Hitting the Apex of Contrived

2009 Volkswagen Passat CC

The 2009 Passat CC is what everyone is now calling, the competition for the Mercedes Benz CLS in the “4 four door coupe” design. First off, I don’t care how slick it looks, there will never be a 4 door coupe… ever. According to Webster’s Dictionary, a coupe is defined as a 2-door automobile often seating only two persons. This car, along with all other “4 door coupes” don’t fit this definition and no matter how hard the marketing departments try, it will never be. Now that I’ve got that out of the way, let’s discuss the Passat CC. I personally enjoyed this car very much, it goes a long way for Volkswagens name as the peoples car offering exceptional quality for the price. 

The exterior of the car is probably one of the sleekest and well designed cars on the market coming to showrooms. Despite a slightly questionable rear end with oogly tail lights, the profile and front end of the car are just magnificent. The sloping roof line and artisanal driving lines give this car such an elegant and refined look. The front grill is not overbearing and appropriate for the car, the full sized sun roof, which doesn’t open besides being able to tilt, it adds that special touch that only glass can provide. The headlights are shaped aggressively giving the car a fierce mug adding some zest to the already picante styling. The body lines and chrome accents give the car an even more distinct shape yet doesn’t overwhelm the viewer. This car definitely attracts a lot of attention and I doubt you will see many on the road when the car hits the lots. At a price of a loaded $42,000+, it seems that an Audi would be a better deal for that range. 

Being in the interior of the car is like sitting in a cheaper Mercedes Benz, and I don’t mean that in a bad way. The leather and trim is very well put together with soft materials and solid engineering. The seats a comfortable, spacious, as well as offer a wide foot well for both passenger and driver in the front. The car we had came with black soft cow skins tied together in white stitching adding a nice touch to the color scheme. In the back seat, its like sitting in business class minus the pop up screen an tray table. Where the center seat would be there is a tray with cup-holders making it a strict 4 passenger car. Seating is also comfortable in the back and if it had a reclining option would make the car absolutely world class. In terms of infotainment, the Nav system is potentially one of the best in car navigations I have ever used.

With Lane assist and nearly pin point location getting around in this car is super easy. Sound comes through crystal clear and the screen is vibrant and bright. The controls and buttons are cushioned making them feel like nice to the touch and the steering controls are generally useful. Finally, this car has a back up camera, does it need one? Perhaps it does perhaps it doesn’t, but none the less such technology manages to always come in handy and make any tech geek giggle like a 5 year old on the inside. The only thing I would change in the infotainment center is a faster processor and RAM to speed up the system, especially with a price tag biting the heels of around $3000. I can rattle off 5 aftermarket GPS/entertainment units with the same features (if not more) that cost a fraction of the onboard system and have the computing velocity of an F-16, as opposed to the CC’s Sopwith Camel (google it). 

The engine is in the model we had was the VR6 coupled with 4Motion all wheel drive. Although the car has 280 horsepower it doesn’t feel like a sprinter off the line. 0 to 60 is 6.6 seconds which isn’t bad at all, but where this car really shines is cruising along the highway. At autobahn speeds, the CC hunkers down and sails flawlessly along without any fuss. There is very little road noise and engine growl in the cabin when driving subdued, but the engine livens up a little audibly. The steering and handling in the car feel world class and manages to drive straight like a thread through a needle. All in all if your looking to burn some cash on a unique luxury car that doesn’t have a luxury marque on it, this is your car. If you have little to no taste and want to look like everyone else, then buy what everyone else has, but that’s limited to you good kind folk who know nothing about cars - no offense.