From the looks of it, the prototype of the upcoming generation of the VW Jetta has been made to look like the Phideon and Arteon but what you are looking at is actually the 2019 Jetta, set to be publicly shown in December this year.
Upfront, the grille goes further down than the headlights to form something that looks like a geometric smile. New headlights are under that camouflage, as are the fog lights at the bottom. The Jetta doesn't have the Arteon's clamshell hood design, but it borrows the Golf's snazzy mirrors and wheels. A bigger boot and longer body are in line with the upsizing trend.
Little is known about the new Jetta, but we believe it's based on the MQB platform. Our source mentions a 1.6-litre base engine, followed by the 1.2 and 1.4 TSI options. However, European models are supposed to get the new 1.0 and 1.5 TSI turbo engines, along with 1.6 or 2.0 TDI diesels. Currently, all Jetta versions have independent rear suspension for improved handling, but the MQB model might switch to a semi-rigid axle to save weight.