The Mumbai-Pune Expressway. 160kms of bitumen-coated tarmac stretching across the heart of Maharashtra and connecting two of the busiest metros in the country is surely a motoring enthusiast’s paradise if ever there is one, in India. There is no speed limit in all except the most winding sections which means you can go ‘pedal to metal’ and see what your car’s top speed really is. It is best enjoyed with a sportscar, perhaps a Bugatti Veyron or even lesser an Audi R8. Interestingly, I was in the Expressway, driving a front wheel drive diesel sedan with an automatic gearbox and four people on board. The only thing I had in common with the cars mentioned above was the famous DSG gearbox and the Volkswagen DNA that runs through the brands of other cars that are under the VW ownership.
I must remind myself that the Bugatti and Audi are too far off in my career but I was not disappointed with the Volkswagen either. Firstly don’t be fooled by that diesel engine. It may be slightly noisy and the 140bhp output may not give you any bragging rights, but it is more than adequate when it comes to making the VW rocket off the line. Secondly the VW is capable of cutting distances so fast that before I knew it I reached the end of the 160km expressway. And thirdly, it is an expert at disguising speeds that 150kmph felt like 100 and no one was complaining when I was bettering 180kmph.
The Passat comes with all the equipments that you can possibly think of in a car and has more. For a start it has six airbags, 12-way adjustable front seats, ESP(Electronic stability Programme), cruise control, cornering headlamps, rain sensors, parking sensors and two zone climate contol. It is the attention to detail that interested me more than these. For instance, the vehicle manual is stowed away in the glove-box and is accessible by pulling a strap. The front door has a thoughtful umbrella holder with holes for draining away water. The rear door has curtains that can be neatly tucked away, when not in use. The front cup holders have a unique revolving design that is not only good for accommodating containers of varying sizes, but also feels tech laden. I can go on…
The greatest thing about this car is the brilliant DSG gearbox. Not only does it take the load of shifting gears off your shoulders but it also lets you shift gears at will and have fun by allowing shifting in four ways. One in the sedate Drive mode, another in the quicker Sports mode, a third by pushing the mushroom like gearknob back and fourth and finally a fourth one by operating the paddles (think Honda Civic) behind the steering wheel much like in a Ferrari. This last one was my favourite since it reminded me of the Veyron again and this proved to be faster in the hills of Mahabaleshwar as the big VW was darting from corner to corner.
The engine produces 140bhp and 32.6kg-m of torque. The fun part is that this torque is concentrated at a narrow powerband. When you hit this, it immediately catapults you forward while the DSG gets the next appropriate ratio ready for you. The surge is so enjoyable that you will be looking for gaps in traffic to shoot the VW arrow. The engine is also very fuel efficient which offsets the only concerning parameter, the noise it produces.
The ride may appear slightly stiff when you hit the road, at first. It is stiff, but the ride is not anything to complain about except when you have a broken patch of road. In fact the ride quality only gets better with speed and at very high speeds it was quite well damped and the car goes in a serene way much like that of an ocean liner. And the upside to that stiff suspension set up is the handling which is very sporty and involving had it been not for that slightly numb steering. The steering loses precision and feels vague at the centre position but this is probably there to minimize the need for frequent corrections at high speeds. The body control is excellent and the car feels eager to change directions. The brilliant chassis fools you into thinking ‘rear wheel drive’.
And its talents didn’t stop just there… it went on to become one of my favourite sedans sold in India right now. It is much more capable than that 3series or C class but a lot cheaper. I can forgive the noisy engine and the stiff ride quality of this car. I can even see myself waiting with a bag filled with a lot of money, at a nearby dealership…but wait, as of now, there is no such VW dealership as the one nearby. The nearest one is in Bangalore and the farthest one in Delhi and in between, you have one in Mumbai as well. There are only three. And that is the only fault I can find with it.
I must remind myself that the Bugatti and Audi are too far off in my career but I was not disappointed with the Volkswagen either. Firstly don’t be fooled by that diesel engine. It may be slightly noisy and the 140bhp output may not give you any bragging rights, but it is more than adequate when it comes to making the VW rocket off the line. Secondly the VW is capable of cutting distances so fast that before I knew it I reached the end of the 160km expressway. And thirdly, it is an expert at disguising speeds that 150kmph felt like 100 and no one was complaining when I was bettering 180kmph.
The Passat comes with all the equipments that you can possibly think of in a car and has more. For a start it has six airbags, 12-way adjustable front seats, ESP(Electronic stability Programme), cruise control, cornering headlamps, rain sensors, parking sensors and two zone climate contol. It is the attention to detail that interested me more than these. For instance, the vehicle manual is stowed away in the glove-box and is accessible by pulling a strap. The front door has a thoughtful umbrella holder with holes for draining away water. The rear door has curtains that can be neatly tucked away, when not in use. The front cup holders have a unique revolving design that is not only good for accommodating containers of varying sizes, but also feels tech laden. I can go on…
The greatest thing about this car is the brilliant DSG gearbox. Not only does it take the load of shifting gears off your shoulders but it also lets you shift gears at will and have fun by allowing shifting in four ways. One in the sedate Drive mode, another in the quicker Sports mode, a third by pushing the mushroom like gearknob back and fourth and finally a fourth one by operating the paddles (think Honda Civic) behind the steering wheel much like in a Ferrari. This last one was my favourite since it reminded me of the Veyron again and this proved to be faster in the hills of Mahabaleshwar as the big VW was darting from corner to corner.
The engine produces 140bhp and 32.6kg-m of torque. The fun part is that this torque is concentrated at a narrow powerband. When you hit this, it immediately catapults you forward while the DSG gets the next appropriate ratio ready for you. The surge is so enjoyable that you will be looking for gaps in traffic to shoot the VW arrow. The engine is also very fuel efficient which offsets the only concerning parameter, the noise it produces.
The ride may appear slightly stiff when you hit the road, at first. It is stiff, but the ride is not anything to complain about except when you have a broken patch of road. In fact the ride quality only gets better with speed and at very high speeds it was quite well damped and the car goes in a serene way much like that of an ocean liner. And the upside to that stiff suspension set up is the handling which is very sporty and involving had it been not for that slightly numb steering. The steering loses precision and feels vague at the centre position but this is probably there to minimize the need for frequent corrections at high speeds. The body control is excellent and the car feels eager to change directions. The brilliant chassis fools you into thinking ‘rear wheel drive’.
And its talents didn’t stop just there… it went on to become one of my favourite sedans sold in India right now. It is much more capable than that 3series or C class but a lot cheaper. I can forgive the noisy engine and the stiff ride quality of this car. I can even see myself waiting with a bag filled with a lot of money, at a nearby dealership…but wait, as of now, there is no such VW dealership as the one nearby. The nearest one is in Bangalore and the farthest one in Delhi and in between, you have one in Mumbai as well. There are only three. And that is the only fault I can find with it.
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