut at the Los Angeles Motor Show on January 5, 2005, sporting increased power, safety and interior space.

Apart from the more visible changes to the car's styling, the new Bora's interior is larger than its predecessor's, as is its boot.

Standard safety features on the new Bora will include items such as front side (thorax) airbags, side curtain protection (for head) in the front and rear, crash-active front headrests and three-point seat belts for every seat, which will make the new Bora one of the safest small sedans when it comes to market in 2005.

The interior safety package is augmented by a number of driving aids that will go towards the new Bora achieving possibly a 5-star safety rating.

These driving aids include an electro-mechanical steering system, an advanced electronic stability program (ESP) and new-generation ABS all-disc brakes - all of which are standard features.

It's also a much nicer looking vehicle than the snub-nosed model it replaces, with a smoother, sportier profile and a more purposeful stance.

It has inherited much of the Golf's good looks, particularly up front with the headlight treatment and short front overhang, while at the rear the squared-off bootline and bold new brake lights give it a more prestigious air.

Based on the PQ35 platform, of which a slightly shorter version is used for the Golf, the new 2005 Bora also brings with it the model's first fully independent suspension system, which, with any luck, will endow the small sedan with more responsive handling and better on-road behaviour in general.

The new setup makes use of a multi-link rear and optimised front axle, and the car's body is also more rigid (torsionally and dynamically) than the outgoing model, which Volkswagen reckons helps reduce interior noise among other things.

The new base engine powering the Bora will be a 2.5-litre 5-cylinder engine (most likely a V5) that cranks out a useful 150 horsepower, or about 110 kilowatts, upgraded from the previous entry level 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder engine that eked out just 85kW or 115hp.

VW will offer the new fifth generation Bora with a new (but optional) 6-speed automatic transmission with tiptronic shifting and even a sports mode. Moreover, the giant German automaker will bring its nifty semi-manual twin-clutch transmission, called DSG (for direct shift gearbox), to turbo diesel models later in 2005, claiming the quick-shifting tranny will offer "the inherent efficiency and economy of a manual with the ease of operation of an automatic".

The new Bora will be manufactured at Volkswagen's production facility in Puebla, Mexico, which Volkswagen says is "a facility that according to internal quality audits ranks as one of the Volkswagen Group's top factories in the world". There you go then.

As it stands, the next and fifth generation Bora/Jetta is certainly a fine-looking motor vehicle that promises to be one of the safest in its class, and with a larger base-model engine VW dealers will have an easier time shifting stock as well.

Interestingly, the Golf-based Bora sedan is one of the highest selling European cars in America, accounting for some 40 per cent of VW sales in the region, so it comes as no great revelation that the vehicle will first go sale in the States in March 2005.