I was in Langkawi
recently courtesy of Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia. We were
flown in to try out the better late than never all-new
Volkswagen Passat B8. It replaces the Passat B7 which has soldiered
on for at least a year and a half longer than what should have been.
A mid-2015 launch in Malaysia.
The reason why we were
delayed in getting the car is due to the fact that the Passat B7 was
part of the CKD locally assembled program. When Volkswagen Malaysia
first ordered the CKD kits sales were on a high, so many kits were
ordered. Suddenly things changed and sales slowed down, but the
orders for CKD kits were already signed and sealed causing a backlog
in cars produced in Pekan, Pahang. Now obviously you have to sell
them all first before you can start with the new car. And so, here is
the Passat B8. Finally.
I first saw this car a
while ago when Volkswagen Malaysia brought it in as a preview in
September 2014. I was very impressed when I first saw it with its
more flowing lines and wider looking styling. The car now looks wider
than as there are (unbroken) horizontal styling lines in the front of
the car that continues from the grille to the top of the DRLs and
headlight cluster. The execution overall is much better. It has grown
up in most dimensions but it is lighter and therefore more efficient.
There are more usual technical upgrades and other tech items. The new
Passat is also better looking – the extra width makes it look
grander than before. It looks more upmarket than before and the inside
looks more luxurious and wouldn't look out of place in a similar
sized Audi A6.
1.8 on the left, 2.0 to the right - note the exhaust bits
We drove the mid-specced
1.8 TSI Comfortline and the 2.0 TSI Highline. The 1.8 Comfortline
sits in the middle of the three car lineup, the 1.8 Trendline, 1.8
Comfortline and the 2.0 Highline. You can tell a 1.8 from a 2.0
simply by the wheels – 17inch wheels and tyres for the 1.8 and
18inch wheels and tyres for the 2.0. The other clue is the rear
bumper. The 1.8 does not get integrated chrome tailpipes like the 2.0
(which is actually faux tailpipes with the rear one behind the
bumper/integrated tailpipes – on one side). Of course, the 2.0
looks much more classier.
As for the interior, the
Passat B8 is a nice place to be seated in. The seats are supportive
and classy looking. I do like the ribbed leather seats and the strip
that runs from the doors to the air-vents from one side to the middle
and to the other side. It also works with the wood grain in the 2.0
which also follows the lines in the dashboard. As for build quality.
The plastics are soft touch where it needs to be and everything feels
well thought out. No issues about ergonomics here and everything
falls into place and clear to see. The cabin is not as austere as the
previous Passat and it is also one of the nicier looking D segment
cabins around. There is a wiff of premium in it (especially in the
2.0). Quite close to what an Audi would offer you.
One good fact to note is
that VPCM had specced out our Malaysian Passats based on the
Comfortline rather than the more basic Trendline. This means that the
dashboard is all soft touch instead of the hard plastic dashboard in
the lower trendline. This also means that Malaysian Trendline will
also come with soft touch plastics. This fact impresses me because I
am a stickler for refinement details and I know that buyers of the
entry level Trendline here will not get any lesser than the high
specced cars.
Equipment levels in both
Comfortline and Highline are good. The 2.0 Highline adds a full Active Info Display screen with full TFT
animation display in place of the analog instrument cluster of the
1.8. So it gets integrated maps, readouts and other details. It gets
SatNav standard which shows up right in the instrument cluster. It
also gets Volkswagen's DCC (Dynamic Chassis Control) which changes
engine, steering, air conditioning, damper characteristics depending
on what you want (as well as a Individual setting to set yourself).
Both cars can park by itself if you want it to do so. Lots of
equipment. Lots of safety equipment too.
As for the powertrain and
drivetrain, both the 1.8liter and 2.0liter TSI engines have been
improved. This latest round of direct injection, variable valve
timing, turbocharged Volkswagen engines have benefited from various
improvements that were made to improve reliability (and to lessen oil
consumption). The 1.8liter makes 180ps/250Nm whilst the 2.0liter makes 220ps and a stonking 350Nm torque.
The DSG transmission in the 1.8 is a dry clutch type
whereas the 2.0 gets a wet type clutch. Both have also benefited from
numerous upgrades. There are new clutch plates with materials that
will not glaze over and cause juddering in the gearboxes - Malaysian
traffic causes the clutch plates to glaze over as it gets hot and
cools down too quickly making the earlier clutch plates glaze over
and causes slippages. There are better TCU and mechatronic
controllers. These items were upgraded along with the change in
transmission fluids which was the first of many changes done after
the issues cropped up. VPCM's after sales director had even stated
that the new clutch plates are designed to last up to 200,000km.
Anyway, what I could tell
whilst driving both variants was that the cars are smooth and the
gear changes are excellent even in traffic. It feels smooth without
any judder in first or second gear. The 2.0's DSG is slightly
smoother on kickdown but aside from that there is no marked
difference in terms of gearshifts and overall refinement. I also believe that Volkswagen has made their dual clutch gearbox smoother than ever. Shifts are as rapid as before too.
The Drive Experience
The Drive Experience
Passat 2.0 Highline
As for overall
performance, I did not manage to take the Passat B8 higher than
140kmh. At that speed you cannot tell how it behaves as it is a
German car. A D-segment, full sized German car. One designed for the
Autobahn and high speed cruising. Wind noise at these speeds isn't an
issue. As for stability at these speeds, it just shrugs off 140kmh
with ease. So to actually feel the handling of the Passat B8, we had
the option of going up Gunung Raya, which has tight corners and a
whole lot of fun. I usually thought the road towards Datai bay was
the most enjoyable drive in Langkawi, but Gunung Raya is a much
better drive. So we managed to hustle the Passat there.
