The last “real” Volkswagen? We tried it!

The R-Line sports package suits the car well

Modern, clean design with the latest Volkswagen characteristics

The 9th generation is a radical change compared to the previous Passat, as far as the visuals are concerned. Volkswagen’s latest, rounded design divides the public on this huge, family station wagon, but the R-Line package alleviates the situation somewhat with its wilder bumpers and dark upper. However, this does not make the Passat even close to a racing car, especially not with the 2.0 liter diesel engine. We brought such a car to a thorough mixed test of more than 1,000 kilometers, where we put it to the test on highways, country roads and in the city.

Its total length is 4.92 meters, of which the wheelbase is 2.84 meters

The width of the new Passat is 1.85 meters, the height is 1.48 meters, and its form factor is only 0.25

But let’s not rush so far ahead, let’s start with the basics. Thanks to the Skoda Superb relationship, the wheelbase and total length have increased significantly, the new Passat is 14.4 centimeters longer than its predecessor. All this is a significant change in a size class where rear legroom and an elegant appearance are really important.

The dashboard is modern, with clean solutions

The digital instrument unit is 10 inches, the infotainment display is 15 inches

The display projected onto the windshield was not left out of the extra list either

Elegance takes a back seat in the interior, but this does not mean that the dashboard is puritanical or not clean enough. When designing the Passat, I think the engineers and designers found a perfect balance with the variation of modern technology and traditional solutions. The 10-inch digital instrument unit and the 15-inch central display create a modern feel, but the real buttons on the steering wheel and the smaller, piano-free light switch serve as a pleasant surprise. Although it is a step backwards in terms of technology, it can be interpreted as a serious step forward from the point of view of practicality and safety, that, unlike the electric Volkswagen model of similar size, the direction of the air vents does not need to be controlled from the screen, but unfortunately we did not get a separate climate control in the Passat either.

The light switch is also new

If you didn’t get a separate climate control, the Passat got at least one touch strip for this purpose, and the multifunction steering wheel is also the user-friendly button version

In the rest of the passenger compartment, everything is in perfect order: the seats hold excellent and the adjustment options also meet expectations. It is interesting, however, that the aforementioned seat adjustment is only partially electric. The angle of the backrest must be controlled with the buttons on the seat, but the sports armchairs must be moved back and forth in the rail with arms and manual power. There is no problem with the amount of space either, the passenger compartment is sufficiently wide in both rows, and there is enough space for the knees and heads in the back.

This Passat is also the champion in terms of space

The seat adjustment is partially electric, but the armchairs have a massage function

And if we’re talking about the back row, the Passat also offers an elbow rest with a cup holder and a tablet holder, as well as its own climate zone with ventilation. There are also blackouts on both sides, and USB-C connectors and rear seat heating were not left out of the configuration either. An extra with a serious premium is the huge roof window, which also lets in a lot of light to the rear, thus further enhancing the sense of space.

An elbow pad with a tablet holder, seat heating and a third climate zone also made their way to the rear seat row of the Passat

The trunk is definitely worth a few more words. It is a serious fact in itself that the 690-liter seat of the Passat is behind five seats, but it also received excellent organization tools, hooks, a 230-volt outlet connector, and the releases necessary for easier seat tilting. The tailgate also opens and closes automatically, but the car also lowers the 2.2-tonne towbar at the push of a button. The icing on the cake is a full-fledged spare wheel hidden under the floor.

You don’t need a bigger one than this trunk

A cargo space with a flat floor of up to 1,920 lire can be created by reclining the seat

There are also plenty of comfort items in the trunk

However, all this is almost incidental, it is not sacrilegious to produce a good station wagon in 2024 either. But what about the diesel engine, which many have buried? In this car, the 150 horsepower version of the 2.0-liter TDI engine ticks. Does this still make sense in 2024? It’s all a matter of perspective.

If, for example, you don’t want to travel across the country with an average fuel consumption of 3.9 liters, then diesel really makes no sense.

Of course, you can argue with the fact that this is the most ideal way of using this engine, but this Passat managed 4.7 liters for me with the cruise control set to 130 km/h on the highway, and even in the roughest urban conditions it did not climb above 7.5 liters. consumption. In the end, I delivered the car with an average of 5.4 liters, which should definitely be bottled, all without trying to save on purpose.

From the rear, the silhouette and design are somewhat sportier compared to its predecessor

The rear LED lamps are connected by a light strip

The package wouldn’t be complete without a towbar

The driving experience was also a surprise, although it should be added that as long as the end result in terms of consumption is not too low, it is no longer impossible to exaggerate the creation of comfort and a stimulus-free environment. This particular Passat has such excellent sound insulation that it does not allow the growling of the engine, wind noise or rolling noise into the passenger compartment. In particular, you can whisper in the passenger compartment at 130 km/h on the highway.

In this case, the Passat is unbeatable, only premium station wagons of a similar size can compete on the highway.

In the city, you can already think about whether the diesel was the best decision, but the sound and resonance are not disturbing here either. On the country road, however, I had a hard time driving this car. At 90 km/h, you don’t experience any sense of speed, no noise, and the cruise control and lane keeping essentially drive for you. The cruise control even monitors sharper bends, automatically reducing the speed set on the cruise control if it deems that it is not safe to enter the given curve at the current speed, and it also slows down before roundabouts. All of this at such a level that for hundreds of kilometers the driver only has to intervene to change direction, stop and avoid emergency situations, which made driving on the highway too unstimulating and boring for me. Of course, if someone needs just that, they won’t be disappointed.

An excellent touring car if you need to go far with it

It may also be contradictory that this is a “just” 150 horsepower version, but I want to reassure everyone: this performance is more than enough for this body. Even if you are currently driving the 200-horsepower predecessor, given that the Passat with the DSG gearbox drives almost exclusively from the 360 ​​newton-meter torque. The sprint to 100 km/h still takes 9.3 seconds, and the top speed is 223 km/h. if it still isn’t enough, the 193 horsepower, all-wheel drive model can be a solution. It is interesting that these diesels are not hybrids, nor are they even mild hybrids: this car is powered by a completely conventional, common-pipe diesel engine.

The longer wheelbase looks good on the Passat

So there is only one question left: how much is that much? The basic price of the Passat with the Business equipment level currently starts at HUF 16.51 million, and the basic price with the R-Line package is HUF 18.73 million. This particular test car also received a black design package, an IQ. Drive package, 19-inch alloy wheels, panoramic glass roof, the largest multimedia package, Harman Kardon hifi, premium winter package and a towbar. Thus, the final result, which can also be seen in the pictures, costs 22.15 million. All of this may sound like a lot at first, but there are fewer and fewer cars in this category, and even fewer from competitors that not only hold up in the headwind, but also actually develop. All in all, I think that Volkswagen fulfilled its mission: the last TDI Passat really became the best, and managed to enhance the legend to the extreme.

The generation gap is not as big as you might think, even though 25 years have passed between the two TDI Passats shown in the picture.