Volkswagen group is planning to call its time for the Passat in the European market. The new generation of the mid-size sedan was planned to shift its production to the new VW Group plant in Turkey from Emden, Germany plant. But, the recent conflicts in Syria compelled the German Automaker to change its plans and thus shifted the production to the largest city in Slovakia, Bratislava following an investment of EUR 1 Billion in the plant.
The shift was planned after the production of Skoda Superb would be shifted out from the Czech plant in Kvasiny in 2023. However, there have been rumours floating around claiming that VW could be planning to kill the Passat in Europe, as it had done for the US-spec model built in Chattanooga. The poor sales figures of Passat i.e. a disappointing 14,123 units in an entire year as compared to Toyota Camry with the same sales figure for an entire month was strong enough fact which led the VW group deciding to discontinue Passat in the US market. With the recent shift in the market with people preferring SUVs and crossovers over the four-door sedans, VW is likely to pull the trigger for the Passat.
Moreover, the Passat’s sister model, Skoda Superb claims to be a more value for money option with maximum audience preferring it over the Passat. The Superb is more practical, has a larger footprint and a hatchback layout which attracts more eyes towards itself. Over the years Superb was cheaper than Passat however recently the gap has reduced significantly. As of now the next generation of Superb will be targeted to central and eastern Europe whereas the Passat which has high reputation will be aimed to the western European countries.
It is likely that Volkswagen will now shift its focus to the emerging Electric vehicle segment and plans to add a new four-door Aero electric model at the Emden factory from 2023. It will be based on the 2019 ID Space Vizzion concept i.e. in the shape of a wagon.