The ninth-generation Volkswagen Passat will make its world debut this August before it goes on sale in Europe in the first quarter of 2024. Ahead of its premiere, the German carmaker has provided some early details (and photos) of the upcoming model that will only be available as an estate called the Variant.
The previous generation of the Passat – the B8 – was offered in both estate and sedan body styles, but the latter has been reportedly dropped for the ninth generation and indirectly replaced with the all-electric ID.7.
Estates still have a place in Europe despite decreasing sales in other markets, with German marques like BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz continuing to offer such vehicles to customers in the Old Continent. As such, Volkswagen’s decision to make sure there’s still a Passat Variant in its line-up makes sense. It should be noted the carmaker still has the flashy Arteon (also available as the Shooting Brake estate) for those that want a sedan.
Getting down to the details, Volkswagen says the all-new Passat Variant is 140 mm longer than its predecessor, which sees legroom go up by 50 mm, helped along by a wheelbase that has been stretched to an unspecified length. The increased interior space also results in a maximum boot space of 690 litres when loaded up to the height of the rear seat backrests.
This represents an improvement of 40 litres, and when the rear bench seat is folded down, the boot space expands to 1,920 litres, or 140 litres more than before. The revised dimensions are a result of the Passat Variant’s shift to the MQB evo platform, which is paired with a four-link rear axle, a new electromechanical steering setup with a more direct ratio, modified anti-roll bars and shock absorbers as well as adaptations for different wheel types.
The estate model will also be offered with the optional DCC Pro adaptive chassis control with two-valve shock absorbers. The system provides ideal damping based on the road surface and driving situation, taking into account parameters such as steering, braking and acceleration.
Volkswagen’s Vehicle Dynamics Manager comes as standard to control the functions of the electronic differential locks (XDS) and the lateral dynamics components of the controlled shock absorbers in the DCC Pro system (if fitted).
The platform accommodates a wide range of powertrains, including turbodiesel engines (TDI), turbocharged petrol engines (TSI), mild hybrid turbocharged petrol engines (eTSI) and plug-in hybrid systems (eHybrid). Plug-in hybrid models are said to be capable of providing more all-electric range than before at up to 100 km, while AC charging is made faster as well. Another change noted is the addition of DC fast charging for the first time.
On the exterior, the Passat Variant will be available with IQ.Light LED matrix headlamps that flank a much smaller grille. On the flipside, the intake in the lower apron has been enlarged and now curves upwards at the bottom for a “smiling look,” accompanied by air curtains at the edge of the bumper.
At the rear, the new model has a continuous horizontal LED strip for the redesigned taillight clusters, while the lower portion has a wide-width black trim piece. The general shape of the estate isn’t too dissimilar from its predecessor to maintain the restraint appearance the Passat is known for – if you want something more dynamic, there’s always the Arteon Shooting Brake.
Moving inside, the Passat Variant gets a newly developed cockpit featuring a large touchscreen infotainment system on the dashboard. This comes in two sizes – 12.9 and 15 inches – and just like the current Golf, there are backlit touch sliders for media and climate controls. Also available is a digital instrument cluster, a windscreen-projected head-up display and ergoActive front seats.
“With the all-new Passat, we have placed great importance on high ride and travel comfort that customers will feel immediately. Among other things, this is ensured by the longer wheelbase and the new adaptive chassis control with two-valve shock absorbers. At the same time, our new display and operating concept is very intuitive. Climate-controlled massage seats illustrate our premium standard in the interior,” said Kai Grünitz, member of the board of management of Volkswagen responsible for technical development.
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Now that will be next year’s Tiguan interior
This wagon looks huge! Wheelbase is stretched to the max and the proportion seems so big. The camouflage wrap might play visual tricks but it’s definitely a very big car.
As part of the family, I wish they could use Audi Avant design cues as a reference. Audi still makes the best looking station wagon to date.
it is huge. article wrote is 130mm longer which makes it around current E class length
“Estates still have a place in Europe despite decreasing sales in other markets”
Estates like the Passat are the choice for field service engineers and traveling salesmen there. They have to be reliable, economical and must have long service intervals (therefore >80% of all Passat registered in Europe are TDI turbo diesels with an 30,000km service interval).
Because they are usually leased due to tax reasons, they are sold by the leasing companies after two to three years only (with a high milage >100,000km) and therefore also became popular with private persons.