Cars - Volkswagen Passat

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	Cars - Volkswagen Passat

The Volkswagen Passat is a mid-size car/large family car built by Volkswagen AG, produced in various forms since 1973. It falls between the Volkswagen Golf/Jetta and Phaeton in the current Volkswagen lineup, and is currently produced in Volkswagen's plant in Emden, Germany. Although normally known as the Passat in European markets, it has been badged as a variety of other names including Dasher, Santana and Quantum in other markets.

The Passat has always been one of Volkswagen's most important models, falling in the middle of the sedan/saloon market segment. It was critical to Volkswagen on its introduction in 1973 as the sales of the aging Beetle were declining, and larger air-cooled rear-engined models like the 411 and 412 based on older technology were also failing to take hold in the market.

Following the Volkswagen Group's acquisition of Audi in 1964, Volkswagen was able to use newly gained engineering expertise to develop a modern front wheel drive car with a water-cooled engine, and thus the Passat and Golf (the latter being introduced in 1974) were the first of a new generation of Volkswagens. Indeed, the first Passat was designed together with Audi 80/Fox and the two share the same platform. The new Passat allowed Volkswagen to compete more squarely with its European rivals than was possible with its product line consisting of old-fashioned rear-engined models. As of 2006, the Passat is one of Volkswagen's best-selling and most-profitable models in nearly every market. While the original Passat was a small family size car, the modern Passat has grown in size and moved to the segment of family size cars.

Mark 1 (1973–1981) — B1 platform

The original VW Passat was launched in 1973 (as a 1974 model). The body types offered originally were 2- and 4-door sedans and similar looking three- and five-door versions. Externally all four shared a modern fastback style design, styled by the Italian designer Giorgetto Giugiaro). All the versions sharing the same external design was in this case ususual, since two of the models were traditional sedans with a separate trunk. A five-door station wagon was introduced in 1974. Passat was effectively a less expensive version of the Audi 80 (Fox) sedan which had been introduced a year earlier and which had a more conservative body style, so that the Audi and Volkswagen models had distinct body styles and image. In Europe, Passat was equipped with hexagonal or single round or double round headlights depending on specification.

In North America, the car was called the Dasher, and was only available with round DOT-spec lights. The three-door hatchback model was launched in North America in 1975.

VW Passat was one of the most modern European family cars at the time, and was intended as a replacement for the ageing 411/412, and Volkswagen 1600 and also as a contemporary rival for popular Ford Taunus (In the United Kingdom Cortina) and Opel Ascona (In the UK: Vauxhall Cavalier). The Passat was Wheels magazine's Car of the Year for 1974 and its sister model Audi 80 was nominated car of the year by the European motor press a year earlier. The platform was named B1.

The Passat used the 4 cylinder OHC 1.3 L, 1.5 L, and 1.6 L petrol engines, also used in the Audi 80—longitudinally mounted with front wheel drive, in Audi tradition, with either a 3-speed automatic or 4-speed manual transmission. It had a MacPherson strut front suspension with a solid axle/coil spring setup in back.

The SOHC 1.5 produced 75 hp (55 kW) and was enlarged to 1.6 L for 1975. The larger engine included tighter emissions controls, so power output dropped to 70 hp (52 kW). Bosch fuel injection on the 1.6 was introduced in 1976 and brought power up to 78 hp (57 kW).

The whole range received a facelift in 1977 (launched 1978 in North America), featuring an interior upgrade and subtly revised styling including repositioned indicators and quad (round) headlights on all models. This generation was sold in Brazil well into the 1980s and extensively exported to Iraq, where many are still on the road. It was also assembled in Nigeria.

1979 saw the introduction of the Golf/Rabbit's 1.5 L Diesel engine, which produced just 48 hp (35 kW) in the 1130 kg (2500 lb) car. 0–60 time for the Diesel was 19.4 seconds, 6.2 seconds slower than the gasoline (petrol) engine. Still, all gasoline engines were dropped for North America in 1981 in preparation for the next generation car the next year.

Volkswagen Passat Mark 2 (B2 platform)

The second generation VW Passat, an all-new car, was launched in 1981 for the 1982 model year. The platform, named B2, was slightly longer and the car's updated styling was instantly recognisable as Passat, with the most obvious difference being the rectangular headlights. The car was known as the Quantum in North America , where it was introduced in 1982 and Corsar in Mexico where it was sold between 1985 and 1988.

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Cars - Volkswagen Passat

Mark 1 (1973–1981) — B1 platform

Volkswagen Passat Mark 2 (B2 platform)

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