Comments on: TTAC Photochop: New Volkswagen Passat

By: BlueBrat

BlueBrat — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 03:31:47 +0000

bmilner:

According to autos.aol.com which was stated in the beginning of my mini rant. It was a quick source to find. And yes, there’s dealer markup after that, but at least you got my point.

By: bmilner

bmilner — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 00:00:41 +0000

BlueBrat: I’m not sure where you got those values from (might I suggest the TrueDelta pricing links at the top of this page). You probably aren’t comparing appes to Apples. Audis tend to be 2.5-5K more expensive than the equiv VW’s. Judging from the way I’ve seen Volkswagon decontent their interiors, you certainly get what you pay for in interior trim quality though.

I do see your point though, that at that upper end of the VW line, things get very competitive with other luxury makes. Judging from what I see on the road, Passats sell mostly in their base trim which are WAY cheaper than the cheaper Audi/Mercs etc.

BTW, regarding this Photocop, I like it basically, but I think the grill looks too Mercedes S-class overall.

By: Andrei Avarvarii

Andrei Avarvarii — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 20:23:40 +0000

@ guyincognito
I’m sill laughing like mad…

By: BostonTeaParty

BostonTeaParty — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 19:06:16 +0000

Your chops generally look good, but theres something funny about the proportion of the upper to the waist line and door handles, you had same problem on your BMW too. This has a kind of bad Peugeot feeling to it. Front looks tidy though.

By: incitatus

incitatus — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 18:22:08 +0000

This would definetly get me into a VW dealership. Their current line-up is ugly as hell. I lost confidence in VW’s ability to build a good looking sedan. We’ll probably see Hyundai making this car before VW does.

By: Shatners Bassoon

Shatners Bassoon — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 18:12:58 +0000

Great detailing, but the offset between the greenhouse and the front windshield makes my eyes water. It all looks a bit droopy, like a Passat that’s been on the pop. Damn fine Photoshopping skills though.

By: BlueBrat

BlueBrat — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 18:12:33 +0000

Where the hell is the Passat indeed.

According to autos.aol.com:

Passat – MSRP: $23,990 – $39,200
A3 – MSRP: $25,930 – $34,915
A4 – MSRP: $28,900 – $47,900
BMW 135 – MSRP: $34,900 – $39,100
ES 350 – MSRP: $33,820 – $33,820
IS 350 – MSRP: $36,005 – $36,005
TL – MSRP: $33,725 – $38,225
G35X – MSRP: $34,350 – $34,350

Real world price of the Passat, looking at cars.com in the 19125 Philly area, is coming in at $40,565.

Why would anyone look at something with a bad reliability reputation (Consumer Reports Reviews) Vs. a power-brand like Lexus, Acura and even their own Audi?

Needless to say this is a quick glance at pricing and not weighing in anything else in comparison, but come on, $40k for a non-luxury brand vehicle? That devalues about $15k-$20k within 1-2 years? The prices of the middle-tier auto line is getting ridiculous. No wonder Toyota has an $80k Toyota + 108 month loans…

By: Martin Schwoerer

Martin Schwoerer — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:52:03 +0000

Excellent work and a vast improvement on the present Passat, Andrei.

I especially like the side-window line which goes down in hight as it approaches the front. This we will see more often, I would think, on family cars as glasshouses become more and more shallow.

The hood may be a bit softish but I strongly agree that losing the chrome grill was a necessity. The chrome was an afterthought that Pischetsrieder had added on, on short notice, to make the car look more upmarket — and it looks like an afterthought too.

Do you really think that future cars will still have the sensor dimples on the front bumpers?

By: wsn

wsn — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:30:39 +0000

Passat is irrelevant, in North America at least.

By: oneighturbo

oneighturbo — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:27:52 +0000

improvement over the original Passat CC design… Nope.

You’ve lost all excitement. Your hood is plain. You removed all lines that move your eye around the front. LED, nice addition but distracting. Removing the chrome lip makes yours look lazy. etc etc etc.

Color choice is nice, which would work excellent with chrome accents.

IMO.

By: Sajeev Mehta

Sajeev Mehta — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:11:41 +0000

LMAO @ guyincognito’s comment.

By: guyincognito

guyincognito — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:01:33 +0000

I think its an excellent prediction of the next Passat and the 2020 Ford Taurus.

By: Chris Haak

Chris Haak — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 16:56:12 +0000

You have awesome talent, Andrei. As for the Passat itself, I visualize it moving in an evolutionary direction, since the Passat CC will be around to scoop up people who want a more stylish Passat. The greenhouse looks unfashionably tall in the chop above, although it would probably be eminently more functional than the gun slits for windows that many cars have today.