Volkswagen has been perfecting the Passat for over four decades. Internally, the now eight generations carry the designations B1 through B8. At Volkswagen, the B stands for the B-segment to which the Passat belongs (mid-class cars), and the number indicates the car’s generation. In retrospect, the car’s styling was primarily influenced by the B1, the original model of 1973, and all of the generations from the B5 (1996) onward. Volkswagen introduced a paradigm shift in the Passat B5. While all previous Passat generations were balanced multi-talented cars that offered a high level of comfort, very good everyday features and above-average space, with this generation the quality and design made a leap forward, positioning the Passat in the top league of its class and making it the most successful business car. This path was consistently and successfully followed up by the B6 (from 2005) and the B7 (from 2010). The Passat until last year was the most successful car of the brand and the Group with over 1.1 million units produced.
In light of this history of success, Klaus Bischoff, Volkswagen Head of Design, and his team posed the following question as they began to work on the B8: “What do we need to do to make a world’s best-selling car even more visually attractive? There was a clear answer: “Breathtaking proportions.” The team was able to realize this goal more consistently than ever, because an entirely new design platform was made available for the Passat for the first time in the modular transverse matrix (MQB). Although it is nearly as long as the previous model, the car’s wheelbase grew by a considerable 79 mm; the front and rear wheels were made larger and are now positioned further out to the sides, making it possible to shorten the body overhangs significantly. At the same time, the Passat was made lower and wider. Because of the optimised engine orientation, it was possible to significantly lower the bonnet and shift the windscreen towards the rear. This “cab backward design” with mature saloon proportions resulted in a very long bonnet look with the impression of a premium-class model. It was also clear that the new Passat should get dynamic proportions. But that did not define the entire style of the design, the orientation. Klaus Bischoff: “In the new Passat we wanted to make a formal jump to the next higher vehicle class. Our objective was to sculpturally develop the potential of this vehicle into a business saloon. What was important for me was to develop significant design themes that radiate an impressive visual presence and express the powerful sporty character of the new Passat.”
This Passat is 4,767 mm long and therefore 2 mm shorter than the previous model. At the same time, its wheelbase was lengthened by the aforementioned 79 mm to 2,791 mm. The front wheels were shifted 29 mm towards the front bumper, and the rear wheels 17 mm towards the rear bumper (the occupant cell was lengthened by 33 mm). The result: shorter body overhangs (67 mm less at front, 13 mm less at rear). At the same time, the Passat was made 14 mm lower (1,456 mm) and 12 mm wider (1,832 mm). These dimensions enabled a ratio of proportions that provided ideal conditions for creating a design that was as powerful as it was exclusive.
