Volkswagen Passat Estate 1.5 TSI eHybrid 204ps

[jim239]

Hi everyone,

Looking at a new tow car on lease and am interested in the VW Passat. I know it has won tow car of the year but the version I am looking at is the 1.5 plug in hybrid which wasn’t the one tested. I currently have a Ford S-Max and tow a Swift Alpine 4, my concern is that going from a 2.0 Diesel to the petrol hybrid would be a downgrade in towing ability although it would be an upgrade in other ways. Does anyone have any experience of the 1.5 hybrid? Even though it’s rated to tow my caravan would I be better to look at other options. Thanks, Jim

 

[otherclive]

Not the same as the car you are looking at but this thread may be helpful. My own view is that a 1.5 turbo petrol engine backed up with an electric motor will be a good tow car. Check out the comparitive torque and rev figures for the Passat PHEV and the 2.0 diesel. It’s a misnomer that when the PHEV battery is run down all you have then is the output of a 1.5 litre turbo petrol. You will still get electric assist via regeneration but not enough to drive any distance on battery power alone.

BMW 3 series estate Plug in hybrid: towing performance

Does anyone tow or know anyone who tows with this BMW or Mercedes C300e estate? I'm interested in a hybrid because we have a charger at home, but on researching these 2 cars, found out that the manufacturers de-tune the 2.0L engine on the hybrids. So how well do these cars tow when the electric...

forums.practicalcaravan.com

 

[jim239]

Thank you, that was my assumption too. I don’t have much experience in towing as this is my first caravan. As much as I would like a big SUV with a 3.0l diesel they are a lot of money. Having said that the deal I was looking at has now gone up by £250 a month so I may need to go back to square one but hopefully not.

I think I will still look at a hybrid though as most of the time we are not towing and the range on electric alone will be enough to cover 90% of its use. Still not sure on fully electric, but the new Volvo EX60 has an impressive range and may be worth a look in the future.

 

[Woodentop]

Being non-specific, we have had three consecutive Passat Estates, 2x140bhp and the last was 150bhp. We have towed all over Europe(ish) without problem and with good stability plus good fuel consumption. Getting into grey hair territory we replaced the last Passat with a Skoda Karoq Sportline 2L 150bhp diesel, and that too tows like a dream but with even better fuel consumption. The thing that took us away from the Passat is that to get out you have to - effectively - climb up, whereas the Karoq is more of an SUV so you climb out which is much easier.
I would however suggest if you are tall that you try one before buying as the Sportsline lacks a bit in the driver legroom region, whereas the SE or SEL (we had one as courtesy car during a service) seems to have rather more. With size 11 feet when driving in walking boots for example I find the throttle and brake pedals just a tad too close which can result in pushing both pedals with one foot if I have to move foot foot quickly. Equally my left foot sometimes fouls the side of the tunnel in the same circumstances. An automatic - which the Passat will be - of course overcomes this problem.