Volkswagen Passat - Pictures

Although the Passat is well balanced, it’s a less responsive driver’s car than the Mondeo and its suspension isn’t as good at soaking up bumps. Meaty steering and excellent noise insulation help make amends

VW doesn’t have the quality advantage it once enjoyed. The Passat is very well constructed, but the Mondeo uses equally upmarket materials. However, the VW has the more user-friendly cabin design

According to our tape measure, no other car here had a longer boot either with the rear seats raised or folded – maximum length is close to two metres. The large through-load aperture is also useful

The Passat has the best designed cabin storage – the door pockets are huge, there are pop-out trays in the dash, but best of all is the big centre compartment, complete with cup-holders that rotate out when needed

Still not convinced the Passat is cleverly thought out? Then how about this – a CD changer that’s hidden above the glovebox, but slides down when you pull the orange tab. It’s part of the £1,650 DVD sat-nav pack