VW Passat Starts At $19,995, Diesel From $25,995

The “B5” Passat, which signaled the beginning of Volkswagen’s brief but luminous arc of twenty-first-century success in the United States, was priced at $20,750 including destination charge. For that kind of money, the buyers, of which your humble author was one, received a 1.8T engine, full-sized interior room, German assembly, and a fabulous set of luxurious appointments which usually did not completely self-destruct until the car reached its fourth or fifth birthday. It was a gorgeous game-changer of a car and for many people the juice of the driving experience was worth the painful squeeze of frequent dealings with VW’s “service” departments.

Fourteen years later, the price is the same — $20,765 including destination — but the game has definitely changed.

The base engine is VW’s completely unloved five-cylinder, appearing in the Passat for the first time and no doubt bringing its Ke$ha-like appetite for continuous liquid refreshment. Standard equipment includes dual-zone automatic climate control, Bluetooth connectivity, steering-wheel audio controls and VW’s no-charge three-year/36,000-mile scheduled-maintenance program. The SE is priced at $23,725 and includes 17-inch alloy wheels, eight-way power driver seat, heated front seats, a better radio, and a multifunction leather-wrapped steering wheel.

For $25,995, it’s possible to swap the 2.5L for a two-liter TDI which is projected at 43mpg highway. Base equipment on the TDI is “SE” level so this really only represents a twoish-grand hike over the gas car. Stick shift or DSG are the choices.

For the clinically insane or the hopelessly optimistic, $28,995 will purchase the VR6. Shorn of its factory mufflers, the VR6 makes an utterly glorious, completely unique noise that usually sounds like

Braaaaaaaaaaaaaap…. braaaaaaaaaap… DING! CHECK ENGINE!… dammit.

The Passat is built at Volkswagen’s new Westmoreland fiasco Chattanooga facility. VW fans longing for the days of the “wide-taillight” Rabbits and their amazing propensity to eject an astounding miscellany of parts onto the roadway will find all their needs for nostalgia met with the new Passat.