Volkswagen Passat Saloon (2010 - ) review

The new Volkswagen Passat only has its roof design carried over from the previous Passat, which now looks more angular than the old model. The most obvious change is the ‘VW family’ horizontal grille, flanked by intricate headlight clusters. The rear lights are very different too, with a move away from red concentric circles to horizontal LEDs over dots. Higher trim levels feature lots of chrome exterior highlights, giving the Passat a classy demeanour.

The most striking new feature is a centrally mounted analogue clock, right in the middle of a metallic swathe across the dashboard. We liked it, but some may find it a little out of place. The seats, console and steering wheel are typically high quality, although we did find some harder plastics used in out-of-sight places around the cabin. As with all current Volkswagens, every control is well laid out and easy to operate.

The Passat has grown only slightly in length (by 4mm) and now has a 485-litre boot, fitted with chrome lashing points and bag hooks. It’s certainly large enough for most needs, but the Mondeo’s boot is significantly bigger if you need the most luggage space possible. The Passat is fitted with an electric handbrake as standard. Turn on its auto hold function and it will keep the car stationary in traffic without any pedals being pressed, and then release as you drive away – a great convenience feature once you get used to it.

Extra sound deadening for the engine and thickened windows have helped make the Passat one of the quietest cars in its class. This refinement is coupled with a fine ride quality, smoothing out all but the worst bumps and pot holes. It all adds up to making the Passat good at its job of covering the long distances most of its owners are expected to drive. Driven harder, the Passat is still perfectly competent, but it lacks the involvement of the Ford Mondeo or BMW 3 Series.

While there is no high performance model of the Passat available, anyone with half an eye on fuel costs will be impressed. The diesel line-up includes a 1.6-litre with 104bhp and a 2-litre TDI with 138 or 168bhp, while petrol models are a 1.4-litre with 120bhp, a 1.8-litre with 158bhp and 2-litre with 207bhp, all of which are turbocharged. We tested the small diesel, which surprised us as we’ve previously found it underpowered in other models. In the Passat it has a reasonable turn of speed around town, although we’d still recommend the 2-litre TDI overall. The 1.4-litre TSI is worth a test drive, as it’s quiet, smooth and zesty.

All the diesel models average more than 60mpg and emits less than 139g/km of CO2, with the 1.6-litre managing 65.7mpg. This puts it ahead of the efficient BMW 316d. We couldn’t quite match these figures during our test, but were still impressed by just how thrifty the Passat is. BlueMotion Technology helps, most noticeably by cutting the engine at traffic lights. The 1.4-litre petrol is economical too, averaging 47.9mpg and emitting 138g/km of CO2.

If everything in life was as reliable as a Volkswagen… so the old ad slogan goes. We think it will prove correct here, as the Passat is well built and engineered, featuring some of the best engines in the business. During our week of testing it never felt like it would let us down.

As with its sturdy build quality, safety is one of the key features of the Passat. It features front, side and curtain airbags as standard as well as an electronic stability programme (ESP), anti-lock braking (ABS), fatigue detection system and an option City Emergency Braking system. This is operational below 18mph and can perform an automatic emergency stop if a collision risk is detected.

Base-trim S models are well-equipped with air-con, remote central locking, leather multifunction steering wheel, electric front and rear windows, USB and iPod cables, and 16-inch alloy wheels. SE models feature chrome exterior trim, 17-inch alloys, comfort front seats, rear centre armrest with load-though function, Bluetooth, DAB radio, cruise control and stainless steel interior trim. There’s a Sport trim level too, with lower suspension and front sports seats. The 2-litre TSI model gets ACC adaptive chassis control for better handling. Other additions include two-zone climate control, fog lights with cornering function, touchscreen sat-nav and tyre pressure monitoring.

In many ways the Passat is the sensible choice if you’re in the market for a saloon. It might not be as fun to drive as a Mondeo or 3 Series, but it is expected to hold its value better than the Ford, and it’s more comfortable than the BMW.