Volkswagen Passat review

Quick review

The Volkswagen Passat is a smart, sleek, and well-built estate car that could well have enough appeal to steer buyers away from SUVs. Company car drivers will be well served by the plug-in hybrid model, but private buyers should take a look at the excellent mild-hybrid version. It may not feel as cutting-edge as some of its taller siblings, but there’s lots to be said for a package that’s as well-honed and resolved as this one is.

Volkswagen Passat: price, specs and rivals

The ninth-generation Volkswagen Passat so nearly didn’t happen, largely because saloon and estate cars have progressively been falling victim to our voracious appetite for premium brands and higher-riding SUVs.

Yet the Passat was once a staple of Volkswagen’s range – and for good reason. Its ability to transport people and their things in a smooth, comfortable and efficient manner made for a winning formula. This is what this all-new generation is tasked with living up to.

It’ll be launched in the UK exclusively as an estate: anyone after a traditional saloon will need to look towards the Skoda Superb, which is available in hatchback and estate body styles. The Passat will be powered by a 1.5-litre mild-hybrid petrol engine, with two versions of plug-in hybrid - both of which promise over 70 miles of electric range and piffling company car tax bills - coming soon. It hasn’t been officially announced whether the VW Passat will also be getting the 148bhp and 261bhp 2.0-litre petrol and 148bhp and 190bhp 2.0-litre diesel engines that its sibling, the Skoda Superb has, but we expect these to be available at some point in the future.

Prices for the Passat start from £38,500 for a mild-hybrid 1.5 in Life trim, rising to over £51,000 for the most potent 268bhp eHybrid in R-Line trim, which puts it in the realm of premium estate cars like the Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring, and Mercedes C-Class estate. The Passat, however, offers more boot space than all of those rivals, and even eclipses the Mercedes E-Class estate.

Trim levels are a simple choice of three and mirror those of other models in the Volkswagen range. Life trim marks the entry point, but it still comes with plenty of equipment, with 17-inch alloys, parking sensors all-round, heated front seats, an electric tailgate, adaptive cruise control, sat-nav, and three-zone climate control. The mid-range Elegance adds matrix LED headlights, a 30-colour ambient interior lighting system, sports comfort front seats, and 18-inch alloy wheels. The top-of-the-range R-Line has sportier interior and exterior styling, plus fancier adaptive suspension, and sports front seats.

The engines powering the Volkswagen Passat are all ones we’ve seen before, up and down the VW range. So far, we’ve driven the single 1.5-litre petrol option that’s available from launch, with 201bhp and 268bhp plug-in hybrid versions (the latter is only offered with Elegance and R-Line trims) coming later. Due to the Passat being very similar to the Skoda Superb, we anticipate that two further versions of the 2.0-litre petrol and 2.0-litre diesel will also be added to the range, with the most powerful petrol and diesel options getting 4Motion four-wheel drive.

The entry-level 1.5-litre unit is generally refined and smooth, and produces 148bhp and 250Nm of torque. These aren’t huge figures, but when the car is unladen, its engine is perfectly adept at shifting the large body of the Passat. When loaded with a family and a boot full of paraphernalia, getting up to motorway speeds or overtaking might be more problematic.

When up and running, the mild-hybrid system – in combination with the standard seven-speed twin-clutch automatic transmission – helps make the most of the engine. The response is good, especially in the sportier drive modes, and the motor remains quiet and unstressed. The electrified mild-hybrid drivetrain provides a little bit of a power boost at low speeds, and makes this engine feel more powerful than it actually is, but you may be left wanting at higher speeds where the small mild-hybrid system is less effective.

On the road, the standard suspension set-up that’s fitted to Life and Elegance trims does a good job of keeping things calm, prioritising comfort above all and providing plenty of suspension travel. Top-of-the-range R-Line models have a more sophisticated adaptive suspension set-up called Dynamic Chassis Control Pro (DCC Pro for short). With it, you can customise the ride from a firmer, sportier setting on twistier roads, to a softer comfort set-up when cruising along the motorway, giving the Passat a wide range of abilities. General refinement is excellent, with good road noise suppression and very little wind whistle – especially with Elegance trim cars and above, which get laminated side windows and extra sound insulation to increase refinement.

The steering remains well-weighted and accurate, and while there’s not much feel, it makes the Passat easy to place on the road. Indeed, it’s very easy to judge the car’s extremities on the move, largely thanks to the excellent visibility.

Engines, 0-60 acceleration and top speed

The 148bhp 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine manages to get the Passat from 0 to 62mph in a respectable 9.1 seconds before romping to a top speed of 138mph.

Performance figures for the 204 and 272 eHybrid versions have yet to be fully finalised, but we do know that the top speed is 1mph lower than the entry-level 1.5 eTSI. There’s also no word on any additional petrol or diesel engines, but we’ll update this section once we have more information.

