Volkswagen Passat receives "Best of 2012" top-honor from Cars.com

TDI® Clean Diesel model also recognized as “Eco-Friendly Car of the Year”

Detroit, MI -  Adding to a growing list of awards, the new-for-2012 Volkswagen Passat has earned additional praise from Cars.com for its outstanding value and long list of standard features. Named “Best of 2012,” the Passat captured the third annual award from the popular online automotive source. The Passat’s long list of standard features includes Bluetooth® technology, dual-zone automatic climate control, class-leading rear seat legroom, and Volkswagen’s Carefree Maintenance program for a starting MSRP of $19,995.

Prior to choosing the “Best of 2012” awards, editors at Cars.com tested more than 65 models released for 2012. Editors picked their top six before selecting the 2012 Passat as “Best of 2012.” The Passat ousted the Subaru Impreza, Range Rover Evoque, Hyundai Veloster, Hyundai Accent, and Audi A7.

In addition to the “Best of 2012” honor, Cars.com named the Passat TDI Clean Diesel model their “Eco-Friendly Car of the Year.” The clean diesel’s 2.0L four-cylinder engine produces 140 horsepower and an exceptional 236 pound-feet of torque. Boasting an industry-leading 795-mile range on a full tank, the Passat TDI manual has an EPA estimated 43 mpg on the highway. As the only affordable diesel in midsize sedan segment, the Passat delivers excellent performance while maintaining exceptional fuel economy.

“This recognition is an honor. We set out to bring to market a sedan that appealed to the American consumer in the highly competitive midsize segment and the Passat is quickly earning a spot on the U.S. consumer’s shopping list due to its exceptional value, strong list of standard features, and German heritage,” said Kevin Joostema, general manager of product marketing. “Accolades such as this indicate that we’re succeeding.”

Engineered in Germany and built at Volkswagen’s state-of-the-art plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, the 2012 Passat has garnered praise from the automotive press since its introduction last fall. For more information on the 2012 Passat and its list of awards, visit www.media.vw.com.


About Volkswagen of America, Inc.

Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Virginia. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen’s operations in the United States include research and development, parts and vehicle processing, parts distribution centers, sales, marketing and service offices, financial service centers, and its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Volkswagen is one of the world's largest producers of passenger cars and Europe's largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Beetle, Eos, Golf, GTI, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, Passat, CC, Tiguan, Touareg and Routan vehicles through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. Visit Volkswagen of America online at www.vw.com or media.vw.com to learn more.

2012 Motor Trend Car of The Year: Volkswagen Passat

ADVANCEMENT IN DESIGN

Granted, from 50 feet or in a two-dimensional photograph, the Passat engages the eye less than does the splashy "fluidic design" of the Hyundai Sonata, but closer inspection reveals exquisite detailing. Our own expert witness, Tom Gale, gets the ball rolling: "The package provides good accommodation, and like the Audi [A6], what is remarkable is the restraint shown with the handling of the design. Clean, beautiful surfaces have been refined for an engaging result. The upper character line, with its subtle undercut, is an example of the care taken with the stampings throughout." Engineering guru Chris Theodore found the exterior "tastefully executed with really tight shut lines and nice detailing." The result is sort of a time-release appeal that blossoms upon close scrutiny or when hand-washing the vehicle. It's a less flashy design than the Sonata's, but way more cohesive than the Accord's.
There's nothing trendy going on inside, either, which may let it age more gracefully than bolder designs. Gale admits the design "breaks little new ground, but the grain, gloss levels, and material choices are tasteful." He and others criticized the choice to prioritize the dash vents over the multifunction display, the low placement of which looks dated and represents an ergonomic back-step. Ditto the fiddly turn-signal-stalk cruise controls and the entertainment system's lack of a USB port (Bluetooth and an SD card are supported, and there's a 1/8-inch aux jack). But the car's functions can be intuitively controlled without consulting the owners' manual -- something Accord owners may appreciate.




