This Volkswagen Jetta with 4,400 miles on the clock is a wormhole built in Wolfsburg

Although SUVs continue to encroach on the original

Even as SUVs continue to eat into sales of traditional VW sedans, the Volkswagen Jetta has survived into the 2025 model year. But 43 years later, how many 2025 Jettas will survive as well as this 1981 car?

We’re guessing almost nothing, since this Mk1 Jetta is not only good-looking, but in its nearly half-century of driving, it’s covered fewer miles than most cars do after being on the road for half a year. The analog odometer shows just 4,400 miles (7,080 km).

RELATED: 2025 Volkswagen Jetta and Jetta GLI Get Hollywood-Level Makeovers

this Bring a Trailer The auction listing doesn’t explain why this Jetta has averaged only 100 miles per year since leaving the Wolfsburg factory, only that the current owner purchased it about three years ago and has put 100 more miles on it in that time.

The car is painted Diamond Silver with the original black wheel arch protectors and black stripes on the lower body, two features that appear to be shared with the GTI version of the Jetta’s hatchback sibling, the Golf, in the European market.

But as a North American car, it was equipped with the huge diving board bumper necessary to meet low-speed collision regulations at the time and four square sealed-beam headlights, again to satisfy U.S. regulators. To cater to American tastes, it was equipped with vinyl seats and air conditioning, a combination not found on the Jetta built for the German market.

The ad claimed that the car’s fuel-injected 1.6-liter four-cylinder was rated at just 76 horsepower (77 PS) due to emissions hardware limitations. Most sources seem to say that the 1.7-liter engine was introduced in 1981, though the increase in capacity added a total of one horsepower, so the car’s first owner didn’t miss out. The manual Jetta’s 12-second zero-to-60-mph (97-kph) time doesn’t sound terrible given the low output, but since it drives the front wheels through a three-speed automatic transmission, it won’t be that quick.

The 2025 Jetta is sportier, with 158 hp (160 PS) for the standard model and 228 hp (231 PS) for the sportier GLI. The bumpers are also more minimalist. The new Jetta is priced at $21,995 – how much do you think it’s worth? Leave a comment below before the auction on August 5.

View the complete Bring a Trailer auction listing here.

Image: Bring a Trailer