Volkswagen Rolls Out Jetta Hybrid, E-Bugster at NAIAS

DETROIT (WJBK) -- Monday, Volkswagen introduced the new Jetta Hybrid. It's their answer to the Honda Civic and the Toyota Prius.

After touting a successful 2011, including a 26 percent jump in U.S. sales and the Motor Trend Car of the Year in its Passat, Volkswagen introduced its second gasoline-electric offering -- the 2013 Jetta Hybrid.

The Jetta Hybrid delivers an estimated combined fuel economy of 45 miles-per-gallon. It can be driven in pure electric mode at speeds up to 44 miles-per-hour.

While hybrids are becoming increasingly popular in the U.S., this type of engine is somewhat of a departure from Volkswagen's love affair with diesel.

"For a long time, the German automakers and the Europeans in general were not into the hybrid thing. They were much more diesel oriented. Diesel's much more successful in Europe, and they also claimed that they would never build a hybrid. They thought they were a waste of money," said TotalCarScore.com Editor-in-Chief Karl Brauer. "What we're seeing here is a basic acquiescence by a lot of the manufacturers and Volkswagen being one of them, that okay, hybrids are what Americans want."

Volkswagen also rolled out its newest concept called the E-Bugster. It's a combination of "E" for electric, "bug" for the American name for the Beetle and a speedster.

It's the car company's attempt at making electric both playful and stylish.

"It's not just an electric car for … environmental and green purposes, it's also a fun car. There's some styling going on. There's some excitement. There's some passion. I think that's what everyone's kind of expecting now is you can't just give us a car because it's good for us. You've got to give us a car that we would also want to otherwise drive anyways because it's fun and exciting," Brauer explained.

No word on if and when the E-Bugster will hit the road or how much it would cost.

As for the Jetta Hybrid, all Volkswagen would say is that it would be competitively priced. You can expect to see it on the market coming up sometime in the next year.