Volkswagen Passat review

People should be nice to you on your birthday, but the fact that the Volkswagen Passat turned 50 a while back has nothing to do with it getting our maximum five-star rating. Instead, that rating is proof of how effectively the Passat has moved with the times.

This time round the Passat is only available as an estate car. However, it's even more spacious than before, having been developed alongside the latest version of the gargantuan Skoda Superb Estate.

VW and Skoda are not the only car makers offering practical family haulers, of course. Potential buyers might also be considering the BMW 3 Series Touring, Citroën C5 X or Mercedes C-Class Estate. Or, if you have a bigger budget, there's the BMW 5 Series Touring and Mercedes E-Class Estate.

In this review, then, we'll not only look at the VW Passat's many strengths (and its few weaknesses) but also how it compares with all those estate car rivals.

The entry-level VW Passat engine is a 148bhp 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol, which has mild-hybrid technology to boost efficiency and provides plenty of poke for everyday driving.

However, we'd be tempted to upgrade to the cheaper of the two plug-in hybrids (PHEVs). Badged the 1.5 TSI eHybrid, it has 201bhp, but more significantly its 19.7kWh battery gives the Passat an official electric-only range of up to 81 miles.

That’s around the same as a PHEV Skoda Superb Estate and beats the figures for the BMW 330e Touring, Citroën C5 X PHEV and Mercedes C300e Estate.

There's also a 268bhp PHEV with up to 80 miles of electric range, but no diesel option (unlike with the Superb Estate). Despite the lack of a diesel, the Passat performed very well at our Tow Car Awards, winning both its weight category and the overall Tow Car of the Year title.

Completing the Passat engine line-up is a 201bhp 2.0-litre petrol engine (badged 2.0 TSI), which is only available in top-spec R-Line trim. With a 0-62mph time of 7.5 seconds, it’s a fair bit quicker on paper than the entry-level engine, but we've yet to drive it.

Whichever engine you choose, a DSG automatic gearbox is standard. In the PHEVs it has six speeds while the other versions have seven.

On the passive suspension that most Passats get as standard, the ride is a bit choppy around town but settles down on faster roads. Overall, it's slightly more comfortable than the Superb Estate’s non-adaptive set-up.

As with the Superb, the top-spec trim brings DCC Pro adaptive suspension (it’s optional on the other trims), allowing you to choose from 15 levels of firmness. The softest setting makes light work of potholes and speed bumps, and keeps things smooth on motorways.

To make things easier, there's also a preset Comfort mode, which trades a little control for extra suppleness, and a Sport mode that does the opposite. In Sport, body lean is reduced and the steering weights up to give the driver a greater sense of connection to the front wheels.

Don't go thinking that DCC Pro turns the Passat into some sort of sports estate car though. With or without it, the car is more composed than a Citroën C5 X but not as entertaining to drive on a twisty road as a BMW 3 Series Touring.

Instead, the Passat is at its best as a long-distance cruiser, helped by the fact that wind and road noise are well suppressed. From mid-spec Elegance trim up, you get laminated side windows, which make things even quieter.

True, the 1.5-litre engine drones at you when you work it hard, but it's almost inaudible when you're driving at a steady speed. Of course, the PHEV versions are silent when running on electricity alone, with only the slightest whine from the electric motor and less than you’ll hear in the Skoda Superb Estate PHEV. 

As a bonus, the engine's stop-start system works much more discreetly than the one in the C5 X. However, as with that car, the PHEV Passats have rather inconsistent brakes, making it harder than it should be to stop smoothly.

“I was on the judging panel for this year's What Car? Tow Car Awards and was hugely impressed by how stable the Passat felt with a caravan on the back.” – Dan Jones, Reviewer

All versions of the VW Passat offer plenty of seat and steering wheel adjustment, so you should have no trouble finding a comfortable driving position. You even get electric backrest adjustment and a massage function with all trims.

Visibility is similarly impressive, thanks to the Passat's big windows. Plus, front and rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera and powerful LED headlights are all standard. That said, you need to upgrade to mid-spec Elegance trim to get matrix LED headlights, which automatically adjust their output to stay on high beam without dazzling other drivers.

Interior quality has been disappointing in some recent VW car models but the Passat represents a return to form, mixing soft leather-like surfaces with high-quality plastics. Indeed, it not only feels more robust than the Skoda Superb Estate but also the Mercedes C-Class Estate.

The Passat's minimalist dashboard design might also appeal, but its downside is that you have to rely on voice control or the main 12.9in infotainment touchscreen to operate most functions. Whether or not the voice-control system understands you is a bit hit and miss, while using the screen requires you to take your eyes off the road.

Things are easier in the BMW 3 Series Touring and the Superb Estate because they have more physical controls, specifically for the climate control. However, the Passat does at least get VW's latest infotainment software, which is a big improvement on the set-up it replaces, with sharper graphics, quicker responses and a more intuitive menu structure.

In addition, you get proper buttons on the steering wheel rather than the annoying touch-sensitive pads found in VW's ID electric cars. And although the temperature controls are still touch-sensitive, they are at least backlit so you can see them at night.

