Once again, Volkswagen has decided to change fundamentally. The group wants to become the world market leader in fully electric vehicles today, a paradigm shift reminiscent of the turning point in 1973. At that time, the Wolfsburg-based company moved between yesterday and tomorrow for the first time, only the automotive protagonist was not the ID family, but the first Passat. With a water-cooled front engine, front-wheel drive and Italian Alta Moda from the studio of star designer Giorgetto Guigiaro, the Passat liberated Volkswagen 50 years out of the dead end of antiquated rear engine types. Above all, however, the first Passat was the harbinger of the Golf, Scirocco and Polo, the family of wild youngsters that scared all conservative Opels and Fords in the 1970s.
The Passat has now taken third place in the ranking of the world’s best-selling passenger cars, with over 30 million units delivered to families, company car drivers and station wagon fans in eight generations. China has long been the most important market for the versatile mid-range model, which is only available in this country today as a variant.
In this body shape alone, the family carriage was able to defy the SUV trend – and survive the former rivals from Cologne and Rüsselsheim. How can 50 years of the Passat be celebrated? Apparently, Volkswagen doesn’t just want to celebrate the gold anniversary of the classic car by looking back: Passat number nine is getting ready to go, as a station wagon, of course.
It’s no secret: the first Passat was originally called the Audi 80. In the early 1970s, this ultra-modern Ingolstadt vehicle provided the technical basis for the parallel model in Wolfsburg, which was realized within just two years and with which Volkswagen catapulted itself into the future. Although the Beetle dethroned the Ford T-model as the production world champion in 1972, the end was in sight for all air-cooled boxer and rear-engine designs.
lightweight
The Passat Variant once weighed just 900 kilograms.
(Photo: VW)
More drives
The Passat B2, which was presented in 1980 and had significantly larger dimensions, presented itself with the innovative bundle of all-wheel drive in the Syncro, turbo diesel and five-cylinder petrol engine.
(Photo: VW)
This is exactly why VW has been experimenting since the late 1960s on a cross-brand, water-cooled front-engine model family for the entire group. Giorgetto Giugiaro was commissioned to find the form, but the Passat pioneer “EA 272” he drew proved to be too expensive. That was the opinion of the newly enthroned VW CEO Rudolf Leiding in 1971, who had acquired the reputation of a crisis manager during the restructuring of Audi and now wanted the Audi 80, launched in 1972, to be the first modular model to be sold across the group.
Giugiaro – publicly celebrated by Volkswagen as “the youngest among the best” – was therefore commissioned to transfer the hatchback shape of the VW “EA 272” to the Audi 80 and to draw a station wagon. After only twelve months, the Volkswagen Passat was ready for series production – and with it the replacement for the Type 3 and the weakening 411/412. “We wanted to call it Type 511 … but we didn’t like any number anymore,” declared VW in a press release in spring 1973, “Passat, the safe sailing wind on the course around the world, has won!”
And indeed: the Passat not only anticipated the Giugiaro family style that characterized the Scirocco and Golf from 1974, it also had a global career that even surpassed the export successes of the Beetle and Golf. The Chinese also learned to love the Lower Saxony, initially with the Passat B2 as the Santana, followed in 2005 by the million-seller Magotan with a long wheelbase.
Japan, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa also became production sites for the Passat early on. The middle class was soon sold or produced in almost every corner of the world, a career that the Golf never managed to achieve. However, the Passat did adapt to local preferences, with the first generation rolling off the assembly line as the Dasher for the USA (from 1974) or as a station wagon under the Audi Fox label for Anglo-Saxon countries (from 1975).
traveled far
In China, VW sold the Passat under the Santana name.
(Photo: VW)
No grille
The third Passat caused unrest in the industry in 1987 because it did without the radiator grille.
(Photo: VW)
From 2011 there were also the so-called “New Midsize Sedans” for North America and Asian markets, which were particularly inexpensive to produce. In the second generation of the Passat, the VW appeared as the VW Nissan Santana Autobahn for Japan, the Corsar for Mexico, the Carat for Argentina and even the Ford Versailles and Ford Royale for several Latin American countries.
“Passat. Something new begins with this car,” was the introductory campaign for the pioneer of the Wolfsburg front-wheel drive family in 1973, and the Passat followed these words with facts.
To this day, what has now become the best-selling mid-size car of all time still manages to set bold accents. In the beginning it was front-wheel drive and new lightweight construction techniques (the variant weighed just over 900 kilos) and powerful engines for sporty driving performance (the Passat TS with 63 kW/85 hp measured against the BMW 1602 or Alfa Giulia), and other surprises soon followed. From 1975 there was the hatchback with a tailgate, with which the Passat caught up with French avant-gardists à la Simca 1307/1308 or Renault 16.
