Volkswagen caused a certain amount of confusion - well, I was confused if nobody else was - by announcing that it was going to call this car the CC. When other manufacturers use CC in a name, they mean that the car is a coupé-convertible, but not VW. This is simply the coupé version of the Passat, and the only way of removing the roof is to get busy with a grinder. Best not do that - it won't help residual values.The "ordinary" Passat is by no means a bad looker, but the CC is several degrees better. What's more, it has a lot more room than the word "coupé" might lead you to believe. There is more space in the back of the standard car, of course, but it's still possible to carry four reasonably-sized adults in the CC.Another Passat trait has been carried over: the CC is an exceptionally pleasant car to drive, whether you're moseying along gently, looking for a parking space or pushing on briskly over interesting roads. The controls are all beautifully weighted, and there's not a single handling issue which makes you feel you're about to overstep the mark, or at least not at sensible road speeds.GT versions of the Passat CC come with Adaptive Chassis Control, which gives the driver three-way adjustment of the dampers. It's an option on the non-GT, and it wasn't fitted to the test car, but to be honest I think the engineers have done a good enough job of the suspension without needing this extra feature.The car reviewed here is by no means the fastest in the Passat CC range. That honour goes to the 3.6-litre V6 four-wheel drive version, which costs £31,145. Our car is at the other end of the scale in most respects, including price. In fact it's the base model, the only one in the range with the 158bhp 1.8 TSI petrol engine (the much more economical 138bhp 2.0 TDI turbo diesel seems a wiser choice, since it costs only £805 more).In this particular case the engine is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox, though you can have the seven-speed semi-automatic DSG for an extra £1310.I can happily say that the 1.8 doesn't feel like an entry-level car, though that's partly because this one was fitted with a lot of extras: DVD touchscreen satellite navigation, a Dynaudio pack, an MP3-compatible 6-CD autochanger, nappa leather upholstery, heated sports seats, front and rear parking sensors, a panoramic sunroof, Bluetooth compatibility, bi-xenon headlights (with range adjustment, corner lighting and washers) and metallic paint all contrived to raise the price from £21,065 to £27,655, which of course puts a whole new complexion on the matter.Either way, though, the car seems worth it, and although I suspect most buyers will pile on the extras, the ones who keep the car standard will surely feel they got a lot of quality for their money.There's an inevitable price to pay in terms of load-carrying practicality if you opt for the CC rather than the saloon, but as with the rear passenger space it isn't an especially heavy one.Volkswagen quotes 532 litres for the CC as opposed to 565 litres for the saloon, which isn't likely to make a great deal of difference, and as with the saloon you can fold down the seat for extra capacity if you need to. The boot opening isn't very wide, and the sill is high, though a plus point is that the lid opens a long way, so taller folk are unlikely to bump their heads against it.Volkswagen describes the Passat CC as a niche model, and so it is. The 1.8 TSI is around £3500 more expensive than its saloon equivalent and has almost nothing to show for it apart from the sleeker styling. But as an attractive and practical coupé which genuinely has room for four people and is a delight to drive, it undoubtedly makes a very good case for itself. Engine 1798 cc, 4 cylinders Power 160 bhp @5000 rpm Torque 185 ib/ft @1500 rpm Transmission 6 speed manual Fuel/CO2 37.2 mpg / 180 g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 8.6sec Top speed 138 mph Price From £21196.00 approx Release date 01/06/2008
Our Rating
