VW Passat R36 now a collector's item

One of Australia's favourite executive-express sedans (and wagons) has reached the end of the road.

The high-powered Passat R36 -- at the time it was launched, the fastest production car to ever wear the Volkswagen badge -- is no more.

Once the existing cars in dealer stock in Australia are sold they cannot be replaced.

"There are only a handful of cars left in dealer-land and once they're gone, that's it," VW Australia spokesman Karl Gehling told the Carsales Network at the launch of the new Passat in Barcelona overnight.

"We can't order any more, the factory is not making any more, so once these cars are gone, that'll be it for Passat R36."

The new generation Passat is due to arrive in Australian showrooms in the first half of next year -- and there will not be an R model to accompany it. The lack of a Passat R36 is in line with VW's move away from the 'R' branding, as we reported a few months ago.

Although there will be a version of the new Passat powered by the same 3.6-litre V6 (220kW and 350Nm) engine used in the R36, it will not get the performance wheels and tyres, suspension, sports seats or body kit.

It is also unclear whether or not it will even get the R36's high performance brakes, despite the potent acceleration (0 to 100km/h in 5.6 seconds).

"The R36 has been a very important and very popular car for us in Australia, but unfortunately it is time for it to have a break," said Gehling.

At its peak, the R36 accounted for almost one in five of Passat sales. Although it was popular in Australia, other key markets didn't take as much of a liking to it, preferring instead to opt for the smaller Volkswagen R cars.

"There is definitely a market there for a sports-prestige version of the Passat but we will have to wait and see what the engineers come up with," Gehling observed.

It is unclear what engine will power the next generation Passat R car, although it is believed to be at least two years away. Emissions being a future concern and VW apparently moving away from the in-your-face aspect of the R cars, the next premium-grade Passat may be labeled 'Exclusive', as we reported of the Touareg on Monday.

The current Passat R36 was released in June 2008 in sedan ($64,990) and wagon ($66,990) and was upgraded three times over the past four years.

A quick search on the Carsales website this morning under 'new cars' found about two dozen R36s for sale -- in sedan and wagon body styles -- but already some of them had modest price premiums given their popularity and the lack of an immediate successor. Prices ranged from $68,888 to $86,888 drive-away.

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