New Volkswagen Passat To Hit Indian Market In January 2017

The test mule of the new Passat have been already spotted in India without wearing any camouflage and the Volkswagen India dealerships are all geared up for the launch in 2017.

The all-new Passat made its first appearance in India at the 2016 Auto Expo in the month of February this year.

Initially, the new Passat will be available only in Petrol variant. The diesel version of the luxury sedan will be introduced at a later stage.

The petrol variant Passat is powered by 1.8-litre TSI engine which produces 180bhp. The engine is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. The same petrol engine is currently powering the Skoda Superb and Octavia.

The eight-generation Passat is marginally smaller in size compared to its previous iterations. Although VW claims that the cabin space has been increased due to the new MQB platform.

After its launch with a petrol version, VW will also bring the diesel variant of the Passat powered by a 2-litre engine.

Volkswagen is also speculating on launching a petrol-electric hybrid Passat GTE to cater the demand of alternative fuel in the country. However, only limited number of hybrid versions will be launched as the German carmaker will test the feasibility of the model in India.

When launched the new Passat will go head on with the likes of Skoda Superb and Toyota Camry, while the hybrid variant will take on the Honda Accord Hybrid which will be launched later this month.