Volkswagen Passat:
The first Passat rolled off the assembly line at Volkswagen’s Emden plant was 32 years ago. Since then, the Passat has become the most successful Volkswagen model after the Golf and Beetle. Over 13 million cars have been produced since 1973. The biggest markets in Europe are Germany, Italy, France and the UK. ThoughVolkswagen phantom and touareg are already being imported and sold here, passat which makes its debut in India on september 05 is the volkswagen’s first official launch. But this too is virtual, wonder how? skoda superb is already here which is nothing but the 2002 volkswagen passat. Let’s welcome the passat!
Engine and Powertrain:
Volkswagen passat is developed on a larger jetta(a midsize sedan soon to be launched in india) platform and the engine is mounted transversely. Passat is powered by the state-of-the-art 2.0 TDI diesel engine which produces 103 kW at 4 000 rpm while it has a maximum torque figure of 320 Nm which is available at 1750 rpm. Team the 2.0-litre TDI with the revolutionary DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox) and youll have a very satisfying ride. This uses a sequential manual gearbox in order to ensure efficiency and rapid responses, but it also uses a clever twin clutch system to ensure creamy smoothness. Engage first gear and the gearbox will pre-engage second gear in advance, the second clutch engaging as soon as you flick up to fire the Passat instantly into second gear. This means a seamless flow of power. The electronics predict what gear you are about to engage, depending on whether youre accelerating or braking, and the result is astonishing, making every other gearbox look distinctly clunky. The other option is to slip it into D and drive it like a normal automatic.The average consumption of the 2.0l TDI saloon is claimed to be 14.7kpl. The 2.0l TDI passat is claimed to accelerate from nought to 100 km/h in 9.9 seconds and reaches a top speed of 204 km/h (201 km/h).
Pumpe Deuse – Volkswagen’s diesel:
Volkswagen is one of the largest passenger diesel producer and a diesel technology leader with the TDI engine. “TDI” stands for Turbo Direct Injection, meaning that not only is the engine’s intake air compressed by a turbocharger for greater efficiency, the fuel is injected separately and directly into each cylinder at the appropriate time. Sophisticated mechanical and electronic systems control the amount and timing of each fuel charge for maximum power output with minimum emissions. But direct injection as done by previous TDI engines has been improved upon with the new engines. They use “Pumpe Deuse” (PD) technology developed in conjunction with Bosch Corporation. Translated to English, this means “unit injectors” – the injection pump, controls, and injector for each cylinder are in one unit, and there is one unit injector per cylinder. The injection pumps are driven off the camshaft. The design is extremely compact and precise. Fuel efficiency is related to the degree of atomization of the fuel before combustion. The higher the pressure of injection, the smaller the droplets of fuel, and the more complete the combustion – leading to increased power and decreased emissions. Early diesels, in the 1930s, injected fuel at 5,000 pounds per square inch (psi). The PD injectors inject fuel at over 29,000 psi. All this makes the Volkswagen’s Passat to meet the stringent Euro4 emissions standard.
Design and engineering:
Similar to skoda cousins, volkswagen passat will be noted for its engineering but how it differs from skoda is through its innovative style. Passat’s has wedge shaped front which is facilated by a wide bonnet and chrome-plated shield-shaped grille. The wraparound headlamps,17 inch alloy wheels, ORVM integrted indicators and elliptical roof gives the passat a necessary stylish phenomenon. The real attraction is in the rear – the wrapaorund twin LED tail lamp gels neatly with the large boot. Passat’s boot is truly large it can hold 565-litre (with a full-size spare wheel) hence more stowage space.
The bodywork is impressively stiff which means for you in real terms that this car is torsionally quiet, with an all-round chassis rigidity that allows the suspension to do its work more effectively.The end result is a more comfortable ride and better performance through corners. New production techniques were brought into play to get this result, including a far greater use of laser-welded seams and a hardened steel that adds stiffness and safety to the structure.The electrohydraulic rack-and-pinion steering is said to be little bit stiff and meaty but passat’s bi-Xenon headlights with the Adaptive Front Lighting System (AFS) will be very useful at night, as not only do the headlights swivel with the steering to illuminate the road ahead even around corners, but auxiliary cornering lights cover what are too often blind spots to the side with bright light in sharp turns, such as into a driveway. The suspension is through MacPherson struts in front and the independent four-link setup in the rear.More use of aluminum reduces unsprung weight and provides improved response. It also isolates passat’s occupants from road shocks to a higher degree, appropriate to its more upscale position.
