Power to Passat fixes the weakest link

"The current Passat has certainly suffered from some decisions – both marketing and product – made over the past couple of years," VGA general manager for public relations Matthew Wiesner said at the launch of the sixth generation of the badge in Spain during the week.

"Suffered" is a relatively mild term for the torment the outgoing model has been going through in salerooms over the past 18 months. From an annual high of 1020 for the current model in 2002 it slipped to 974 in 2003 before plummeting to just 321 sales last year – 337 if you include the 16 doomed W8 models moved in the same 12-month period.

"The key to the new car is to get it up and running from the outset. It has to arrive with the right mix of engines, gearboxes and at the right price," Wiesner said.

Current company thinking has the new Passat arriving with at least three engine choices – most likely to be a 103kW diesel 2.0-litre TDi, 184kW 3.2-litre FSi petrol direct injection V6 and a price-leading four-cylinder 110kW 2.0-litre FSi.

Wiesner concedes there is room in the model mix for a small turbo engine, possibly the cracker 147kW 2.0-litre FSIT unit but says it is far too early to make a firm commitment.

Although a final decision is yet to be made VGA appears to be leaning towards excluding a manual gearbox from the range.

In the absence of a manual gearbox the Passat petrol engines will be coupled to the new six-speed tiptronic-style automatic. Only the 2.0-litre diesel will come with the DSG double-clutch automatic, which made its Australian debut for VW in the Golf V, as the advanced automatic will not be available on petrol Passat models.

Apart from the noticeable aesthetic changes, the new Passat features a raft of technological improvements from suspension design through to adaptive cruise control.

A total redesign of the rear suspension is underpinned by the mounting of the four-arm rear axle on an acoustically isolated subframe, which drastically reduces noise transfer and creates a quieter cabin.

The high-tensile steel subframe is attached to the body through four rubber-metal bearings while the design of the arms allows for longitudinal and lateral dynamics to be tuned separately. Extensive use of aluminium in the McPherson front end has substantially reduced unsprung weight with loss of 13.3kg in component mass.

The new Passat gains the electrical-mechanical power-assisted steering launched in the Touareg and released most recently in the Golf V. The latest generation stability program will also feature a trailer stabilisation function for any vehicles fitted with a towbar. The ESP now detects trailer yaw (swing) and uses braking and engine adjustment to control it.

Also standard is the "disc-wipe" technology on the brakes which allows the rotors to gently brush the discs every five minutes clearing dirt and water build-up.

An electro-mechanical handbrake replaces the old mechanical system in what is becoming a runaway trend in new models. Separate from the handbrake function is a selectable hill-hold program which defaults to off whenever the car is restarted.

A tortuous, twisting mountain road behind Barcelona was the key that unlocked a new respect for this often-maligned front-driver.

It was not where VW had planned on the new Passat launch drive going – but maybe they should have.

All "new" models are expected to exceed their outgoing siblings. Few embarrass them.

The sixth generation of the Passat does just that. The steering feel is a revelation, a lesson in weighting and communication some far more lauded "sports" models could learn from. The driven front wheels, benefitting from an extremely well-sorted suspension package which keeps body/chassis movement to a minimum during moments of intertial change, do not fight the driver but rather point and go where instructed.

There is still the front-driver's curse of push understeer but it is at the lower end of the scale and less noticeable for the compliance of the front-end.

Assistance from the electro-mechanical system is simply not intrusive, diminishing neither the pleasant weight of the wheel nor the feedback. In the run down the mountain there was some initial concern for the brakes.

Pedal feel is not particularly solid at any time but the brakes stayed and stayed through considerable repeated use without going away – they just did not inspire total confidence at first acquaintance.

Both the normal automatic shifter and the DSG come with the "manual" option and a sports mode, which is selected through the gear shifter. While the sports mode allows a more aggressive shift pattern the changes are not controlled by the driver.

The manual shift option, despite its name, still defaults to automatic gear changes rather than waiting for driver input as the redline approaches.

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