2012 Volkswagen Passat Named NADAguides' Car of the Month for October

COSTA MESA, Calif., Oct. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

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News Highlights

• NADAguides, the leading provider of vehicle pricing and information, announces the 2012 Volkswagen Passat as the Car of the Month for October – noting that the complete redesign is simple, smooth, elegant and appealing.  
• NADAguides analysts found the 2012 Passat redesign to be fresh and sporty with an ergonomically comfortable design and new technological features that are intuitive, useful and very competitive in the segment.  Power under the hood, premium comfort, and excellent fuel economy combine to make this exceptional vehicle the NADAguides Car of the Month for October.
• Additionally, NADAguides analysts noted that consumer interest for the 2012 Volkswagen Passat has increased month-over-month and more than doubled in consumer market interest from July to August 2011.  
• The 2012 Passat comes standard with 6 airbags and was selected as a Top Safety Pick by IIHS, making it an excellent choice for NADAguides new car shoppers who recently voted on airbag protection (51 percent) and IIHS Safety Ratings (27 percent) as the top two most important safety features when purchasing a vehicle.
• The 2012 Volkswagen Passat has a starting MSRP of $19,995 for the 2.5L Manual S model and goes up to a starting MSRP of $32,950 for the 3.6L V6 DSG SEL Premium model.  

Key Quotes

• Troy Snyder, Director of Product Development at NADAguides: "The 2012 Volkswagen Passat delivers power when needed and plenty of it, luxurious comfort, the right feature set to make driving enjoyable and the reliability that Passat has delivered for years.  The NADAguides team took note of the Passat's increase in interior space, offering more legroom in the backseat than its competitors, and the overall exterior design changes which, we found to be more edgy and modern.  Additionally, the Volkswagen DSG automatic transmission gives the 2012 Passat smoother and faster shifting than previous models.  This is a sedan that will give the competition a run for its money, especially with such a huge price cut from last year."  
• Frank Trivieri, Vice President of Sales, Volkswagen of America, Inc.: "We're thrilled that NADAguides has recognized the 2012 Volkswagen Passat as its Car of the Month. The all new Chattanooga, Tennessee built Passat is the only mid-size sedan that offers German engineering and premium features such as dual zone climate control and Bluetooth at an accessible base price of $19,995. The fuel efficient Passat TDI is the only Clean Diesel engine option in the mid-size segment and offers a best-in-class 43 mpg highway. The Passat is the new benchmark in the midsize segment."

2012 Volkswagen Passat Highlights

• Engine:  The 2012 Volkswagen Passat is offered in a 2.5L engine, 3.6L V6 engine and a 2.0L TDI® Clean Diesel engine.  The 2.5L engine with five-cylinder manual transmission offers 21 city and 32 highway MPG, 170 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque.  The 2.0L TDI Clean Diesel engine manual transmission achieves an estimated 31 MPG city and 43 MPG highway – with an 18.5 gallon tank that means the driver can travel up to 795 miles on one tank of fuel – and produces 140 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque.  The 3.6L V6 engine produces 280 hp and 265 lb-ft torque and achieves an estimated 20 MPG city and 28 MPG highway.  Volkswagen also offers an available DSG® automatic transmission, which is one of the fastest-shifting transmissions available, and the analysts at NADAguides found it to offer smoother shifting than previous models.
• Interior:  Leather seating surfaces with suede-like Dinamica inserts, best in class rear legroom, power windows with one-touch control, dual-zone automatic climate control, and heated front seats are just some of the amenities that come standard in the 2012 Volkswagen Passat.  The analysts at NADAguides commented on the overall ergonomic design, the intuitive layout that made it easy to adapt to the new vehicle and the ease of adjusting the vehicle to fit the drivers and passengers needs.  With a tight and clean design the Passat offers very elegant design elements without being too flashy.
• Technology:  The 2012 Volkswagen Passat comes standard with remote and push-button start, an automatic vehicle illumination system which turns on the exterior lights when you unlock the vehicle, and a Fender™ Premium Audio System.  Additionally, the new Passat comes with Bluetooth® technology, premium touchscreen navigation, a Media Device Interface (MDI) with iPod® cable, and a multi-function steering wheel.  The analysts at NADAguides feel the Passat has the technology features capable of making it a strong competitor in its class.  
• Safety: When it comes to safety, the 2012 Volkswagen Passat has a long list of features that helped it earn a Top Safety Pick by the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety.  An Intelligent Crash Response System unlocks the doors, turns off power to the fuel pump, and turns on the hazard lights should the vehicle be in a crash.  Additionally, the 2012 Volkswagen Passat also comes standard with six airbags, Electronic Stability Control (ESC), a crash-optimized front end, TPMS which alerts the driver of any loss in tire pressure, corner-illuminating fog lights and ABS with HBA which helps keep the brakes from locking up during sudden stops and helps the driver retain control over the steering during emergency braking.  
• Price/Warranty:  The 2012 Volkswagen Passat has a starting MSRP of $19,995 for the 2.5L Manual S model and goes up to a starting MSRP of $32,950 for the 3.6L V6 DSG SEL Premium model.  Volkswagen offers a three year, 36,000 mile New Vehicle Limited Warranty and a five year, 60,000 mile Powertrain Limited Warranty.  Additionally, Volkswagen offers 24 hour roadside assistance with no-charge towing of vehicles under warranty.  

About NADAguides Car of the Month Award

The NADAguides Car of the Month award provides consumers with practical information on new cars, trucks and SUVs chosen by the analysts at NADAguides for exceptional performance, efficiency, features, options and appeal.  Criteria used to determine the Car of the Month includes: quality of engineering, fuel efficiency, safety equipment and ratings, pricing and overall value, sales trends, consumer market interest on NADAguides.com, and test drives performed by NADAguides market analysts.  Car of the Month vehicles are eligible for the NADAguides Car of the Year award.  

About NADAguides

NADAguides (www.nadaguides.com) is the largest publisher of vehicle pricing and information for new and used cars, classic cars, motorcycles, boats, RVs, and manufactured homes. NADAguides offers in-depth shopping and research tools in addition to the most market-reflective pricing available. The company also produces software, mobile applications, raw data, web services, web-syndicated products and print guidebooks.

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