The Passat B2, which was presented in 1980 and was significantly larger, presented itself with the innovative bundle of all-wheel drive in the Syncro, turbo diesel and five-cylinder petrol engine. Not even the avant-garde Ford Sierra could keep up in terms of sales figures.
The third Passat also caused unrest in the industry in 1987, as it dispensed with the radiator grille, similar to some electric models today. A design mistake, which was therefore corrected by the Passat B4 (1993 to 1997).
Back to tradition
Generation four wore a more classic front again.
(Photo: VW)
Not a success type
The Passat B6 (2005 to 2010) also risked extravagances that were not a lasting success.
(Photo: VW)
Premium was now the order of the day, VW boss Ferdinand Piëch first gave the Wolfsburg top model a six-cylinder and powerful TDI diesel and positioned the Passat B5 (1996 to 2005) as a small Phaeton with an optional eight-cylinder engine.
However, the fleet business and customer favor continued to win the VW four-cylinder. The Passat B6 (2005 to 2010) also risked extravagances that were not a lasting success. The four-door coupé CC as an alternative to the Mercedes CLS? Customers preferred the more conventional Passat, especially as a Variant.
Since the Passat B7 (2010-2014), the Alltrack has caused a sensation as an SUV alternative. At the same time, a clear customer vote for the station wagon, which is therefore the only body variant in the Passat B8 today and will live on in the Passat B9 in the future.
Expert Martin Heinze from the classic car evaluation organization Classic Analytics explains the role played by the Passat in the classic car scene: “The Passat is a model pupil that can do almost everything, but with which hardly anyone wants to play. The early years in particular seem a bit sterile and stuffy compared to the Opel Ascona and BMW Dreier. The rare top model Passat Variant Syncro GT with the bubbling 5-cylinder engine and 136 hp costs at least 14,000 euros.
Chronicle Volkswagen Passat
1969: VW CEO Kurt Lotz visits the Turin Motor Show and finds that four of the six most attractive models at the show have been designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro. In January 1970, Giugiaro received the order to design a new VW mid-range model, the EA 272 with a hatchback (a style element that quoted the Beetle, but also the 1600 TL and the 411) and a modern technical layout
1971: Rudolf Leiding becomes the new CEO at Volkswagen and cancels many projects as part of austerity measures, including the EA 272 at the end of the year, which was to go into series production in January 1973. Instead, Leiding commissioned the Volkswagen EA 400, a family sedan based on the almost production-ready Audi 80. Giugiaro was commissioned with finding the form for the EA 400, which later became the Passat. Up to the B-pillar, the Passat should be based on the German design of the Audi 80, and then set independent Italian accents behind the B-pillar
1972: Giugiaro presents a hatchback design with features of the EA 272 (e.g. with rear lights integrated into the shape) based on the Audi 80. Initially, the new VW should be called “511”, but then the choice falls on the name Passat, “the safe sailing wind on the course around the world”, as Volkswagen explains in a press release
Ready for heavy terrain
Since the Passat B7 (2010-2014), the Alltrack has caused a sensation as an SUV alternative.
