Volkswagen India will soon expand the Jetta range with the launch of a petrol motor. The new Jetta, which was launched in August 2011 with only a diesel motor, will soon be powered by a new 1.4-litre TSI petrol motor.

Since the 1.8 TSI motor already powers VW Group cars in India (the Skoda Laura and Superb), the same engine was expected to power the Jetta as well. However, the company has decided to introduce its award-winning 120bhp 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol, which will give customers a good combination of performance and fuel economy.

One of the key factors that will determine the success of the Jetta petrol will be its pricing. We expect Volkswagen to price it aggressively in order to pit it against the Skoda Laura, Honda Civic, Renault Fluence and Toyota Corolla Altis.

So far, VW has been positioning its cars above its sister brand, Skoda. However, with the petrol Jetta equipped with a smaller-capacity engine, VW may be tempted to buck the trend and price it below the Laura, making it a hard-to-resist buy. The 1.4 TSI Jetta will hit our showrooms in late April.