The mid-cycle refresh will help the Passat become the first model in the segment to hit 30 million sales.
The situation right now with the Passat is a bit confusing as there are three versions depending on region. You have the new one launched recently in China based on the MQB platform, the forthcoming 2020 U.S.-spec Passat stuck with the old underpinnings, and the European version seen here preparing for its mid-cycle refresh.
The version sold in Euro countries switched to the MQB platform back in 2015 with the launch of the eighth generation. Fast forward to present day, VW is about to give it a nip and tuck. The company based in Wolfsburg says it’s making changes to its Emden factory in Northern Germany to get ready for the updated Passat. As per the very few details released about the midsize model, VW says it will continue to sell the car in both sedan and wagon flavors with a choice between conventionally powered engines and plug-in hybrids.
The GTE-badged models (pictured at the end) will offer an undisclosed range in pure electric mode, which in the case of the outgoing Passat GTE stands at 31 miles (50 kilometers) based on the old (and hugely optimistic) NEDC testing cycle. We also get to learn the refreshed version of the once hugely popular Passat will boast “new drive, light, assist and Infotainment technologies and a new level of online services.”
These novelties will help VW reach an important sales milestone: 30 million. After 45 years on the market, the Passat has already been produced in more than 29 million examples worldwide over the course of its eight (and a half) generations and it’s only a matter of time before it will break the impressive sales barrier. It will be the first car in the segment to reach the milestone and will reinforce its position as VW’s second best-selling car of all time after the undisputed sales king – the Golf with 35 million cars delivered.
Here are the other Passat models:
According to the press release attached below, “the countdown for the market launch of the next evolutionary stage of this product line will already start at the end of January 2019.” What that means is we are inching closer to the car’s official debut and we will probably see it in the metal at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
Meanwhile, the North American 2020 Passat will premiere at the Detroit Auto Show in mid-January, but we've driven it already.
Source: Volkswagen
Have you heard? The ninth-gen Passat will be built by Skoda in Czech Republic:
Bestselling mid-size model in the world: the Passat has stood for progress for 45 years
- With more than 29 million2 vehicles produced, the Passat is one of the most important models in the business class
- Together with the Beetle (21.5 million) and Golf (35 million), the Passat is one of the three most successful Volkswagen models
- At the end of January 2019, Volkswagen will start the countdown for the next evolutionary stage of the Passat
For 45 years the Passat has been on course for the future. Originally launched in 1973, it is now sold on every continent. Volkswagen has built more than 29 million Passat vehicles in eight generations so far. 2019 will see the start of a new evolutionary stage of the most successful mid-size car ever, as the Passat becomes the first in its segment to break through the barrier of 30 million units.
1973: A decade of fantastic music really takes off. The brothers Angus and Malcolm Young found AC/DC. Pink Floyd releases their timeless album “The Dark Side of the Moon”. All songs of the album could be heard on the radio of a new Volkswagen: the first Passat. A hatchback saloon with two or four doors and a large boot lid. More variable than any Volkswagen before. With a length of 4,190 mm and therefore slightly shorter than a T-Roc today. And yet even the first Passat offered plenty of space. That was even more true when Volkswagen launched the Passat Variant in 1974.
By 2018, the Passat had grown to a length of up to 4,887 mm. With full-size features in the passenger compartment. At the same time, it has become a true reflection of progress in the field of automotive engineering: all pioneering technological developments – from the anti-lock brake system through to modern, intelligently networked assist systems – have accompanied the Passat over the years. As an all-rounder tailored to the needs of families and business users, it has also become the most successful mid-size and company car in the world. There are independent versions and derivative models in Europe, China and the USA; together they form one of the most important Volkswagen product pillars.
As it celebrates its 45th anniversary, the Passat is again offered as a saloon and Variant. Both body versions will not just be available with a classic combustion engine, but also with plug-in hybrid drive345, which temporarily turns the Passat into an electrically powered zero-emission vehicle for urban driving in particular.
The production preparations for the new Passat are currently taking place behind the scenes at the Emden plant in North Germany. The countdown for the market launch of the next evolutionary stage of this product line will already start at the end of January 2019 – a Passat with new drive, light, assist and Infotainment technologies and a new level of online services. The first target: breaking the 30-million barrier. After the Golf (35 million) and before the Beetle (21.5 million), this makes the Passat one of the three most successful models in the history of Volkswagen.