Volkswagen Passat CC In Depth

Press Release

Exterior: Design and dimensions

• Four-door coupé is only 1.42 meters high
• Passat CC takes the stage with unmistakably unique design
• Frameless doors emphasize sporty-elegant positioning

The Passat – a success for more than three decades – is now the technological platform for the first four-door coupé from Volkswagen. This guarantees that the Passat CC too will employ a range of technology that reflects the top level in this market segment worldwide. Tailored to these technologies is a body that was completely restructured and redesigned.

Design and dimensions

The four-door coupé measures 4,796 millimeters in length, which is 31 millimeters more than the classic Passat. With a width of 1,856 millimeters (an extra 36 millimeters), the Passat CC already ranges within the competitive field of upper mid-class cars. Similar to its overall width, its track width dimensions were also modified. In front it is 1,533 millimeters (an extra 11 millimeters), and in the rear 1,557 milli­meters (a gain of 16 millimeters). The new Volkswagen measures just 1,422 millimeters in height (lowered by 50 millimeters) – very sports car like.

Side profile

Especially distinctive are the flowing lines of the car’s side profile. The roof sweeps toward the rear with a very flat curve radius, from the A pillars to far beyond the C pillars. The lines of the trunk region even extend into the rear window, as if drawn with a single line. The side windows trace a narrow arc bordered in chrome. To further intensify the sporty styling, the side windows are guided into frameless doors. Beneath the window line, a muscular, developed shoulder line is used as a style-defining design element, which is emphasized by a distinct “tornado line”. In the case of the Passat CC, it provides a visual connection from the front wheel wells to the taillights; its three-dimensional expression generates a plus in dynamic tension – and that may be taken literally with regard to the stability of the external metal skin. No less powerful: the strong modulation of the door above the chrome guard strips, the emphasis of the side skirts and the sporty, outboard wheel wells over the standard 17-inch alloy wheels (or optional 18-inch wheels).

Front end

The front end of the Passat CC shows another facet of the Volkswagen brand’s face. Here too, the radiator grille, headlamps and engine hood unify the sedan and coupé worlds. More dominant than on any other Volkswagen, the radiator grille with its two cross-struts and centrally placed VW logo spans the area between the trapezoidal headlamps. The grille is framed-in by a surface in car color whose V-like shape provides a visual interface to the engine hood with its distinctive power dome. In the lower area, three large air inlets and the flasher and fog lamps, left and right, dominate the visual image. The lower borders of the air inlets are formed by a sports car spoiler that optimizes the downforce of the Passat CC at higher speeds. An indicator of the Passat CC’s excellent overall aerodynamic qualities is its drag coefficient of cw 0.29.

Rear end

The rear end of the Passat CC is also marked by an absolutely independent design. Large-format dual taillights produce an unmistakable visual image, day and night. A rear spoiler – that has been very stylishly worked into the modula­tion of the trunk lid – tames air turbulence and, like its counterpart at the front end, generates greater downforce. The large rear window visually extends far into the short but high-opening tailgate. It is a continuation of the coupé’s roof line. A styling trick makes the window appear even larger and the tailgate even smaller: the tailgate section directly bordering the glass has a cross-stripe painted in black with a glass-like appearance. From a purely visual perspective, it extends the glass look and thereby underscores the dynamic character of the Passat CC. In the lower section of the bumper, meanwhile, attention is drawn to the chrome trim strips there, and to the continuation of the seam of the side sill.

Panorama vent sunroof

Newly developed for the Passat CC is an electrically powered Panorama vent sunroof. The transparent roof is 750 millimeters long and 1,120 millimeters wide. This means that it covers the entire front section up to the B pillars. In this case, the front roof cross-beam is also in black. The power “Panorama vent sunroof” can be pivoted upward by 40 millimeters.