ENGINEERING EXCELLENCE

OK, the engineers among us dislike odd-numbered cylinder counts like this 2.5-liter's, but Theodore grudgingly admitted, "It's the best-tamed VW I-5 application ever. The thrashiness has been masked, and the engine is very quiet. A fine choice for middle America in real-world driving conditions." Your technical director's log reads: "This 2.5 appears to have finally found a good home," with praise for strong launch torque that keeps pace with the competition to 30 mph thanks to short gearing (its 9.0-second 0-60 time trails the competition notably).
Characterizations of the engine note ranged from "moaning" to "unique growl," but the general consensus was that the powertrain integration team earned its kibble. Sure, we wish it were a sprightlier sprinter, but we expect a direct-injected and/or turbocharged four-cylinder replacement to arrive soon.
The turbodiesel found no detractors. "Hands down, my favorite," declared product expert Jim Hall. "This diesel puts the hybrids on the trailer," said Lassa. "Pulls this car around so easily, and gives you 600 plus miles to a tank," added Evans. Pair this clean diesel with "one of the best twin-clutch transmissions in the business," said Theodore, and you've got a green car "without the compromises the mainstream green vehicles impose -- a true technological achievement." And for those who need more power, the compact VR6 teams with that same twin-clutch automatic to deliver class-stomping acceleration to 60 mph in just 5.7 seconds.




EFFICIENCY

It should surprise no one that over the course of 11 mixed-driving loops, our diesel Passat recorded the highest fuel economy stats of this year's finalists at 34.3 mpg. Perhaps more interesting was the base 2.5-liter's fifth-best 26.5 mpg -- that's exactly halfway between the EPA city and highway ratings of 22/31 mpg. That's higher within its EPA-predicted economy range than any other finalist managed, and the second highest was the TDI/DSG at 43 percent of its 30/40-mpg points spread (we didn't run the VR6 on our fuel-economy loops). This bodes exceptionally well for real-world achievability of the Passat's window-sticker numbers. Not penurious enough with the petrol? Opt for the base five-speed manual in the SE to eke out one more highway mpg, or the six-speed manual TDI to earn an even better 31/43 mpg.




SAFETY

Like every new car in the segment, the Passat gets six airbags to cushion the occupants if it all goes wrong, plus stability control, tire-pressure monitoring, ABS, brake-assist, and myriad other electronic aids to prevent things from going wrong in the first place. But what's more fun to talk about under the safety rubric is how well the Passat's chassis is tuned to keep it out of trouble, because well-driven, agile cars are less likely to plow into things than poorly controlled, flabby, clumsy ones.
Lassa enthused, "Chassis, steering, ride, and handling all are tastiest within this mostly taste-free vanilla segment." Reynolds proclaimed the Passat "substantially more integrated and driver-attuned than the Camry. In the figure eight, its braking, turn-in, cornering, and exit are all fluidly linkable with less roll and better road feel." Indeed, despite slower acceleration and slightly worse braking performance relative to the base Camry, the Passat SE circulated our figure-eight course 0.4 second quicker at the same 0.60g average. This confirms Reynolds' impressions, proving that the VW corners far stronger than the Toyota. "Steering feels perfectly weighted for this car." Driven against three market-equivalent examples of the sales-leading Camry, this Yankee Doodle Vee-Dub evinced 100-percent German DNA with better body-motion control, less tire noise, and more eager dynamics in every situation. In short, it drives way smaller and more scintillatingly than it looks.




VALUE

Here's where VW's $4-billion Chatta-nooga plant investment pays off for U.S. buyers -- by insulating us from the strong Euro currency that forced the outgoing Passat 2.0T to sell as a Eurochic niche player, base priced at a heady $27,945. That kind of money will buy a nice TDI nowadays, while the mainstream 2.5 SE opens at $20,765. Thirty grand buys a range-topping VR6 that handily out-chics and out-streaks the old EuroPassat, not to mention the V-6 or turbo variants of its family-sedan competitors.
Ownership costs are also further suppressed by VW's Carefree Maintenance Program, which picks up the tab for all scheduled stops during the 3-year/36,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty.
Of course, in the back of our skeptical minds was a nagging impression that VW quality and reliability lag those of Toyota and Honda, eroding the long-term value proposition. Apart from a dash buzz in one of our test cars, we found no evidence to support this collective prejudice, and Volkswagen officials argue that perception is lagging reality on the quality front. Prototype testing and evaluation have been stepped up dramatically in recent years, and a recent J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Index poll suggests it's paying off. Asked what percentage of their trips to the dealer were for repair versus maintenance, respondents ranked VW seventh at 31 percent -- that's tied with Infiniti, two spots back from Honda (25 percent), and above both Nissan (34) and Toyota (43).




PERFORMANCE OF INTENDED FUNCTION

It's in this category the bigger Passat really shines. Its family-schlepping credentials are impressive. With nearly 49 cubic feet of rear-seat space, "I can comfortably cross my legs while sitting behind a driver seat set to my 5-foot 11-inch height," noted Loh. Jurnecka proclaimed it "like a limo in back -- a great budget Audi." Add to this a usefully cubic 15.9-cubic-foot trunk with split-folding seats and set it all down on a chassis with the moves to make an enthusiast smile, and we've got a pretty interesting new dog in the midsize-sedan fight.
As for our jury? The verdict is in: Volkswagen's less-boring-than-it-looks, 100-percent-German-driving Passat is Motor Trend's Car of the Year.