Like most of the
improvements you can see, the B8 Passat also drives with a marked
improvement over the previous Passat B7. The older car whilst fun to
drive felt like it was working its tyres too hard. When you attacked a
corner with it the B7 would lean hard on its tyres. You could feel that the
chassis actually left the hard work to the tyres and it felt like you
were on the edge of the tyres at its limit. This new car is different
in that everything feels more coherent and together. Enter into a
corner and you can feel the chassis take up the slack, lean slightly
to the outside and then the car just rockets out of the corner. There
is less tyre squabbling compared to before. Everything is more fluid, working as one.
One of the reasons why
the B8 Passat feels so much better than the B7 is that the B7 is more
like a B6.5 as it is what you could say as a super facelift. The
Passat B7 was based on the B6 which was launched in 2005. The B7
facelift came about in 2010 and had to soldier on for a bit. In
isolation, like the Polo GTI is is a fun car to drive. This is due to
that responsive 1.8liter TSI engine and DSG transmission in the B7
(most TSI Volkswagen engineS does make the drive engaging). But now
that I've tried the newer car, I can go back and see how the
previous Passat struggled at the limit (even though at that point of time it was pretty fun). I suppose you can tell only
if you're familiar with both cars.
Both the 1.8 TSI and the
2.0 TSI feels similar but the wider tyres of the 2.0 has more grip
overall. Especially with the assistance of the Volkswagen DCC (photo above) which
changes the damper settings (slightly). The steering feel for both is
quite similar. Accurate but a little lacking in that final bit of
feel. You can still place the car where you want but if it were a
little more talkative it would be a tad bit easier to judge when the
wheels (especially the front) start to lose grip. The tail is pretty
obedient on the really nice and windy roads up and down Gunung Raya.
I have to say that the
1.8 is more than adequate if you want to drive fast. The 2.0 is
obviously faster, is helped by the grippier tyres and chassis
control as well as the oodles of extra torque to slingshot it out of corners (extra throttle adjustability because of the extra 100Nm worth of torque).
In terms of ride comfort, the 1.8 on the 17 inch wheels and tyres feel more plush. This is even with the comfort setting on the DCC in the 2.0. However, the Continentals on the 1.8 are more sensitive to road surface change in that you can clearly hear the difference in tyre noise over different roads. This surprisingly does not happen in the 2.0 with its larger 18 inch tyres. In terms of handling, it is obvious that the 2.0 feels better. In terms of overall refinement, both are pretty equal actually (especially if you can find 17inch tyres that are more noise consistent over changes in road surfaces).
In terms of ride comfort, the 1.8 on the 17 inch wheels and tyres feel more plush. This is even with the comfort setting on the DCC in the 2.0. However, the Continentals on the 1.8 are more sensitive to road surface change in that you can clearly hear the difference in tyre noise over different roads. This surprisingly does not happen in the 2.0 with its larger 18 inch tyres. In terms of handling, it is obvious that the 2.0 feels better. In terms of overall refinement, both are pretty equal actually (especially if you can find 17inch tyres that are more noise consistent over changes in road surfaces).
I came away
impressed with the new Passat. In both the variants tested. The
interior is so much more premium looking than before. The exterior
too – especially the 2.0 (small changes go a long way). The drive
is now much improved and close to what something an Audi would offer. It is only
slightly behind in terms of overall refinement with the Audi A4 (and
the actually similar sized A6). The Audi(s) offer a more muted ride –
the engine noise is less in the Audi (less sporty sounding as it has
more soundproofing) and it is more consistent in terms of road noise
damping. But this is the extra price you pay for a totally premium
brand which actually costs a lot more.
My conclusion
to this initial drive experience would be that both of the new
Volkswagen Passat 1.8 and 2.0 would give you 90% of what a premium D-segment sedan (like an Audi A6) would give and for
much less in terms of the price offered. Furthermore, if you are comparing the
whole bunch of D-segment cars in the Malaysian market, the Passat is
still one of the more engaging drives around (the 2.0 comes very close to
being the most exciting drive in its class with the exception of a certain D-segment Ford - It does offer more luxury and more premium fittings by the way).
Granted, the only drawback that one would need to overcome is the perception of the brand here today. Personally, the brand has done a whole lot to the car and deserves a try. And if driving is what you want, this car will not disappoint you.
Granted, the only drawback that one would need to overcome is the perception of the brand here today. Personally, the brand has done a whole lot to the car and deserves a try. And if driving is what you want, this car will not disappoint you.
The all-new Volkswagen
Passat B8 will be launched on the 16th of November 2016
with a full 5 year manufacturer's warranty for peace of mind (or as
close to it). Prices have not been informed as yet except that it
will cost between RM160,000 to RM199,000 as it comes with the
Malaysian EEV tax status.
Variants, Specification (some details) & Equipment Lists - More Photos below
1.8 tsi 180 ps /250 Nm Trendline
16inch Aragon alloy wheels
Manual Front Seats
Electric park brake
1.8 TSI 180PS/250Nm Comfortline
17inch Istanbul Alloy Wheels
Chrome Package interior
Park Assist
rear view camera
start/stop push button
12 way electric seats
2.0 TSI 220PS/350Nm Highline
18inch Dartford alloy wheels
Carolina Wood decorative inserts
Active Info Display
Chrome package
Electric rear sunhsade
Park Assist
Keyless Access
Rear View Camera
Dynamic Chassis Control
Photos of the Highline and Comfortline are below. As for the Trendline, click here to read about the official launch as well as the photos of the 1.8 Trendline.
PASSAT 2.0 HIGHLINE
PASSAT 1.8 COMFORTLINE
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