The Volkswagen Passat (internally designated Volkswagen New Midsize Sedan, or NMS while under development) is a mid-sized sedan that debuted in January 2011 at the Detroit Auto Show, is manufactured at the Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly Plant, replaces the Passat B6 in the North American market, and is marketed also in South Korea.
At its introduction, the Passat NMS was part of Volkswagen Group's strategy to sell over 800,000 vehicles per year in the North American market. The vehicle was developed by Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive and Volkswagen Passenger Cars, and is partially based on the PQ46 platform used by the European Passat.
North American, Middle Eastern and South Korean models are built at Volkswagen Group of America's new Chattanooga, Tennessee production facility. The new facility is a "Flex Plant" which will allow for the production of vehicles based on the NMS and MQB platforms. VW announced in October 2016 that a seven-seat crossover vehicle to be called Atlas and based on the MQB platform would be built at the plant beginning in late 2016.
The Passat NMS is marketed in the North American (United States, Canada, and Mexico), South Korean, Middle Eastern, and Chinese markets, with no plans for a wagon/estate version. With the differing B7, and now B8, Passat models sold outside of these markets, Volkswagen is marketing, worldwide and concurrently, two different Passats. The Passat NMS won the 2012 Motor Trend Car of the Year. The 2013 Passat TDI sets new Guinness World Record for fuel economy under the Non-Hybrid car category. It achieved a fuel consumption of only 3.02 liters on 100 kilometers (77.99 mpg).
In China, the new model is built by Shanghai Volkswagen Automotive and is marketed as a more upscale model with some interior and exterior differences to the North American model, such as wood-trimmed steering wheel, rear air vents, and LED accented headlights. It is sold alongside models such as the long-wheelbase version of the European Passat known as the Magotan and a B5 Passat-based Passat LingYu. The Passat NMS is manufactured at its Nanjing factory.
Due to LHD, Passat NMS is not sold in Japan, but instead offers European Passat models, currently series B8.
United States
Volkswagen released a sketch of the NMS in February 2009 and a more detailed, second sketch on 28 October 2009. The Passat NMS reflects a design language developed by Walter de Silva, the Italian design chief for the Volkswagen Group, and Klaus Bischoff, the German design leader for the Volkswagen Brand. The Passat NMS interior borrows design elements from the European Passat, e.g., the traditional clock.
In Canada and the United States, the Passat NMS was initially released with a 2.5L 5-Cylinder engine, 2.0 TDI engine and 3.6L VR6 engine. The 2.5L 5-Cylinder engine was mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 6-speed automatic. The 2.0TDI was offered with a 6-speed manual or optional DSG (automated dual clutch transmission). The 3.6L VR6 was only mated with an automatic transmission
The 2.0 TDI engine is not offered in Mexico or China.
In China, the NMS is offered with a base 1.4L TSI available with a 5-speed manual or 7-speed DSG. The 1.8L variant was available with the 6 speed automatic or 7 speed DSG gearbox and the 2.0L TSI and 3.0L VR6 come standard with 6- and 7-speed DSG gearboxes.
For the 2014 model year, a new 1.8L TSI four cylinder engine replaced the 2.5L inline-5 in North America.
For the 2015 model year, a new 2.0L EA288 TDI with increased power replaced the previous EA189 2.0L TDI in North America.
For the 2015 model year the 3.6L VR6 remained the same in North America.
Models with the 3.6 VR6 engine were discontinued after the 2018 model year in the US.
The Volkswagen Passat NMS won the 2012 Motor Trend Car of the Year.
In a March 2012 comparison test by Car and Driver, the Volkswagen Passat NMS came in first place out of six cars. In a November 2012 comparison by the same magazine with three since-redesigned competitors, the Passat placed last.
In a 2012 comparison test by Motor Trend, the Volkswagen Passat NMS came in first place out of six cars.
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