CLOSEST VOTE EVER

Editor-in-chief MacKenzie always asks his 10 fellow COTY judges for their top three picks. This year, the voting was tied 5-5 (with one errant vote) between the Passat and Chrysler's 300. It was still tied after a count of second-place votes, and the Passat eked ahead only after third-place votes had been counted. Two worthy cars. But there can be only one...

2012 BMW 3 Series Unveiled!

The BMW 3 Series has been the most lauded sport sedan in the world for longer than we can remember. Worthy competitors pop up, only to fall short of beating this benchmark – often by some subjective measure that can't be quantified. So it's a big deal when the 3 Series is up for a clean-sheet redesign. Not one to refuse a challenge, BMW has stepped up to the task of redesigning its best-selling vehicle and came up with this, the redesigned 2012 BMW 3 Series.BMW clearly wanted to bring the design of the new 3 Series more in-line with the look of its other new cars, mainly the 5, 6 and 7 Series. To that end, the most visible difference is up front, where the car's nose has grown in size. Likely a nod to European safety standards that require taller hoods for pedestrian safety, the 3 Series' new schnoz is both taller and wider than before. The new, larger twin-kidney grille is also no longer separated from the headlights, which are also bigger. Instead, the grille surrounds meet a small portion of the lights to create the impression of a more unified front fascia. It looks a bit like the 5 Series, but also appears to draw inspiration from the forthcoming i8. The new 3 Series looks most familiar, from the side while the new rear end shows off the car's larger trunk.

BMW has stretched the car's new shape around a platform that's larger in every dimension. Its front track is wider by 1.46 inches, the rear by 1.85 inches and length has increased by a full 3.66 inches. Despite being bigger, the new 3 Series is also 88 pounds lighter than its predecessor. Those extra inches outside translate to more rear seat room inside, though not much. What BMW defines as "legroom inside the doors" increases by 0.71 inches and kneeroom is up by 0.6 inches, while headroom grows a scant 0.31 inches. As mentioned, trunk space has grown with the 2012 model able to swallow three golf bags at once.The new 3 Series is also marked by the arrival of BMW's new turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that first debuted in the Z4. Replacing the brand's venerable 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder in the 328i model, the new four-cylinder produces 240 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque, both significant increases. BMW claims the new 328i will also be more fuel efficient despite the extra power, and while fuel economy numbers aren't available yet, the company does say the new 328i will scoot to 60 miles per hour in 5.7 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 130 mph.

The more powerful 335i model retains its N55 single-turbo 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder that once again produces 300 hp and 300 lb-feet, but thanks to new fuel-saving measures like Auto Start-Stop, Brake Energy Regeneration, an ECO PRO mode and new eight-speed automatic transmission (a six-speed manual is standard), BMW says the 335i can now achieve an estimated 32.6 mpg, though, again, official EPA numbers aren't yet available.The new 3 Series will be available in four trim levels to suit individual tastes: Sport Line, Luxury Line, Modern Line and M Sport Package. The Sport Line is identified by its dark side, which means lots of gloss black trim on the exterior, as well as gloss black interior bits with red accents. The Luxury Trim, in contrast, favors shiny chrome and receives a special set of 18-inch multi-spoke alloy wheels. The Modern Line is a bit more subtle, decked out in satin aluminum trim with 18-inch turbine-style alloy wheels. Lastly, the M Sport Package alters the sedan's new look with an aerodynamics package and 18- or 19-inch M Design wheels. While falling short of a full on M car, the M Sport Package does also offer an M Sport suspension, M short-shifter and various other M-branded bits.

Lastly, the 2012 3 Series gains some tech enhancements that include a new full-color, high-resolution Heads-Up Display; Active Blind Spot Detection System; Camera monitoring for a Lane Departure Warning System and Collision Warning; and a new Surround View system with Top View and Side View to augment the rear-view camera. The 3 Series lineup will also welcome a hybrid variant later on in 2012 called the ActiveHybrid 3 that produces a combined gas/electric power output of 335 hp and 330 lb-ft of torque.The 2012 BMW 328i and 335i will arrive in U.S. showrooms in February 2012, with pricing to be announced at a later date, while the all-wheel-drive 328i and 335i xDrive models will be available in this summer. The ActiveHybrid 3, meanwhile, goes on sale in the fall. Now the only thing left to do is drive them.

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