The Volkswagen Passat range begins with the 1.5 eTSI, which gets a combined fuel economy figure of 52.3mpg. The two plug-in hybrid models both have a combined figure of 706.2mph, but in our experience with plug-in hybrid cars, you’ll need to charge frequently and use the engine very sparingly, and even then, you’re still very unlikely to achieve the claimed economy figure.

It’s worth pointing out that the eTSI petrol has a larger 66-litre tank, while the eHybrid models have a smaller 50-litre tank. This means you’ll need to stop more often for fuel with a plug-in hybrid on longer trips if you cannot charge while away from home.

Electric range, battery life and charge time

The VW Passat eHybrid plug-in hybrid has a 19.7kWh battery pack, providing up to 77 miles of range. That’s a lot more range than the previous plug-in Passat, plus the maximum charging speed has been increased from a slow 3.6kW to up to 50kW, with the potential to top up the battery from 10 to 80 percent (from roughly 8 to 62 miles of electric range) in 23 minutes.

Rapid charging would be an expensive way to run an eHybrid Passat, so most will probably utilise a 7.4kW wallbox charger at home. Official charging times are yet to be released due to the plug-in hybrid coming later in the year, but Volkswagen has suggested it’ll take four hours to refill an empty battery.

No warranty information has been given for the battery pack for the same reason, but we doubt it’ll be altered from the warranty of other eHybrid Volkswagen models, like the latest VW Tiguan. The policy for that car states that the battery should maintain above 70 per cent capacity over five years or 100,000 miles.

Tax

Much like with other plug-in hybrid cars, either eHybrid version will be best suited to a company car driver, especially considering the much more affordable Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) company car tax bill compared with a regular petrol or diesel car. An equivalent electric car will still be a lot cheaper, though. Unfortunately, due to the cheapest plug-in hybrid model costing over £44,000, you’ll be clobbered by the additional road tax surcharge for cars costing over £40,000 when new, which applies from when the vehicle is taxed for a second time until it is six years old.

The 1.5-litre petrol's relatively low CO2 figure of 125g/km beats many of its similarly priced premium petrol rivals, such as the Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring, and Mercedes C-Class estate.

Insurance groups

Insurance isn’t likely to be the cheapest around. The entry-level 1.5 eTSI Life is in group 30, while the plug-in hybrid starts in group 36, before rising to group 40 for the most powerful 272 eHybrid in Elegance trim. For context, a petrol Audi A4 Avant starts in group 24, while the plug-in hybrid BMW 3 Series Touring 330e is in group 34.

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Depreciation

According to our data experts, the Passat will retain between 46 to 49 per cent of its resale value over a typical three-year/36,000-mile ownership period. That’s on par with the Skoda Superb Estate, which is a shame considering that it costs slightly less than the Passat, model for model. 

It’s also worth noting that SUVs, which have helped to effectively kill-off the estate car market, are likely to be worth more than the Passat over time. Over the same ownership period, the Volkswagen Tiguan will maintain between 53 and 57 per cent of its resale value.

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The Volkswagen Passat's exterior design has been made sleeker and less boxy than its predecessor’s. The R-Line trim has a slightly sportier look, and a rather expensive R-Line Signature pack adds larger 19-inch alloys and extra black exterior trim details (among numerous other interior upgrades).

Inside, quality has also taken a big step in the right direction, with high-end materials and a general sense of solidity that’s beyond that in the previous version. This is paired with a digital driver’s display and a column-mounted gear selector that opens up extra storage in the centre console.

It is a shame that Volkswagen has introduced its much-maligned touch-sensitive climate control system in place of the physical dials used in the previous Passat. While improvements have been made, such as making the touchscreen larger and putting frequently used climate functions on permanent display at the bottom of the screen, we would have preferred it if the designers had utilised the physical controls of the Passat’s sibling, the Skoda Superb, because they’re much easier to use on the move.

We’re pleased that touch-sensitive controls have been banished from the steering wheel in favour of physical controls, and the Passat retains the easy-to-use electric window switches of old rather than the confusing touch-sensitive ones used by VW’s ID electric car range, which will feature on the Volkswagen ID.7 Tourer.

Sat-nav, stereo and infotainment

Inside, the digital interfaces are VW’s latest units, with a 12.9-inch screen taking care of all the major functions. A larger 15-inch version of the screen is available for £850, and comes with a handy head-up display, which projects important information such as speed on to the windscreen within the driver’s line of sight.

All models come with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity and a wireless charging pad to keep your device topped up. The standard audio system is an eight-speaker setup with DAB radio, but for £1,420, you can upgrade to a 700-watt, 10-speaker Harman Kardon system.

It’s worth noting that, unlike its forebears, the latest Volkswagen Passat only comes in five-door estate form. Anyone who’s been waiting for the Passat saloon to make a return since it went off sale in 2021 will have to look towards the Skoda Superb instead, which will be sold in both estate and hatchback body styles. 