All trims include a digital driver’s display, which can be configured to show a variety of information in different layouts and is much clearer than the one in the Citroën C5 X. Meanwhile, a head-up display that projects information on to the windscreen in your line of sight is available as part of the Infotainment Package.

The Passat's standard stereo has eight speakers. You can upgrade it to a brilliant 700W, 11-speaker Harman Kardon system if you wish.

“I'd be tempted to add the Infotainment Package because as well as including a head-up display it swaps the Passat's standard 12.9in touchscreen for a spectacular 15in one.” – Darren Moss, Deputy Digital Editor

As well as being longer and wider than the previous-generation model, the latest VW Passat has a greater distance between its front and rear wheels, so interior space is more generous.

Not that those in the front were ever short of leg or head room, but there's now more storage space between the front seats, helped by the fact that the gear selector has been moved from the centre console to the left side of the steering column.

It's back-seat passengers, though, who will notice the biggest change compared with a previous-generation Passat. Leg room is now positively limo-like, allowing 6ft occupants to stretch right out, even when sitting behind someone of similar height.

Two passengers will have plenty of head room as long as you resist specifying the optional panoramic glass roof, which significantly lowers the roof lining and – strangely – comes as standard with only the mid-spec Elegance trim. As in most estate cars, a central rear passenger has to straddle a hump in the floor.

The Passat's wide rear door openings make access easy, and rear storage space includes map and phone pockets on the backs of the front seats. The fold-down centre armrest has two cupholders and a tray that holds a smartphone upright so you can watch a video on it.

Still, above all in an estate car, it's the boot that matters – and the good news is the Passat's is vast, with 690 litres of luggage space beneath the load cover in the mild-hybrid petrol model.

That beats the bigger and pricier BMW 5 Series Touring and Mercedes E-Class Estate – let alone the BMW 3 Series Touring and Mercedes C-Class Estate. In fact, the only estate car on a par with the Passat for boot space is the Skoda Superb Estate – which isn’t really surprising given that the two cars were developed alongside each other.

If you go for a PHEV Passat (or Superb Estate) luggage space shrinks to 510 litres in order to accommodate the big drive battery beneath the boot floor, but that still compares favourably with most rivals. For example, the Mercedes E300e Estate makes do with 460 litres, the BMW 3 Series Touring 330e 410 litres and the Mercedes C300e Estate just 360 litres.

The Passat's load area is well shaped, and has useful hooks and a 12V power socket mounted on the side. An electrically powered bootlid is standard on all trim levels and there are levers in the load area that allow you to conveniently fold down the spring-loaded rear seat backs without having to walk around to the side doors.

Things aren't perfect, because the back seats are split 60/40 instead of in the more versatile 40/20/40 configuration you get in the 3 Series Touring, 5 Series Touring and E-Class Estate, but a through-loading hatch is included to partly make up for this.

“If, like me, you have a bad back, you'll appreciate the Passat's low loading lip, which means you don’t have to lift heavy items too high to slide them into the boot.” – Will Nightingale, Reviews Editor

If you're a private buyer, you'll pay a decent chunk more for the Volkswagen Passat than the Citroën C5 X, slightly more than for the Skoda Superb Estate but much less than for a BMW 3 Series Touring or Mercedes C-Class Estate.

Thanks to their long electric ranges, plug-in hybrid (PHEV) Passats attract a low BIK tax rate and make cheap company cars. Of all the hybrid rivals, only equivalent versions of the Superb Estate match their low rate – everything else is in a higher band.

The PHEVs' ability to run on electric power for so long also brings the potential for tiny fuel bills if you can charge at home on a cheap overnight tariff. And, unusually for a PHEV, the Passat can be plugged into 50kW public DC chargers, which makes topping up the battery mid-journey much quicker than with, for example, a BMW 330e Touring (which is limited to AC and has a maximum charging rate of 11kW).

Even the entry-level mild-hybrid petrol Passat shouldn't cost too much to run because it officially averages more than 50mpg.

Volkswagen hasn't skimped on standard equipment, with entry-level Life trim offering all the essentials, plus quite a few luxuries, including three-zone climate control, adaptive cruise control and ambient interior lighting.

Moving up to mid-level Elegance trim adds extra massage settings for the front seats, additional ambient lighting colour options and heated front seats. Meanwhile, top-spec R-Line models major on sporty styling upgrades.

The Passat didn't feature in the 2024 What Car? Reliability Survey. However, Volkswagen as a brand claimed 18th place out of 31 manufacturers, placing it below Citroën, BMW and Skoda, but above Mercedes.

Volkswagen’s three-year/60,000-mile warranty is pretty par for the course, with the 3 Series Touring and C-Class Estate offering the same duration but with unlimited mileage cover.

On the other hand, the Passat performed very well when it was tested by the safety experts at Euro NCAP, achieving a maximum five-star rating, with excellent adult and child occupant protection scores.

All versions come with automatic emergency braking (AEB), traffic-sign recognition, lane-keeping assistance and a system that monitors driver fatigue.

“Unless you really like the way it looks, I'd avoid the Passat's R-Line trim because it pushes the price too high.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

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