Volkswagen Passat long-term test: report 2

The car VW Passat Life 1.5 TSI eHybrid 204 DSG | Run by Max Eldeston, senior photographer

Why it’s here To see if the Passat’s reputation for comfortable and spacious transport endures in its latest generation

Needs to Function as a mobile office, have space for all my photography kit, and be comfortable enough to spend long hours at the wheel

Mileage 4925 List price £43,335 Target Price £43,335 Price as tested £45,160 Test economy 58.3mpg Official economy 755mpg 

20 February 2025 – Hot and cold

According to official figures, eight of the ten best-selling cars in the UK last year were SUVs, and having just stepped out of a pick-up truck, I can understand why many people like the high-up driving position such cars offer. That being said, I’m enjoying being a bit lower down in my Volkswagen Passat, which is proving to be both a comfortable and practical companion.

I’ve enjoyed getting to grips with the VW’s infotainment screen, which offers more customisation than I’m used to in any other company car I’ve run. I can set up its home screen with customised tiles, like I can on my mobile phone, meaning the things I use most often are where I want them to be. At the moment, for example, I have the first set of widgets geared for navigation and communication, while swiping left reveals a second set for monitoring my battery health and efficiency. The integration with Apple CarPlay is seamless, too, meaning I can keep in touch with my colleagues using WhatsApp easily.

Nothing’s perfect, though, so there have been some early quirks which have taken some getting used to. The first of these is there being no physical controls for the climate. In my Ford Ranger Raptor, there were chunky physical controls to adjust the temperature, which meant doing so on the move – or indeed, while wearing gloves – was an easy job. In the Passat, by comparison, I need to either drag my finger along a touch-sensitive slider, or ask the car’s voice control system to change it for me. So far, both methods have been rather hit-and-miss.

I’ve also been stumped by Volkswagen’s in-car shop. As is becoming increasingly common, the idea is that I pay for the features that I want only when I want them, thus lowering the cost. However, when my car comes with massaging seats, it feels odd not to have them heated as well. 

I can activate heating for £8 per month, or £81.90 per year, via the car’s touchscreen or smartphone app, or pay £329 to unlock the feature permanently. It just feels a bit odd to pay for my car, then pay for bits of it again. At the moment, I’m enjoying heated seats on a 30-day free trial, which has gotten me through the coldest winter mornings so far.

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