The new Passat dashboard uses a floating design, a clever illusion produced by a distinct separation and color change between the top and the bottom. Passat’s leather-covered multi-function steering wheel enables you to operate the radio and the multi-function display of your Passat during the journey without taking your hands from the wheel. If you choose a double-clutch gearbox DSG, the steering wheel can be ordered with a Triptronic function too.The glove box is barely medium-size but there are generous door pockets and some other fascia compartments. Though not equivalent to mercedes c class, passat’s rear leg room is good and head room fair. Both the console box and the glove box are large what’s special is both are air conditioned.
Safety and Special features:
In the front passat features big vented discs and it uses solid discs in back. Three novel features in the Passat’s braking – disc brakes are provided with an intermittent wipe function that swipes the discs dry in the rain which ensures you have a good control even in rainy seasons.New electric parking brake which gets activated at the push of a button and is released automatically when you drive away and this means Passat pulls away smoothly. When stopping at traffic lights or on a slope, the electric parking brakes with hill hold control prevents the car from rolling back – a highly convenient safety boost. Standard electronic chassis aids include ABS, electronic stability, brake assist, and an electronic differential lock.The front airbags appear in the form of a dual-phase design system. This means that the intensity of their response will be driven entirely by the force of the collision. The passenger airbag can be switched off to allow smaller passengers in child seats to travel in front, this independent of the dual system.
* Instead of a traditional key, Passat’s smart key, which incorporates the remote-lock, remote-unlock, and trunk-release functions, requires just placing it in a dashboard slot and pressing to start the engine.
* Passat has an innovative feature called “coming home” / “leaving home” feature which makes sure you are always comfortable when entering or leaving the vehicle during darkness. Passat’s remote control key activates the dipped beam headlights and the interior lighting, illuminating the area around the car. This means that the way to your front door, for example, is always well lit.
* Volkswagen passat offers 12-way front seats with integral adjustable lumbar support (standard feature in top version). Their longitudinal position, height, seat back and seat angle can all be adjusted electrically. The intelligent memory function remembers your personal seat and mirror settings.
* Passat’s sliding/tilting glass roof is operated via a rotary switch in the headlining. An integral positioning option can be set to control how far the roof is to be opened or tilted. No longer you have to care about the accidental insertion of body parts passat offers a highly sensitive electronic power limiter stops the roof as soon as it encounters the resistance.
* Volkswagen Passat’s navigation system, with its bright LCD provides good visibility. Destination entry is by direct alphanumeric entry or by a location on the map, and it is possible to get directions to various secondary destinations near the primary destination. Well-marked context-sensitive keys next to the screen facilitate its use. When a destination is chosen, directions are read through the audio system and displayed not only via a highlighted route on the map but also on the Volkswagen Information System (VIS) trip-computer screen between the tach and the speedometer, directly in front of the driver. The VIS, controlled from buttons on the right steering-wheel spoke, controls and displays information on fuel economy, distance, compass data, and vehicle-convenience settings. When nav-system route guidance is in effect, the regular VIS functions are unavailable.With the Passat’s navigation system installed, the optional CD changer is used for audio entertainment. It too is controlled simply and logically by the context-sensitive buttons to the side of the screen.
Passat’s price and colours:
The fifth generation Passat is imported to India via CKD(Completely Knocked Down) unit and hence it has been priced at Rs 22.35 lakh and Rs 24.35 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Passat will be available in two versions in six colours. Currently 8,000-10,000 units per annum of this executive D segment cars is sold in india and the segment is ruled by Toyota’s Camry, Honda’s Accord, Nissan Teana and skoda superb. Volkswagen doesn’t seems to worry about the cannibalisation!
Skoda superb vs Volkswagen passat:
Skoda Superb available in India is older than the new passat and priced higher than the new passat – Rs 26.5 lakhs(ex-showroom,Delhi), the superb is powered by a 2.5L TDI engine
Volkswagen’s dealer network and its plans:
Volkswagen has currently one dealer in India – Kashyap Vehicle Works Private Limited located in New Delhi and Noida (Uttar Pradesh) with representatives in Punjab and Hyderabad. The dealer network will be set up in Mumbai and Bangalore soon and volkwagen plans expand to more than 10 dealerships in 2008. Volkswagen is building a plant in Pune which would have a capacity of 1,10,000 cars per annum. Volkswagen will unlease its small car from this new plant until then Volkswagen will assemble its products at Skoda Auto’s assembly plant in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Volkswagen is planning to bring jetta sedan and bluemotion polo to india.
