Volkswagen Passat 2018 Review

Been here, since 1974

It’s quite easy to get your head around the Volkswagen Passat 140TDI Highline.

After all, this is a representative of the eighth Passat generation, most of which have sold in Australia. In fact, generation one was quite the talking point back in 1974 with its front engine and front-wheel drive (remembering the Beetle was still around in those days).

These days Passat doesn’t stir the same sort of interest. In a market that’s embracing SUVs and trucks, its sedan and wagon offerings are very much orthodox fare.

The proposition

What we’re testing here is the 140TDI Highline sedan. The numbers and letters mean it’s powered by a 140kW/400Nm 2.0-litre turbo-diesel engine that drives the front wheels via a six-speed dual clutch transmission.

OK, so that immediately brings up dieselgate, the emissions cheating scandal Volkswagen has got itself embroiled in over the past few years. This Euro 6 engine is not implicated in all that drama.

At $47,990, this is the second most expensive four-door in the Passat line-up, above two 132TSI 1.8-litre turbo-petrols and below the $58,490 206TSI R-Line flagship. All four models come as wagons for an added $2000 and there is also the Alltrack cross-over spun off the wagon, which competes with the Subaru Outback and new Holden Calais Tourer.

The Passat sedan goes up against the likes of the Mazda6, new imported Holden Commodore and the Ford Mondeo, all of which have a diesel choice. Then there’s the biggest seller in the segment, the Toyota Camry – also now imported – which offers a petrol-electric hybrid rather than a diesel.

Standard 140TDI Highline safety equipment includes dual front, front-side, rear-side, curtain and driver’s knee airbags; low- and high-speed autonomous emergency braking, a reversing camera plus front and rear parking sensors, rear traffic alert, lane assist and side assist, driver fatigue detection, a low tyre-pressure indicator, ISOFIX mounts for the outer rear seats and three child seat top tethers. The Passat comes with an ANCAP five-star rating from 2015.

Comfort equipment includes 18-inch alloy wheels with a full-size alloy-mounted spare (yay), tri-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control, sat-nav, Apple CarPlay (which every now and then switched off for no identifiable reason) and Android Auto, a 9.2-inch infotainment screen with gesture control, 14-way power adjustable and heated front seats, driver’s seat massage function and Nappa leather seat trim.

The Passat is covered by a standard three-year/unlimited km warranty, while servicing is every 15,000km or 12 months. The first three scheduled visits to your dealer will cost $1477, then there’s a big $1095 hit at year four/60,000km.

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Obvious Quality

What you also get for the money is a very high-class presentation. The Passat is a good looker in a geometric three-box way, while its interior is conservative yet well-tailored.

Through all the controversies that have bedeviled Volkswagen in recent years, perceived quality of the cabin remains a constant positive. Rivals like the Mazda6 and Toyota Camry simply cannot live with this vehicle in those terms.

The look is cohesive and classy, materials soft to the touch or upmarket in appearance. The analogue clock at the top of the dash is a clever, posh touch. Pity then our test car had a vibration behind the dash that diluted all the good work.

Access to and operation of key controls is straight forward. This is a car with a nice balance between traditional buttons and new-fangled touch controls. The infotainment screen’s gesture control is a bit of a surprise when you first use it, but you adjust. If it all gets a bit confusing, just press the home button and start again.

The driver’s seat is big and deep, eminently adjustable and comfortable over the long haul, the steering wheel adjusts for reach and rake and there is a sizeable pedal box with a place to rest your right foot, as well as left.

There are plenty of storage options including door pockets front and rear, a centre lidded bin, a chillable glovebox and two seatback pockets for second row occupants. There are cupholders front and rear.

Space for adult passengers is simply outstanding in the rear seat. Head, knee and legroom is ample. There are also door and overhead grabs and adjustable vents for the climate control.

The boot is big and wide, holding 586 litres with the rear seats in-place. Split-fold them down (which you can do via levers in the boot) and that grows to 1152 litres. That’s enough to comfortably fit a full-size mountain bike with the front seat removed. There are containers on either side of the boot to hold smaller items.

You open the boot manually by pushing on the VW roundel (always worried about my fingers doing that), but there’s no handle to pull it closed with, which means leaving smudgy finger prints on the paint.

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Road trip

The Passat is an interesting car to drive. Its exterior is sharp, its interior much more relaxed. The on-road result is somewhere between the two.

It’s not a cossetting, soft blowsy car at all. A suspension set-up toward the firmer end of the mid-range spectrum delivers some Mazda-like pattering and tyre thrum back into the cabin without getting truly intrusive. That’s despite rolling on 235/45R18 Pirelli rubber.

The Passat steers with certainty, if not any particular deftness, and grips solidly. There’s still enough suspension give for some body roll in corners and the front tyres will gradually subside into slides as the speed is amped up through turns. You can also provoke a skerrick of oversteer with a sharp lift of the throttle.

The engine is a typical modern diesel. Not too grumbly, quite gymnastic in its rev band, stretching from low teens to 5000rpm. Having said that you’ll operate between 1500-3500rpm virtually all the time, such is the accessible nature of its pulling power (which is maxed out between 1750-3000rpm).

Combined fuel economy is claimed to be 4.8L/100kmconomy and we saw 5.5L/100km across our week of testing. Stop-start is unobtrusive.

The annoyance is the dual clutch gearbox, which dithers unpredictably at tip-in throttle. It will work smoothly nine times out of 10, but then hesitate just when you need it launching into a busy intersection.

By the way, there are no paddles on the steering wheel, so manual changes are via the lever. It can also be pulled back into a sport mode, which is a nice halfway house in terms of aggressiveness. You can adjust various driving modes including steering and drivetrain (but not suspension) via a dial on the dashboard. Auto mode worked fine for me 99 per cent of the time.

One questionable feature of the Passat’s bundle of driver assist systems was its unwillingness to pass vehicles on the left. Typical scenario: you’re cruising up the freeway and there’s someone doing 90km/h in the fast lane. So you move to the centre lane to pass. If the Passat’s DAS are on it will pull up alongside the car on the right but not pass… unless you give it a prod on the throttle to confirm that’s what you want to do.

Maybe that feature makes sense in Europe where they understand lane discipline, but in Australia? I prodded the throttle a lot!

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Good stuff

Like many Passats before it this one is thoroughly good. It drives well, feels and looks upmarket to sit in, has plenty of equipment and space and is economical.

It not the centre of attention the way it was in 1974 because it’s not an SUV. And it is a Volkswagen, which for some people is a problem given recent transgressions and reliability issues.

But judged in isolation, as it sits here, ready to transport you and your family in a smooth and refined manner smoothly … it’s easy to like.

How much is a 2018 Volkswagen Passat 140TDI Highline?
Price: $47,990 plus on-road costs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel
Output: 140kW/400Nm
Transmission: Six-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel: 4.8L/100km
CO2: 125g/km
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP (2015)