VOLKSWAGEN PASSAT ESTATE REVIEW

List price from £21,740 Lease price from £282 The verdict 7

The VW Passat Estate has plenty to offer those looking for a spacious, comfortable and classy car

Bigger cars such as the Volkswagen Passat and Ford Mondeo have fallen out of favour in recent years, as buyers flock to either smaller, more efficient models, or those with a premium badge.

However, the Passat Estate still has a lot going for it, not least its classy image and comfortable ride. Load space is impressive, and there are enough practical touches to make the big VW painless to live with.

There’s also a more rugged looking version, called the Alltrack, for those who want the added convenience of four-wheel drive.

Space

Big boot and lots of room for passengers, too

The Passat Estate builds on the practicality of the saloon by offering a much bigger and more easily accessible boot. Unlike the saloon, there’s no lip at the entrance to lift things over, which makes loading heavy cases or shopping much easier, plus the shape of the boot itself is nice and square.

Another useful touch is that the rear seats are spring loaded and so fold flat at the tug of a handle.

Interior space is also a Passat strength, with enough room to sit three across the rear. If load capacity is your only concern, however, it’s worth noting that the latest Golf Estate can carry just as much as the bigger Passat with the rear seats in place (although the Passat is quite a bit bigger once they’ve been folded).

Comfort

Great seats, avoid the 18-inch wheels

Few cars are as good at covering big distances as a VW Passat, and the same is true of the estate version. That’s partly because the seats are extremely supportive, with lots of adjustment, and partly because the suspension is, if not perfect, then generally compliant.

Watch out for the bigger, 18-inch wheels, however, which make the ride much firmer than it needs to be in this kind of car.

The petrol engines are impressively quiet, but if you buy a Passat chances are you’ll want one of the diesel engines for excellent economy and supreme motorway manners; they're barely audible at speed.

Alltrack versions aren’t quite as quiet on the motorway as other Passat Estates, primarily because they are fitted with roof rails and have an increased ride height, making them less aerodynamic.

Dashboard layout

As classy as you’d expect, with a couple of nice touches

The dashboard in the Passat Estate is the same as that in the saloon, which is to say well made, intuitively laid out, but a little dull.

The materials in your eyeline are suitably classy, while the slick switches and back-lit analogue clock add to the impression of quality. However, there are a few signs of cost cutting, including some flimsy-feeling plastic low down on the dash.

Easy to drive

Light steering, but this is a long car to parallel park

Although it’s physically bigger than the Passat saloon, the estate version is slightly easier to park because its flat rear screen lets you judge where the back of the car is. That said, this is still a long car, so you’ll want to pick those parallel parks carefully.

The Passat’s steering is light and easy to twirl at low speed, so you won’t work up a sweat when parking. On versions with a manual gearbox the clutch is a little lacking in feel, plus the automatic parking brake can be slow to release; both of these things can make it hard to pull away smoothly from a standstill.

If you want an automatic gearbox, you have to choose a 1.4-litre petrol engine or a 2.0-litre diesel.

Fun to drive

Rivals are better

When it comes to being fun to drive, the Passat Estate is comfortably outclassed by the Ford Mondeo.

This is mainly down to the fact you have to turn the wheel a long way before the car responds. However, the plus side of this is impressive high-speed stability; the Passat requires fewer steering corrections than a Mondeo when you’re on the motorway.

It also grips well in corners and always responds in a safe and predictable way, although the Alltrack version isn’t quite as well controlled in its body movements..

The 2.0-litre diesel is the pick of the engines, feeling significantly stronger than the petrols, while still returning good fuel economy. The 1.6-litre diesel might be frugal, but it feels underpowered in a car this big.

Reliability

A fine customer satisfaction record; warranty could be better

In the 2013 JD Power customer satisfaction survey, the Passat finished 39th out of 116 cars, whereas the Ford Mondeo was back in 73rd and the Vauxhall Insignia 92nd.

Like Ford, Volkswagen provides a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty, but Vauxhall trumps it here, giving the Insignia a 100,000-mile warranty with no time limit.

Fuel economy

Big fuel tank means lots of miles between fill-ups

All of the petrol engines and most of the diesels deliver slightly better fuel economy than the equivalent engines in the Ford Mondeo; the exception is the 2.0 TDI 140.

The Mazda 6, Skoda Octavia and Vauxhall Insignia are even more efficient than the Passat, although the Volkswagen's large fuel tank does mean that diesel models in particular can cover impressively large distances between fuel stops.

Affordability

There are cheaper options

Fuel economy and CO2 emissions are directly linked, so the fact that the Passat Estate drinks a bit more fuel than an equivalent Skoda Octavia or Mazda 6 means it also has higher CO2 emissions and attracts higher company car tax bills.

The Passat is also more expensive to buy than its rivals, but insurance and servicing costs are competitive and it holds its value better than the Ford Mondeo. This helps to keep finance deals competitive.

For those wanting a car with the looks and performance of an AudiAllroad but for a lower price, the Passat Alltrack is worth considering.

You should be able to secure a decent discount from a VW dealer or internet broker on all models.

Safety

Performed well in crash tests

Like most of its rivals, the Passat was awarded a five-star safety rating when it was crash tested by car safety specialists Euro NCAP, although it’s worth noting that the Skoda Octavia scored better for adult occupant, child occupant and pedestrian protection.

Like the Octavia, the Passat comes with a stability control system that helps you recover from skids, as well as front side and window airbags. But only the Octavia has an airbag beneath the steering column that protects the driver’s knees.

Standard spec

Worth upgrading to Executive spec

The cheapest version of the Passat Estate is the S, which comes with alloy wheels, air-conditioning, a digital radio and a Bluetooth hands-free phone connection.

However, if you want the Passat to really live up to its posh image you’ll need the Executive model, which adds heated leather seats, cruise control and front and rear parking sensors for not a huge amount extra.

Range-topping Executive Style models are best avoided because these come with sports suspension that makes the Passat more uncomfortable without making it significantly more fun.

For those concerned with running costs, there’s also a Bluemotion Passat Estate, which is available with just one engine – the 1.6-litre diesel – and offers a similar specification to the S, albeit with steel wheels and lowered suspension to maximise fuel efficiency.

The Alltrack adds plastic body cladding, an increased ride height and four-wheel drive.