Volkswagon wins Green Car of the Year

Volkswagen’s 2009 Jetta TDI became the first-ever clean diesel to win Green Car of the Year, besting two hybrids, a gasoline microcar, and a clean diesel sports sedan.

Selecting the 2009 Green Car of the Year® was a jury including four Green Car Journal editors, automotive icon Carroll Shelby, auto expert and ‘Tonight Show’ host Jay Leno, Sierra Club executive director Carl Pope, Natural Resources Defense Council president Frances Beinecke, and Ocean Futures Society president Jean-Michel Cousteau.

With 41 mpg and greatly reduced greenhouse gas emissions, the clean diesel Jetta TDI pulls numbers typically achieved by only the most efficient gasoline-electric hybrids. Matching this efficiency is affordability, with a $21,990 price tag.