The compact pickup, in case you haven’t noticed, really isn’t too awfully compact anymore. They have been expanding in every dimension, and the wild part of it is that in many cases these things cost nearly as much (and get about the same gas mileage) as their full-size counterparts. But, apparently they are just the right size for many folks, and they have become pretty stout and fun to drive. They also have always been (for most makes, anyway) some of the most reliable vehicles on the road. Toyota’s Tacoma is by far the most popular compact truck in terms of sales, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s comfortable, rugged, loaded with features and has a certain driver-friendly attitude (caused by excellent control placement and a nice, high driving position) that is very appealing. A strong 4-liter V6, 5-speed automatic, part-time 4WD and a SMC composite bed on our Double Cab 4X4 TRD-Sport tester are all very good things.

Also welcome is the back-up camera, and while it’s pretty tiny situated in the rear-view mirror as it is it still comes in pretty handy. This is becoming more and more common and it’s a damn good thing, because so many new vehicles, cars and trucks alike, are getting harder and harder to see out of when in retreating.

As is their wont, Volkswagen has once again resurrected an old performance favorite here in the US by unleashing the GTI (or as I like to say in speedtalk, JeetyEye) upon a segment of the population that longs for some serious scoot in their practical, affordable hatchback. It’s based on the new Golf platform, which as I said earlier (right below this, in fact) is bloody brilliant inside, outside and underneath. Instead of that wicked good Inline 5-cylinder, though the Jeety has a 200-horsepower 4-cylinder Turbo (or Tubbo, to those of you still residing Texas and did not flee the heat, as I did). My test beast also has the wild Direct Shift Gearbox (DSG), which is a clutchless manual that is therefore an automatic, and is a tranny I’ve sampled in VWs and Audis for a while and still am not simpatico with. That could be just me, though. More Testing!

It seems odd, when things happen that dominated a few news cycles, how it can change perceptions on things that have nothing to do with whatever happened that got so much press. For example, the Volkswagen Golf (which was back to being a Rabbit again here in the states and now is a Golf again) always was in my view a fairly weird name for I car. That said, the name is certainly not one that conjures up anything that timely or controversial, or at least it didn’t. But now, thanks to the whole Tiger Wood fiasco, when you say or see the word Golf isn’t there at least a chunk of the population who’s mind will drift to an Escalade hitting a tree, and a golfer with more money than Moses having (allegedly) multiple affairs? It’s just one of those odd cultural nomenclature collisions that comes out of nowhere.
As for the car, so far I think the new Golf is the best VW I’ve ever driven. The Inline Five is smooth and spunky, the 5-speed manual is perfectly geared and has precise feel and action, and the chassis is tight and well-integrated. Even the seats are superb with excellent lateral support and all this for a little over $18K. Very cool little car; loaded with features and imbued with an atmosphere of excellent build quality. Achtung, Baby!