Volkswagen Passat Gas Mileage

The Volkswagen Passat delivers understated luxury and good gas mileage. While classified as a family sedan, outside appearances can be deceiving. As we found from hands-on testing, the stealthily luxurious Passat is capable of producing very respectable highway gas mileage figures. While earlier models of the Passat were available with Volkswagen’s highly efficient turbo-diesel (TDI) power plant, VW stopped importing Passat TDIs to the States after the 2005 model year. We expect the Passat TDI to follow the Jetta TDI in returning to our shores, now that the diesel engine has been tweaked to meet tougher US emission standards.

Two model-specific gasoline-powered engines are available in the 2008 Passat. The turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 2.0 liter four cylinder engine produces 200 horsepower (HP) and 207 foot pounds of torque, with “premium fuel recommended for maximum performance.” This is not an entry-level engine, by any means, as VW estimates 0-60 times of 6.6 seconds for the turbo four. Taking it up a notch, the VR6 and all-wheel-drive VR6 4Motion are fitted with a conventionally aspirated six cylinder engine, producing 280 HP and 265 foot pounds of torque, with an estimated 0-60 time of 6.2 seconds.

Volkswagen Passat Gas Mileage – 1990-2010

Note: the EPA tweaked their testing procedure, starting with the 2008 model year, with the end result being that the 2008 MPG estimates are now lower than previous years. As always, YMMV.

– by Daniel Gray