Ninth-Gen Volkswagen Passat Unveiled – Bigger, Greener And Wagon-Only Body

New ninth-gen (B9) Volkswagen Passat bows exclusively as a long-roofed 'wagon' or estate.

Debuting today is the new ninth generation (B9) iteration of the Volkswagen Passat. However, unlike its predecessors, the Passat now comes exclusively in ‘wagon’ or estate body form, and it appears VW has no traditional booted, three-box sedan flavour to pair it up with.

Whilst this might bode well against increasingly popular crossover SUV alternatives in markets where the long-roofed body style is widely accepted like Europe and North America, the new Passat’s future in other markets like ours where said body style isn’t necessarily popular remains unclear - more on which in a bit.

Standard luggage space of 690 litres (left) can be nearly tripled to 1,920 litres (right), the latter marking a 140-litre improvement from the previous estate-bodied B8 Passat.

Back to the new ninth-gen car, which underpins VW’s MQB Evo chassis platform, the B9 Passat has been enlarged, sitting 144 MM longer at 4,917 MM with a 50 MM stretch in its wheelbase to 2,841 MM. It’s also widened by 20 MM to 1,852 MM whilst the roofline has lowered slightly by 10 MM to 1,506 MM now.

Obviously, this size growth does wonders towards both cabin real estate and cargo capacity. The latter is evident through the standard capacity’s 40-litre rise to 690-litre with the rear seats up. This nearly triples to 1,920-litre said rear seats down, marking a whopping 140-litre improvement over the B8 here too.

Though all-new, the exterior design appears 'safe' in approach and aligns with VW's all-electric ID models. Note the new matrix LED headlights plus dynamic LED taillights present, the latter bolstered with a light bar too.

As for design, it appears VW has taken a ‘safe’ approach here as there aren’t any radical styling changes to note, but it is all new and, aptly, aligned with the general design and outlook of the German brand’s all-electric ID offering, thus giving it a rather ‘current’ new outlook here.

As before, the exterior appearance alters depending on trimlines which, beside a ‘base’ Passat, sees a Business, Elegance, and sporty R-Line choices available. All sport VW’s latest matrix LED headlights matched with dynamic LED taillights, the latter also boasting a light bar running across its entire width too.

Capping off the exterior, the new B9 Passat estate rolls on a variety of wheel sizes too, the largest of the lot measuring 19-inches in diameter.

Both digital displays are all-new, with the infotainment touchscreen available in 12.9-inch size as standard and can be optionally up-sized to 15-inch. 

Changes are more visible and drastic on board in the cabin. Most of the switchgear interface seen in the outgoing B8 Passat are eliminated in this new B9 successor. Most cabin functions and controls are now tied through a sizable 12.9-inch infotainment touchscreen unit, which can optionally be upsized to 15-inch.

Gone too are analogue dials as the B9 Passat now greet drivers with a new and all-digital 10.25-inch instrument display panel. Other notable changes include the repositioned gear selector stalk in the steering column, as well as new heated, ventilated, and massaging 14-way power-adjustable seats.

Besides the familiar 2.0-litre TSI and TDI 4-cyl range, the B9 Passat also adopts a 1.5-litre eTSI 4-cyl MHEV powerplant option for the first time too.

Moreover, the B9 Passat also gets PHEV powertrain choices, all consisting of a 1.5-litre TSI 4-cyl paired with an electric motor and 19.7 kWh battery that accepts 50 kW DC charging inputs. There's also a claimed 100 KM of EV range to boot with the PHEV setup.

On to powertrain and the B9 Passat estate now stands greener than its predecessors here. For the first time, the Passat harnesses a mild-hybrid (MHEV) 1.5-litre eTSI 4-cyl mill that features cylinder deactivation abilities. The familiar 2.0-litre TSI petrol and TDI diesel options are present too with varying power outputs.

All available mills are paired with a 7-speed DCT automatic box, and buyers can opt between front- (FWD) or all-wheel-drive (AWD) driveline choices as before with the mills mentioned.

These aside, the B9 Passat is also available with plug-in hybrid (PHEV) powertrain options. The package consists of a 1.5-litre TSI 4-cyl mill plus an electric motor and accompanying 19.7 kWh battery pack, as well as a 6-speed DSG automatic box.

Outputs from the PHEV varies too, the least being 201 HP and 350 NM whilst the peppiest sees 268 HP and 400 NM available. Notably, the battery accepts DC rapid-charging inputs as high as 50 KW, granting 10-80% charges in just 25 minutes and, on a full-charge, a claimed 100 KM of EV range to boot.

Set for production in Bratislava alongside its Skoda Superb twin, the Passat B9 is set to go on sale starting Q1 next year.

Set to debut publicly at the upcoming IAA Munich show next week, the new ninth-gen Volkswagen Passat will be produced not in Germany, but in Bratislava, Slovakia in the same line alongside its new Skoda-badged Superb twin. Sales are slated to kick off starting in the first quarter (Q1) of next year (2024).

Locally, both the former Volkswagen Group Malaysia (VGM) and succeeding Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) entities never offered the B8-gen Passat in Malaysia in estate form. Instead, the B8-gen Passat, as well as its B7-gen predecessor, came in traditional sedan forms and were locally built (CKD).

Moreover, VPCM quietly discontinued the facelifted B8-gen Passat from its range in Jan last year. This was perhaps a move prompted by the increasing popularity of crossover SUV alternatives like the Tiguan Allspace. Only the sporty Arteon fastback saloon remains as the sole booted, four-door VW model on sale now.

Given how wagons and estates are generally not popular here, it appears highly unlikely that we’ll see this ninth-gen iteration of perhaps one of VW’s longest-running nameplates making landfall. Nevertheless, what do you think of the new Passat? Would you prefer this over the upcoming Tiguan?