If you see the new 2010 Volkswagen Golf on the road, you might not notice any significant changes. There is a nip here, a tuck there, both inside and out. You’ll probably notice the name change from Rabbit back to Golf--supposedly once and for all. But underneath the familiar sheet metal is a freshened Golf. VW calls it the sixth generation of the car despite being far from a full redesign. By any name, it is one of Europe’s most popular models and one of our top-scoring small cars.

Our silver, five-door Golf listed for $20,314, with standard electronic stability control (ESC) and optional automatic, Bluetooth, and heated seats. In contrast, our 2008 Rabbit S automatic stickered at $19,725 with standard heated seats and optional 16-inch alloy wheels and ESC. (No Bluetooth.)

Compare photos and you’ll notice the lack of alloys on the 2010 and the relatively skinny 15-inch wheels (down from 16 inches). Inside, you might also notice the lower-grade radio head unit. Gone is the big display that listed presets, helping to make the old stereo one of the easiest in the business to use. Only a sharp eye will notice that the remote fuel and trunk releases are gone. You probably won’t notice the lack of floor mats or the missing front center armrest or that there is no CD changer or satellite radio (a deleted $375 option on our Rabbit) until you’re a few miles from the dealership. You might not even notice that the primary warranty went from 4 years/50,000 miles on our 2008 to 3 years/36,000 miles on our 2010. All of this suggests that there is some decontenting going on as VW struggles to hold somewhat firm on price, and assure a profit despite the high Euro.

Features aside, does the new Golf still have the solid feel, high-quality interior, and agile handling that made the Rabbit so impressive in our tests? We’ll see as we put break-in miles on the car.

—Tom Mutchler