Many car companies have given up on sedans altogether. Ford and General Motors, for instance, have stopped making most of the ones they used to make.
And good luck finding a sedan with a manual transmission, if you swing that way. Especially one that's available in anything other than the base trim version.
Unless the car you're looking at happens to be a Volkswagen Jetta.
What It Is
The Jetta isn't just one of a very few new sedans you can still buy with a manual transmission; it's one of the few sedans that's midsize on the inside but not on the outside.
It's 185.1 inches long, which is significantly shorter than midsize sedans like the Toyota Camry (192.7 inches long) but has almost exactly as much legroom and trunk space — while taking up less space in your garage and being easier to park.
It also costs thousands less than most midsize-on-the-outside cars: $18,895 for the base S trim (with a six-speed manual transmission) versus around $25k to start for midsize sedans like the Camry, and more for sedans like the Honda Accord.
You can also get the manual in more than just the base trim. The R-Line trim — which features Audi-like amenities — stickers for $22,695 to start. Which is still less to start than the typical midsize (and automatic only) sedan, like the Camry.
A top-of-the-line SEL Premium stickers for $27,945. This is the only Jetta trim that comes only with an automatic transmission.
What's New
VW's Car-Net telematics app is now standard in all trims; it was previously optional. All trims except the base S trim get standard wireless phone charging.
What's Good
You have a choice of transmissions — in a choice of trims.
It has an Audi-esque vibe — and ride.
It has midsize room — in a smaller-than-midsize package.
What's Not So Good
You have no choice of engines.
It has Apple-only USB ports.
It has compact-sized cupholders.
Under the Hood
All Jettas, regardless of trim, come standard with a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine that advertises 147 horsepower — and 184 foot-pounds of torque.
Which is why it feels stronger than just 147 horsepower.
Torque is what you feel when you push down on the accelerator pedal — and the Jetta's turbocharged four-cylinder engine makes as much torque as much larger engines without turbos, like the Camry's standard 2.5-liter four-cylinder.
And unlike the automatic-only Camry, the Jetta offers the choice of a manual six-speed transmission — which makes using that torque more fun. Or pick the eight-speed automatic.
Either way, the miles per gallon are the same — 30 mpg city, 40 mpg highway. This is another Jetta uniqueness in that, usually, the highest advertised mileage is obtained with the automatic.
As it turns out, the Jetta's mileage — with the manual — is better than the mileage advertised by automatic-only rivals with larger engines, such as the Camry (28 mpg city/39 mpg highway).
You can still get a manual in a Honda Accord sedan, but that one's base price so equipped is $26,350 — which is almost $7,500 higher.
It's a lot to pay for a third pedal.
And you only get 26 mpg city, 35 mpg highway ... and 192 foot-pounds of torque.
On the Road
The Jetta is one other thing no other sedans in this class are. It's a German luxury car. Perhaps not officially, in terms of the badge. But in terms of the lineage. And the common engineering.
VWs are Audis — brothers from the same mother. The Jetta may not have everything you'd find in an A4, but it has shared heritage. And because of that, a very similar feel — including the ride and absence of noise.
There's also something else — though it's not genetic.
At the Curb
The ghost of John DeLorean — the legendary Pontiac engineer who became a DeLorean engineer — may have had something to do with the Jetta's cockpit. Which echoes the stylish, personal and driver-centric look of a '69 Pontiac Grand Prix SSJ.
That is a compliment.
Like the classic Grand Prix, the Jetta's dash curves toward the driver as do the controls mounted on the center console. Even the air vents are focused primarily on the driver.
But the passengers are not forgotten. In fact, just as much attention has been paid to them, just in a different way.
Their comfort is the concern.
You'll find it in the back, where there's 37.2 inches of legroom (about as much as in the much larger Camry, which has 38 inches) as well as in the trunk, where the Jetta's 14.1 cubic inches of capacity compares very favorably with the Camry's 15.1 cubic feet.
The Accord offers more of both — including 40.4 inches of backseat legroom and a 16.7-cubic-foot trunk — but there's a $7,500 upsell to get it.
The Rest
The Jetta is unusual in one other way that's not so laudable.
It has two USB ports built into the center console — but they aren't general USB ports that you can use to plug in any device. They are Apple-input-specific. VW does make a "dongle" interface, but if you don't have it, you can't directly plug in Android devices.
Also, the Jetta's cupholders are not big-cup-compatible.
This is, however, compensated for to some degree by large door-panel cubbies that will take a larger-than-medium-sized coffee cup or soda.
The Bottom Line
If more sedans were like the Jetta, sedans would probably still be selling well.
Eric's new book, "Don't Get Taken for a Ride!" is available now. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.
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