What’s The Best Stickshift Runabout? VW Golf vs VW Tiguan vs Hyundai Elantra vs Nissan Juke

Well, we’ve made it to the end of another week, which means it’s time for a Friday runoff. This week’s cars were all $5,000 or less, all 2010 or newer, and all manual transmissions. Our four finalists are not at all what I expected when I started this whole thing on Monday, but that’s what keeps this job interesting.

Yesterday’s strangely-styled choices brought out a lot of first-hand experience comments, and not all of them were complimentary. The Hyundai Veloster is not a favorite among you, it seems, at least not one in that condition. The Nissan Juke’s bizarre styling drew some negative remarks, but it emerged victorious anyway.

I agree. It’s weird, it’s small, and it’s a stickshift – in short, the Juke is my kind of car. I could get behind the idea of a Veloster too, but not that Veloster. Even if it runs as well as the seller claims, that car has seen some things. The Nissan looks a lot less abused.

Right, so, we have our four finalists. They all seem like practical, reasonably efficient vehicles, and thanks to the manual transmissions, none of them should be a complete snooze-fest to drive. As usual, we’ll go over the pros and cons of each one, and then you can make your choice.

2010 Volkswagen Golf – $4,800

This Golf won by the narrowest of margins over a Honda Civic Si. I kept checking back over the week to see if its victory would hold, and while the vote count climbed, the margin remained just a handful of votes in the VW’s favor. I think it’s the hatchback that did it. The Civic is a neat car, but its usefulness is limited since it’s a two-door coupe with a tiny trunk opening. The Golf is, and always has been, just about the most usefully-shaped small car on the road.

That said, this is not the simple, DIY-friendly Rabbit you remember from the ’70s. This Golf features a turbocharged direct-injection engine that requires some special care and feeding, and Volkswagen electrical systems have become the stuff of nightmares to troubleshoot. This one is claimed to be in fine shape, but that condition likely isn’t permanent. Still, forewarned is forearmed, and if you know what you’re getting into, it could be a great little companion.

2012 Volkswagen Tiguan S – $4,495

This Tiguan had a much easier time against its competitor, a Jeep Renegade. Personally, I preferred the Renegade, but my vote isn’t what counts, and the little Jeep-in-name-only went down in flames. And really, this does seem like a nice car. It has been well cared for, and apart from a couple dings and some curb rash on the wheels, it looks good too.

My problem with it is that it’s a more complicated, less fun version of the Golf. The existence of that Golf completely knocks this out of the running, in my opinion. I guess if you need four doors or a little more cargo space, this might make sense. And it is a little cheaper. But personally, I’d rather have the Golf.

2013 Hyundai Elantra GT – $4,000

I’m willing to bet that, for any car you can possibly name, there’s an owner out there who fastidiously maintains one, keeps up on repairs, and takes great pains to keep it on the road. And that makes it interesting, even if, maybe especially if, it’s an otherwise unremarkable car. Like, say, a white Hyundai Elantra. Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with an Elantra, but it’s a strange choice for a car upon which to lavish as much attention as this one has had.

It’s not perfect; there is some paint peeling, and it has a nasty dent in one rocker panel as if someone drove over a big rock with it, but it’s not bad at all for a $4,000 used car. The question, as it still is with Hyundai despite the improvements over the years, is longevity. This car has almost 200,000 miles on it, and has already had a lot of things replaced. How much more does it have to give?

2011 Nissan Juke SV – $2,950

On paper, the Nissan Juke sounds pretty good. A compact hatchbacky/crossovery thing with a small turbo engine and a six-speed stick? Sign me up! But then you get a look at the thing, and… yeesh. On the other hand, it doesn’t look like every other vehicle on the road. There will be no mistake which car in the parking lot is yours, if you drive a Juke. Unless you join an owner’s club and go to an event or something.

If you can get past the goofy looks, there really isn’t much reason not to choose this car. Despite Nissan’s reputation as the king of the buy-here-pay-here lots, the cars are actually pretty good. A car doesn’t survive the treatment that most Altimas and Versas see without being well-built. The Juke should be similarly tough.

Any of these would be great as a third or fourth car, a beater to keep around when you need it or feel like driving a stickshift for a change. They’d be great for teaching someone to drive a manual, too. For me, it’s between two, but I want to know what you all think. What’s the best deal here?