Last time we brought you images of the 2012 Volkswagen Passat, we showed you a station wagon puling a trailer in a far off land. Today, however, we have a 2012 Passat still in wagon trim, but sans trailer and in the good old US of A, hot weather testing in the desert.
Now, the idea that testing in the US guarantees we'll see this new wagon is a stretch, especially considering Volkswagen has hinted at a New Midsize Sedan (NMS) which will be a similar size to the Passat, but have a lower entry price to compete with the Honda Accord and Toyota Camry and has failed to include "wagon" into any of the conversations. But still, if the world Passat and the NMS are the same vehicle, a wagon variant should remain on the docket.
Besides the US plates, the most obvious visual difference we have here compared with our last wagon spotting is the single exhaust pipe. Each previous time we've spotted the new Passat it's had dual pipes. You'll remember that Volkswagen doesn't sell a V6 Passat for the US market and has no official plans to start. If it does comes to the US, wagon or not, it'll have the 2.0T. This tester also has different wheels and what appear to be Dunlop SP Sport 01 summer performance tires.
Look for more information on the 2012 Passat and the NMS later this year. Follow the jump for more photos.
(click all images to englarge )
firstwagon says:
06:13 PM, 08/ 2/10
Sure they bring an all new Passat that no one will buy but we can`t get the Polo or Lupo that could actually make VW a competive company again.
morey000 says:
06:20 PM, 08/ 2/10
Given the Jetta redesign, I don't have much hope for the new Passat. The CC is a pretty sharp design though.
bc1960 says:
09:00 PM, 08/ 2/10
Significantly more people will buy subcompacts and minicompacts than the Passat? Dream on. But the Polo has already been announced for the US in 2011.
As for dual pipes, the GTI and some other VW and Audi models with the 2.0T have used them, as have other cars with 4-cylinders; while there are tons of V-engines with single pipes, so the number of exhausts tells you nothing about the powerplant. But if the goal is to reduce the price of the car to make it competitive, removing unecessary duplication of parts is a good start. But unfortunately, so is not using an expensive turbo engine that's built in Hungary.
slickersdrip says:
10:43 PM, 08/ 2/10
Much as I'm always thrilled to have a wagon come to the US, I must wonder-- how can I get such wonderfully tanned legs like the guy in the orange shirt?!
ed124c says:
06:46 AM, 08/ 3/10
Since there are so few station wagons available in the US, perhaps VW is thinking they can sell this (probably)overpriced, underpowered, and questionably reliable vehicle.
I say undepowered only because VW does not revise its engines-- the 2.0T has had the same horsepower since it was jacked up to 2.0 from 1.8. I believe there are other engines available in other markets, but apparently the US market is not considered important enough to require bringing better, more powerful engines into this country. (No V6 for the Passat, for instance)
More upscale engines are apparently too costly for this second rate market. Many cars in Europe, maybe most, have multiple engines available.
makakio says:
09:32 AM, 08/ 3/10
Huh. Here in coastal California I see numerous Passat wagons on every day. It's proven to be a more-livable solution for most (not to mention faaaar less expensive) than the *tiny* A4 Avant and BMW 3 wagon, or the ridiculously teeny Golf Wagon.
I wouldn't be surprised if giving the Passat wagon a W8 engine (or even the V6 with AWD) didn't pencil to profitability in big numbers, but I haven't heard VW say anything about not offering a Passat Wagon in the future. They do sell. At least here they do. And have remarkably little competition (subaru legacy being the only wagon-based competition I can think of)...
All that said, the old design (going on what, five or six years now w/o significant refresh?) needed a big update.
I am excited for this car in 2.0T form. With a single cat, muffler and pipe is fine. You *can* safely chip these to 250hp/tq and run 25mpg all day long, you know...
(fingers crossed)
firstwagon says:
05:15 PM, 08/ 3/10
"bc1960 says:
09:00 PM, 08/ 2/10
Significantly more people will buy subcompacts and minicompacts than the Passat? Dream on."
The Golf outsells the Passat by a wide margin. The Passat has never been a big seller and subcompacts are not the basic boxes they used to be.
Either one would easily outsell the Passat here in Canada and even though the US is still hung up on oversized cars I think times are changing with the new generation.
VW needs to get back to it's roots or be left behind. They already have the product, it just doesn't sell here because they don't offer it.
mayback says:
11:28 AM, 08/ 4/10
Unfortunatelly i think this will be just an other VW looking exactly like the others in the line-up just a different size. Please VW surprise us.