Every Passat comes with LED headlights, with Elegance trim and above gaining the excellent IQ.Light Matrix headlights. These are a brilliant feature that improves safety during night driving because not only will the light units accurately shoot beams of light between cars ahead of you to avoid dazzling oncoming traffic, the system will also do tricks such as light up your lane on dark motorways, or project warnings onto the road surface ahead of the car, just like the Mercedes Digital Light system. A full-size spare wheel is available for £350.

Dimensions and size 

The Passat is a large estate car at 4,917mm long, 1,849mm wide, and 1,521mm tall. That makes it 155mm longer than an Audi A4 Avant, and only 32mm shy of the pricier Mercedes E-Class Estate.

Seats, leg room, head room & passenger space

When pitched against a similarly priced Tiguan SUV, the Passat offers tangible benefits in terms of legroom, ride quality, and general driving dynamics, once again calling into question the validity of our far-reaching SUV obsession. Much like the Skoda Superb upon which the Passat is based, space inside is vast whether you’re sat in the front or the back.

As with a number of Volkswagen Group cars, the Passat comes with ISOFIX child seat mounting points on the outer positions of the rear bench, plus another on the front passenger seat.

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Boot space

The Volkswagen Passat’s huge 690-litre boot is 40 litres larger than before, and with the rear 60/40 split-folding bench folded down, this increases to 1,920 litres – 140 litres more than in its predecessor. The plug-in eHybrid has a smaller capacity boot of 530 litres with the rear seats up and 1,760 with the seats down, but that’s still a decent amount of space compared with other plug-in hybrid estate cars.

It’s a shame you don’t get a more flexible 40/20/40 split folding rear bench like premium rivals such as the A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring, and Mercedes C-Class estate. There’s a ski hatch in the Passat, which enables you to pass through longer items, though.

Non-plug-in models have an adjustable height boot floor so the load area can be level with the tailgate opening. The eHybrid model, however, has a fixed-height boot floor, with a smaller compartment below to store the charging cables.

Towing

The 1.5 eTSI mild-hybrid has the lowest braked trailer rating of 1,600kg and this goes up to 1,800kg with the 204 eHybrid. Towing capacities top out at 2,000kg for the 272 eHybrid. Fitting a tow bar to your Passat is fairly pricey at over £1,000.

The latest Volkswagen Passat was too new to have been included in the 2023 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, so we’ll have to wait and see how owners rate what the car is like to live with over time. 

Volkswagen needs to do more to improve customers' ownership experience with its cars. The brand came in a lowly 27th out of 32 manufacturers included in the survey, only narrowly beating Ford and, embarrassingly, coming behind stablemates SEAT and Skoda.

Safety experts Euro NCAP awarded the latest Passat the maximum five out of five-star rating, a result shared with its sibling, the Skoda Superb. The Passat did better in the adult and child occupant protection categories than the far pricier BMW 5 Series, which is a great result. If you want something even safer, you’ll have to go electric and turn to the Volkswagen ID.7 (also available as an estate in VW ID.7 Tourer form), with superior scores in the adult, child, and vulnerable road user categories.

Like the ID.7, the Passat has all the latest safety assistance features. One is autonomous emergency braking (AEB) to mitigate or avoid low-speed collisions with other vehicles or pedestrians. There’s adaptive cruise control to keep you at a safe distance from the vehicle in front, plus a lane departure and lane keep system to keep you within your lane on the motorway. Blind spot monitoring is also standard, and warns you of vehicles alongside you in your blind spot when you go to change lanes on the motorway.

Additional side airbags for rear seat passengers are a £400 option that’s bundled in with the addition of a tyre pressure monitoring system.

Warranty

The standard three-year or 60,000-mile manufacturer warranty is quite stingy compared to Hyundai's five-year, unlimited mileage warranty or Kia's seven-year/100,000-mile warranty.

Servicing 

Those who mostly drive around town completing short journeys will be on the more frequent fixed service plan, which requires yearly trips to the dealer for servicing, or every 9,300 miles. Anyone driving more on the motorway will be on a variable service scheme, with longer two-year maintenance visits, or every 18,600 miles.

Should you buy a Volkswagen Passat?

Even though estate cars like the Volkswagen Passat have fallen out of fashion in favour of SUVs, the latest Passat still cuts it as a great family car all-rounder. The Passat will win over the sort of people who want a refined car that can cope with a long trip just as easily as a jaunt to IKEA for some oversized flat-pack furniture. 

The Passat is filled with tech, which gives it a greater breadth of ability than ever before. The plug-in hybrid also has a much more useful electric range and low (on paper, at least) emissions, providing company car drivers with an affordable offering.

However, all this additional technology comes at a price, and while the Passat does offer a lot more practicality than similarly priced premium estate cars like the Audi A4 Avant, BMW 3 Series Touring and Mercedes C-Class Estate, the car is pricier than the closely related Skoda Superb. The Superb has a greater choice of engines (although that should be sorted in time), and, according to our data, should hold its value similarly well. The Superb also has a more user-friendly interior owing to having more physical controls, so we’d suggest you try a Superb first before committing to a Passat.