• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • Mercedes to Offer True Self-Driving in Late 2023
  • Biden Meets UAW Picketers, Offers Support
  • Ford Halts $3.5B MI Battery Plant; Fain Slams Company
  • An Electric Acura NSX Could Be Coming
  • Jeep Culture is a Real Thing
  • Porsche Cars North America Gets a New CEO
  • Canadian Union Approves New Contract with Ford
  • The Rearview Mirror: Birth of a Legendary Design
  • UAW Ups Pressure, Expands Strikes to Parts Depots
  • Ineos Begins Grenadier Production for North America
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQB 250+
    • A Week With: 2024 Mazda CX-90 Turbo S Premium Plus
    • A Week With: 2024 Mercedes-AMG EQE SUV
    • A Week With: The 2024 BMW i7 xDrive60
    • A Week With: 2024 Alfa Romeo Tonale Veloce AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Toyota Camry XSE Hybrid
    • A Week With: 2024 Subaru Impreza RS
    • A Week With: 2023 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Desert Boss
    • First Drive: 2024 Polestar 2
    • A Week With: 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 4Matic
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Automobiles > VW Passat Makes an Awkwardly Timed Debut

        VW Passat Makes an Awkwardly Timed Debut

        New model, critical to US, debuts as maker faces fraud charges.

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        Sept. 22, 2015
        A new look for the 2016 VW Passat.

        If timing is everything, the debut of the new 2016 Volkswagen Passat probably couldn’t have come along at a worse moment.

        When the German maker scheduled the New York unveiling, it was clearly hoping to set in motion a much-needed turnaround for its struggling U.S. operations. Instead, the new Passat could get lost in the brouhaha surrounding news that VW apparently used a so-called defeat device to improperly pass emissions tests with a number of its diesel-powered models.

        Your Guide to the Hottest New Products!

        The scandal could lead potential buyers to ignore the 2016 VW Passat. But the maker can only hope it will be able to overcome the negative headlines, the new midsize sedan getting a much-needed styling update, plenty of new safety and infotainment technologies, and a new, sporty R-Line model. Ironically, the new Passat will be the first to get a diesel engine.

        “We applied a progressive design strategy with the new Passat, giving the car a dynamic presence and a more sophisticated look,” said Klaus Bischoff, Volkswagen’s design chief, prior to the sedan’s Big Apple debut.

        (US Justice Dept. opening investigation into VW diesel cheating scandal. Click Here for the latest.)

        The 2016 VW Passat remains one of the roomiest sedans in the U.S. midsize market.

        Among the most immediately apparent changes, the American-made Passat gets a new, domed hood and LED lighting, front and back. The headlamps are smaller, while the front and rear fenders, as well as the grille have also been revised — though the roof and doors are unchanged, as are the 2016 Passat’s overall dimensions. That, in itself, isn’t bad. The previous generation featured one of the roomiest cabins in the midsize class.

        Inside, the revised VW Passat gets a new instrument panel and center stack, with a larger touchscreen display and, on the whole, a more premium feel than the outgoing sedan.

        For the first time, VW will offer an R-Line version of the Passat. Among the sporty touches, it gets unique rocker panels, a “stylized” front bumper with contrasting black accents, a revised rear diffuser and 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels.

        VW will offer three engine choices for 2016, including a turbocharged 1.8-liter inline-four delivering 38 mpg on the highway, a 3.6-liter V-6 making 280 horsepower, and a 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbodiesel.

        An upgraded interior and a new infotainment system featuring Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

        Unfortunately, that’s the same diesel that’s landed VW in trouble, the EPA declaring the maker used special software to pass emissions tests and then allow the engine to produce additional pollutants. The automaker’s CEO Martin Winterkorn has decreed VW won’t sell that engine again until it has a fix for the problem.

        Among the various new technologies on the 2016 VW Passat, the sedan will get an Automatic Post Collision Braking System. It’s designed to instantly apply the brakes after a collision to reduce the likelihood the sedan would be involved in a secondary crash.

        The sedan offers a new easy-access trunk system that allows a motorist to pop it open simply by wiggling a foot under the rear bumper. There’s also a second-generation modular infotainment platform, or MIB II, which is said to be faster and easier to use, adding such smartphone-style features as swiping and pinch-zooming. The system also builds in the new Apple CarPlay and Android Auto app systems.

        VW says the new 2016 Passat equipped with the 1.8T engine will start at $22,440 plus destination charges when it goes on sales later this year.

        Passat's new LED headlights.

        Like the current model, the new Passat will be produced at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee. That factory currently is undergoing a $900 million expansion, the sedan soon to share space with an SUV based off the popular VW CrossBlue Concept.

        (VW Tiguan gets complete makeover at Frankfurt Motor Show. Click Here to check it out.)

        VW clearly needs both of those American-made models to succeed. It has been losing sales momentum in the U.S. market since the beginning of the decade. But industry analysts warn the scandal over the diesel emissions tests could short-circuit VW’s plans.

        The maker faces potentially billions of dollars in fines and lawsuits. Several class actions have already been filed and the U.S. Justice Department has reportedly opened an investigation into the case.

        (VW, Audi expect to “electrify” their entire line-ups. Click Here for more.)

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published

        Mercedes to Offer True Self-Driving in Late 2023

        Yesterday
        Biden speaks to UAW with bullhorn

        Biden Meets UAW Picketers, Offers Support

        Sept. 26, 2023
        Bill Ford at MI EV battery plant event

        Ford Halts $3.5B MI Battery Plant; Fain Slams Company

        Sept. 26, 2023

        4 responses to “VW Passat Makes an Awkwardly Timed Debut”

        1. veh says:
          September 22, 2015 at 8:23 am

          What’s up with all the reveals away from auto shows? Seems like one every week. I’m sure the automakers think it’s a good idea to get away from the crowd, but they just get lost in the general news cycle. At least during auto shows there’s more of a focus on the industry as a whole.

          And of course, VW is in der grosse Scheisse

          Reply
        2. Jorge M. says:
          September 22, 2015 at 1:48 pm

          VW keeps adding new U.S. models but sales are stagnant for good reason – unacceptable ownership experience for U.S. customers.

          Reply
        3. Fred says:
          September 22, 2015 at 10:38 pm

          The 2016 Passat won’t be the first to get a diesel engine. The 2014 and 2015 Passat’s are among the diesel models on the recall list.
          I expect the 2-liter diesels (mostly Jetta) from 2011 – 2013, which did not use the Blue Tec fluid, will be the most affected by the need to re-do the emission settings. I wonder if their particle accumulators, which burn off the carbon during times the car is doing high-speed cruising and can get clogged and need a VERY expensive replacement if the car isn’t on the highway enough, can really do the job alone.

          Reply
        4. Fred says:
          September 22, 2015 at 10:47 pm

          And I just noticed the new front end – anyone recall the Cadillac Catera (re-badged Opel Omega)?This is a slight update of the 2001-2003 model!!

          Reply

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: