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By
EWAN KENNEDY
16 February 2009
Let's
get the name out of the way to start with. Until now the tag CC
has been used to mean Coupe Convertible, a car that looks like a
closed coupe when its top is closed, but like a full convertible
when you power the top down.
Volkswagen
has chosen to break from that convention. To the German company CC
means Comfort Coupe. A stylish coupe with a decent sized back seat
that's much easier to get in and out of than is usual in the coupe
class.
To
achieve this the Passat CC has back doors. Some may argue that a
coupe should only have two doors, but a few years ago
Mercedes-Benz introduced a model called the CLS and changed the
way people thought about coupes.
Well
the way that most think about coupes – the purists still get an
attack of raised blood pressure when it comes to the concept of a
coupe with additional doors.
But
back to the new Volkswagen CC. We previewed this sleek VW during a
trip to Europe for the international launch last year, now it has
arrived in Australia and we have tested it in tough Australian
conditions.
Sadly,
our test drive took place in bushfire ravaged Victoria where there
was still a feeling of disbelief as to what had happened. Our
German hosts were equally stunned by the events and showed a deep
sympathy to the Australians who had lost so much.
Passat
CC is set up as a four-seater with the two rear seats separated by
a storage bin and having the ambiance of a twin-bucket
arrangement, therefore making for plenty of width for the pampered
twosome. Legroom is good, actually better than in many large
sedans because the CC is a long vehicle. Headroom will prove
marginal for anyone of more than average height so take along any
potential rear-seat travellers on your road test if you're
considering using the Passat coupe as a family car.
Two
engines are offered, a petrol and a diesel. The pick of the
powerplants is the 220 kW 3.6-litre already familiar to us in the
hot Passat R36. A lovely smooth engine it's very responsive, pulls
well from moderate revs and is willing to go all the way to its
redline in a real rush.
The
petrol model comes in at a pretty reasonable $65,990 plus on-road
costs. That's for a highly equipped vehicle with 4Motion
all-wheel-drive, adaptive cruise control, heating or cooling for
the front seats, a quality audio system with a USB connection,
radar parking assistance, even an automatic braking system that
helps the driver stay out of trouble.
As
is the way with the modern VW, there's a turbo-diesel in the
lineup. Priced at $54,990 the Passat CC TDI uses a 2.0-litre unit
producing 125 kW, it has top torque of 350 Nm spread over a useful
750 rev range beginning at 1750 rpm. Our introductory test drive
of the diesel showed it to be a strong performer without too much
lag in its initial response.
Economy
is the main reason for buying a diesel engine and the official TDI
fuel consumption figure of 6.3 litres per hundred kilometres looks
to be about right for country running. We wouldn’t expect fuel
use to be much over eight litres per hundred in suburban driving.
These are excellent numbers for a large, stylish family coupe of
German heritage.
The
suspension uses a highly sophisticated new system that
electronically alters the damper (shock absorber) characteristics
at each wheel individually. Thus the system senses road surfaces
as well as steering inputs and cornering forces and provides the
best compromise between ride and handling moment by moment.
Additionally, the drive has a choice of suspension settings of
Normal, Sport or Comfort. We tried all three during our initial
test drives and were most impressed by the car’s ride, handling,
quietness and overall upmarket feel.
As
a family car for a couple with children in their early teenage
years this gorgeous new Passat CC from Volkswagen can provide a
lovely combination of elegance and practicality.
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Marque Publishing Company
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