News.

Wolfsburg, 30 September 2010 -Volkswagen presented its new bestseller on September 29th: the seventh generation of the Passat -as a saloon and an estate car simultaneously. More than 15 million units have been sold in more than 100 countries, making it one of the greatest success stories ever in automotive history.

"The new Passat offers upper-class features in a mid-class car. The Passat series has always been a technological pioneer in its class. The technology does not serve as an end in itself but can be tangibly experienced by the customer," said Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Head of Development for Volkswagen, in front of more than 1,400 guests in the Freyssinet hall at the Volkswagen Group Night in Paris yesterday.

The new Passat was joined in the morning by Diego, football star and new member of the VfL Wolfsburg team, at the Volkswagen booth in hall 4 on opening day of the "Mondial de l-Automobile": "It’s a newcomer to the Volkswagen Team, just like I am. I am happy to have the privilege of presenting the seventh generation of this bestseller here in Paris today. A great family car—also for my wife and me as well as our offspring, whom we expect to show up shortly," said Diego, smiling into the cameras.

Volkswagen is visualising the model series’ quality and precision more appreciably than ever in the new Passat. Straight lines, cleanly sculpted surfaces and dynamic proportions characterise the styling of the seventh generation car. Styling takes a great leap forward with the bestseller.

As is usual for a Volkswagen, the new Passat also sets standards in sustainability. All ten engines (77 kW/105 PS through 220 kW/300 PS) are more fuel efficient—up to 19 percent more. The "smallest" and yet torque-strong turbodiesel (1.6 TDI with 105 PS and 250 Nm) now consumes just 4.2 l/100 km; that is equivalent to 109 g/km CO2. Meanwhile, downsizing and technologies such as the Stop/Start system contribute to extraordinary fuel efficiency in the petrol-powered versions. Pioneering here is the 1.4 TSI (90 kW/122 PS); in the BlueMotion Technology version, it only consumes 5.8 l/100 km. The equivalent CO2 value is 138 g/km.

The new model takes safety to a new level with features such as an automatic City emergency braking function and, on Comfortline models and above, a standard fatigue detection function. As a component of the optional automatic ACC adaptive cruise control system, in worst case scenarios the emergency braking function reacts independently at speeds below 30 km/h. So it can help prevent frontal collisions. The fatigue detection system, which Volkswagen is introducing for the first time in this class, is continually active; it detects reduced driver concentration and warns the driver with an acoustic signal; a visual message also appears in the instrument cluster that the driver should take a break from driving.

The new Passat will be available in initial European markets starting as soon as mid-November.