Volkswagen Passat (Germany, 1973-present)

The Passat is a large family car built through seven generations since 1973. Since its introduction in the 1970s, the car has been placed in the middle of the sedan/saloon market segment. The nameplate Passat derives from the German word for tradewind. In 2008, Volkswagen launched the Passat CC, a 4-door coupé version of the Passat.

In 2010 Volkswagen rejuvenated the Passat, one of its most successful and long-standing models. It has been sold over 15 million times, since first launched in 1973 and is available in over 100 countries across the globe. At the 2010 Mondial de l’Automobile in Paris, Volkswagen presented an entirely new Passat – as a saloon and an estate car simultaneously.

A new styling configuration was created for the seventh generation of the Passat. Available in Trendline, Comfortline and Highline equipment levels - it now offers a standard equipment on all turbodiesel models of the base Trendline version, which includes the energy-saving Stop/Start system and battery regeneration. All other petrol and natural gas engines have a battery regeneration system as well. For the smallest petrol engine, battery regeneration and the Stop/Start system are available as options.

All ten engines (77 kW / 105 PS through to 220 kW / 300 PS) are more efficient – up to 18 percent more. The "smallest" turbodiesel (1.6 TDI with 105 PS and 250 Nm) now consumes 4.2 l/100 km, equivalent to 109 g/km CO2. The 1.4 TSI (90 kW / 122 PS) in the BlueMotion Technology version, consumes 5.8 l/100 km. The equivalent CO2 value is 138 g/km.