New Volkswagen Jetta aims at station wagon market

Before minivans, sport utility vehicles, crossovers and four-door passenger-oriented pickup trucks, there was only one real choice for families: the station wagon.

Sure, you also could choose among a few other vehicles, like large vans, the venerable Chevrolet Suburban and the Volkswagen microbus. But mostly it was wagons from American manufacturers: Ford, Chevrolet, Dodge, Plymouth, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Mercury and Buick.

They came in giant and large sizes, though they were, in the idiom of the era, referred to as full- and mid-size.

After European, Japanese and even Korean manufacturers made inroads into the U.S. they also began to offer wagons. Soon you could find them from companies as diverse as Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, Volvo, Suzuki, Saab, Audi, Honda, BMW, Nissan, Subaru and, of course, Volkswagen.

The imports never became as popular as the domestic models, and many were later abandoned because of poor sales brought on by buyer infatuation with SUVs.

Even Ford, which specialized in wagons for many years and kept at it longer than any of the domestic manufacturers, no longer has any in its lineup.

The demise of the traditional station wagon is unfortunate. In Europe, it is regarded as a step up -- a classier and more useful vehicle than a sedan. But Europeans have always been attracted to more practical vehicles, including hatchbacks, although that seems to be changing as Americans migrate toward fuel-efficient small cars and crossover utility vehicles.

Volkswagen, despite its ups and downs in the U.S., has been faithful to the station wagon. Its first foray half a century ago was the microbus, with an air-cooled rear engine like the venerable VW Beetle. It actually was the first minivan, though Chrysler rightly claims the title as the inventor of the modern minivan a quarter of a century ago.

Over the years, VW wagons carried various names: Squareback, Dasher, Quantum, Fox, Passat and Jetta. So it's no surprise that the German manufacturer has come up with an all-new wagon for 2009, which it calls the Jetta Sportwagen.

There's no attempt to give it an alias. "At the end of the day, it is a station wagon, and we're very proud of that," says Keith Price, VW's product technology spokesman.

With the demise of the traditional wagon, the Jetta Sportwagen has almost no competition, save the occasional Volvo, Subaru, Saab, BMW or Audi, all of which are more expensive. Suzuki has dropped its Korean-built Forenza wagon and Ford dumped the Focus wagon.

The new Jetta is tidy-sized. At an inch less than 15 feet long, it has the passenger space of a compact car but a relatively large 33-cubic-foot cargo area that, combined with the passenger volume, makes it the EPA equivalent of a large sedan.

There's a hideaway area underneath the cargo compartment floor, but it's so shallow as to be almost useless. You wonder why the designers didn't just skip it and make the floor a couple of inches lower.

Up front, the Jetta's seats are comfortable and supportive, and there are enough seat and steering-wheel adjustments to accommodate almost any size driver. Because of the compact dimensions, however, the outboard back seats are snug, and the center-rear position should only be used in dire straits.

Three engines power the new Jetta wagons, which come with either five-speed manual gearboxes or six-speed automatic transmissions. The base engine, on the 2.5L S and SE models, has five cylinders and delivers 170 horsepower. The 2.0T SEL is powered by a four-cylinder turbocharged engine with 200 horsepower, and there's also a TDI four-cylinder diesel engine with 140 horsepower.

Volkswagen has been among only a few manufacturers to offer diesels in the United States. The new Jetta's diesel has been cleaned up enough that it is certified for sale in all 50 states, and VW officials expect that once established about half of all the Jetta Sportwagens will be sold with the diesel.

At the introduction, however, the Jetta wagon was available only with the 170-horsepower, 2.5-liter motor. With only 3,285 pounds to move -- plus passengers, of course -- the engine proved to be up to the task. It had sprightly acceleration with either the six-speed automatic transmission or the five-speed manual. The latter is a refined design that shifts smoothly and positively, and the clutch action is light without being grabby.

The ride is stiff, in the European manner. It is biased more toward crisp handling than cushy comfort. On the highway, the Jetta has a good on-center steering feel and, with a minimum of wind, road and mechanical noise, does not induce fatigue.

Standard equipment includes stability and traction control, antilock brakes, side air bags, side-curtain air bags, electronic brake-pressure distribution, active front-seat headrests, air conditioning, cruise control, remote central locking, AM/FM audio system with six-disc CD changer, tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, and power windows and outside mirrors.

An array of options is available, including a navigation system, upgraded sound system, automatic climate control, panoramic sun roof and Sirius satellite radio. The tested SE had a base price of $21,999. With options, it topped out at $25,474.

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, http://www.scrippsnews.com)