Just say CC, and most people think of either a cabrio or a corn chip.
Volkswagen has gone against the grain, and called their latest Passat a CC – but while its roof is definitely different, it is also fixed to its body.
In VW speak, CC stands for Comfort Coupe. Like the Mercedes-Benz CLS (which incidentally stands for Coupe-Like Sedan), the Passat CC is a coupe-styled four-door, four-seater luxury saloon, and will compete with the likes of the CLS as a cut-price alternative with all the kit.
The CC is based on the Passat platform, but offers a twin-charged TSI petrol engine along with the usual FSI petrol and TDI turbo-diesel powertrains. The familiar Passat front-drive and all-wheel-drive layouts and manual, auto or DSG transmissions are available, but the CC adds a new, lowered adaptive damper suspension system called ‘Dynamic Drive Control’, a park assist system, automatic distance cruise control, and a new lane assist system.
This last tech highlight is claimed to be a world first – while other lane assist technologies will alert the driver if they drift out of their lane without correction or indication, the CC’s system will also automatically steer the car back into its lane.
We should see the CC here in the later part of this year, with a price tag somewhere above the current Passat’s $60K range.
