Volkswagen Passat Estate Review

Performance4/5

The VW Passat Estate performance varies across the range of six engines – three petrol and three diesel – on offer. Starting with the petrol engines, there are 1.4 litre, 1.8 litre and 2.0 litre versions, with a bhp of 120, 158 and 207 respectively. Diesels come with 1.6 litre (104 bhp), and 2 2.0 litre engines with either 138 bhp or 168 bhp; so it shouldn’t be difficult to choose a Passat Estate engine to meet your needs. In addition, there are three gearboxes available – a six speed manual, and six and seven speed automatic direct shift (ADS) gearboxes. The fastest petrol, which can get from 0-62 mph in 7.7 seconds, is the 2.0 TSI, and has a top speed of 146 mph. The fastest diesel is the 2.0 litre 168 bhp. Sprinting from 0-62 mph in 8.8 seconds, this has a top speed of 139 mph. The cleanest and, therefore, greenest is the 1.6 litre diesel – but it is also the slowest.

Handling4.5/5

The Volkswagen Passat Estate’s steering is light, and body roll minimal. The trump card that VW have really dealt with the new Passat Estate is comfort – this car is easy on the ears, easy on the rear and easy on the eye. Volkswagen have added extra sound deadening for the engine, and thickened windows – if you have a lot of long journeys to do, particularly motorway travelling, there could not be a much more relaxing way to do it. The driver has numerous combinations of seat/steering wheel adjustment and would be hard-pressed not to find the perfect driving position. There is a choice of three suspension settings (normal, comfort and sport) – normal will probably be the way to go for most journeys.

Exterior4/5

VW have substantially changed the look of the Passat Estate, leaving only the roof design untouched. It now has the horizontal grille found on other members of the ‘VW family’, new look lights with clusters at the front and horizontal LED at the back. The Passat Estate looks classy, no doubt about that, and is likely to earn more than one second glance in the street.

Interior4.5/5

When reviewing Volkswagen cars the words solid, well built and quality come up time and time again, and the Passat Estate is no exception. One of the first things to meet your eye is the analogue clock placed centrally on the dash – striking to look at, but may not have universal appeal. Controls are well laid out and precise; disappointingly there are some hard plastics to be found in less visible areas, but nothing to really offend. And, it must be said, nothing to really excite either.

The VW Passat Estate’s luggage capacity is 603 litres with the rear seat up, expanding to a roomy 1731 litres with it down. This, together with plenty of additional interior storage places, offers plenty of scope for carrying all those indispensable bits and pieces involved when the family is on the move. On those models with keyless entry, it is possible to open the boot automatically with a wave of the foot underneath the back of the car – wonderful when you have your hands full with the weekly shop and the toddler. Four people can comfortably travel, although the Passat Estate is not ideal for five owing to a chunky central tunnel giving the third pair of legs in the back nowhere to go.

Equipment4.5/5

The VW Passat Estate has four trim levels available: S, Bluemotion, Highline and Sport, all of which come with a very acceptable range of kit. Air conditioning, alloy wheels, remote central locking, leather multifunction steering wheel, electric front and rear windows, USB and iPod cables all come as standard at entry level; and these features are joined as you work up through the range by further Passat Estate equipment additions such as larger alloys, comfort front seats, rear centre armrest, sat-nav, automatic headlights and wipers, climate and cruise controls, front and rear parking sensors and additional chrome trim. If you aspire to the top of the range Sport model, you will also get for your money sports front seats and lowered suspension.

Safety5/5

VW have excelled with the safety of the Passat Estate and there are an abundance of Passat Estate safety features on offer. It is, of course, sturdy to start with – then add the front, side and curtain airbags; the electronic stability programme, anti-lock braking system, fatigue detection system and the optional City Emergency Braking system, traffic sign detection, park assist second generation, light assist, side assist lane-changing warning system and you should begin to grasp just how comprehensive the Volkswagen Passat Estate safety package is.

Buying & Owning4/5

The VW Passat Estate diesel models are reasonably economical to run, averaging more than 60 mpg and emitting less than 139 g/km CO2.  Petrol engines are more expensive to run, but less to buy – so you win some, you lose some. BlueMotion Technology gives a helping hand with keeping running costs down. The Passat Estate is not a cheap car to buy, but is likely to retain a good resale value. It will come with a warranty of three years/60,000 miles and road tax will set you back anything between £30 for the cleanest model up to £215.

Reviewed by cars2buy