(Photo: VW)
1973: Production start of the first generation of the Volkswagen Passat (B1) at the Wolfsburg plant in May. Internal designation Type 32 for the sedan, Type 33 for the Variant. The Passat B1 is derived from the Audi 80, but has an independent two- or four-door hatchback (for the time being without a costly tailgate and without a through-loading option) and a special torsion crank rear axle construction. The engine portfolio ranges from the 40 kW/55 hp 1.3 liter petrol engine to the 1.5 liter petrol engine with 63 kW/85 hp. The Passat immediately succeeds the rear-engine middle class Volkswagen 1500/1600 (Type 3). The Passat Variant celebrates its world premiere at the Frankfurt IAA in September
1974: The Passat Variant is launched in January. The Passat Variant is the first mass-produced car to have a lightweight, rust-resistant plastic fuel tank. From June Passat production also in Brazil
1975: From January, the Passat sedans are optionally available with a large tailgate. In August, the 1.5-liter four-cylinder will be replaced by 1.6-liter units. Facelift with round single headlights or double headlights (the rectangular headlights are omitted)
1977: Start of production at the Emden plant, production in Wolfsburg ends. Major facelift with a lowered front end and new plastic bumpers
1978: From July also with naturally aspirated diesel engine (40 kW/54 hp)
1979: Delivery of the Passat GLI with a rear spoiler and the 1.6-liter engine from the Golf GTI. The harbinger of the Passat GLI was the Passat GTI prototype
1980: Introduction of the second Passat generation (B2) with a significantly larger body in October. The five-door was drawn by the designer Luca Rezzonico
1981: In February, the five-door Passat Variant and a three-door sedan complement the Passat B2 range. The notchback version Santana made its debut at the Frankfurt IAA. The Auto 2000 study unveiled at the IAA already indicates the design of the Passat B3
1982: From August, a turbo diesel (51 kW/69 hp) is available for the Passat for the first time
1984: The Passat Variant Syncro with all-wheel drive is launched in October. The top engine is a 2.2-liter five-cylinder petrol engine with 88 kW/120 hp. Also new from the summer is the Passat Carat, the most elaborate equipment line
1985: Facelift in January, including modified bumpers and different rear lights for the sedan. The three-door sedan is no longer available, and the Santana will be known as the Passat in the future
1988: Production of the Passat B1 ends in Brazil. Production of the Passat B2 ends on March 31, only the Syncro will continue until July. The Passat B2 was manufactured in South America, Japan and, since 1986, in China, among other places, also under other brands such as Nissan and Ford. The front design of this Passat without a radiator grille is striking. The Passat B3 was designed by designer Herbert Schäfer. Sales start of the Passat B3 in April as a four-door sedan and in June as an estate. Special engine features in the Passat B3 are the supercharged G60 four-cylinder and the compact VR6 six-cylinder. The Passat B3 also offers four-wheel drive as Syncro
1990: Seat belt tensioners are now standard, but airbags for the driver and front passenger are optional
1993: The Passat B4, a further development of the Passat B3, makes its debut in October. In contrast to its predecessor, the Passat B4 has a classic radiator grille, which, in combination with rectangular twin headlights under a cover glass, is intended to introduce the “Happy Face” design idea at Volkswagen. New is the particularly economical TDI diesel direct injection engine, the new top model of the VR6 syncro with 135 kW/184 hp for a maximum speed of 235 km/h. Two front airbags are now standard, as are ABS, side impact protection and belt tensioners
1996: Introduction of the Passat B5 sedan in October. Common platform with the Audi A4. Volkswagen gives an eleven-year guarantee against rusting through on the fully galvanized body
1997: Final end of production of the Passat B4 in May. The Passat B5 is new as Variant 2000: A facelift version of the Passat B5 will be launched in October. German production in the plants in Emden and Mosel (Saxony)
2001: The new flagship is the Passat W8 with a 202 kW/275 hp eight-cylinder petrol engine
2005: Presentation of the Passat B6 as a sedan in March. The variant will follow in August. The Passat B6 is powered by transverse engines. Production of the Passat B6 also in China, under the name Magotan
2006: The flagship is now the Passat with a 3.6-liter VR6 and 220 kW/300 hp. 2008: The Passat CC is launched as a four-door coupé. 2010: Production of the Passat B6 ends in July. The VW Eos coupé-cabriolet, which is derived from the Passat (platform, chassis, drive) will continue to be built. In October, the Passat B7 celebrates its premiere at the Paris Salon. Sales start in November
2011: Production of the Passat B7 as Magotan begins in China. In addition, a new sedan closely related to the Passat but cheaper to produce (New Midsize Sedan or NMS) will be presented, which will be built and sold in the USA and China under the model name Passat
2014: The Passat B8 made its debut as a four-door sedan and estate at the Paris Salon. The market launch will take place at the end of November 2015: the Passat B8 is voted European Car of the Year by the media. The Passat GTE is new as a plug-in hybrid. In China, the current generation of the longer-wheelbase Passat is sold under the Magotan name, the estate version as the Volkswagen Variant, and there is also a Passat sedan that corresponds to the Passat built in North America
2019: Facelift for the Passat B8, with the newly introduced “Travel Assist” assistance system as the first VW model to drive partially automatically up to a speed of 210 km/h. Second generation of the Passat NMS for the USA and Asian markets
2021: The Passat sedan will be phased out in December, the Variant will remain in the sales program. Production of the US Passat is also discontinued at the Chattanooga plant
2022: Two arch-rivals of the Volkswagen Passat, the Ford Mondeo and the Opel Insignia, are discontinued without replacement 2023: The Passat turns 50 and Volkswagen celebrates the anniversary with classic car events, but also with the development of a new, ninth-generation Passat. The first examples of the Passat B4 generation are candidates for an H license plate
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