Volkswagen To Launch Passat This Year, Assembly Begins

Volkswagen's premium luxury sedan, the Passat, will make a comeback in India soon. The company has announced the start of assembly of the new sedan, now in its eighth generation, at its Aurangabad facility in Maharashtra.

The Volkswagen Passat will be Volkswagen’s first sedan based on the MQB platform to be assembled in India and will pave the way for many global products to be launched here in the future. Other cars that are already based on this platform and sold in India include the Skoda Superb, and the Audi A3 and A4. 

The Passat will make a comeback after a gap of almost three years, the previous model had been discontinued due to very low demand for cars of the segment in general around the time. The situation hasn't changed much now, with the only successful car in its segment being the Skoda Superb.

Volkswagen has confirmed that at launch, the Passat will be offered with one engine-transmission combination - a 2.0-litre, 4-cylinder TDI diesel engine developing 177PS of maximum power which will send power to the front wheels via a 6-speed fast-shifting dual-clutch (DSG) transmission. 

Volkswagen is not expected to offer the plug-in hybrid Passat GTE unless the government reduces taxes for hybrid and luxury cars. It was earlier expected that VW would launch the new Passat with a hybrid powertrain considering how well the Toyota Camry Hybrid has been doing in our market.

The Volkswagen Passat will be one of the more dramatic looking sedans in its categories because of its long and low stance. The Volkswagen Passat, along with the Skoda Superb, may give luxury cars from BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi a run for their money.

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