The Volkswagen Passat is a nameplate of large family cars (D-segment) manufactured and marketed by the German automobile manufacturer Volkswagen since 1973 and also marketed variously as the Dasher, Santana, Quantum, Magotan, Corsar and Carat — in saloon, estate, and hatchback body styles.

The first generation Passat was a fastback variant of the mechanically identical Audi 80 sedan, introduced a year earlier.

A five-door station wagon was introduced in 1974, which in North American markets was sold as an Audi Fox.

In 1978, the Dasher received a facelift along the lines of the European Passat, with quad sealed beam headlights and big polyurethane covered bumpers.

In addition to the Passat hatchbacks and Variants (estate/wagon), there was also a conventional three-box saloon, which until the 1985 facelift was sold as the Volkswagen Santana in Europe.

The four-wheel drive Syncro wagon version was introduced in October 1984, initially only with the more powerful five-cylinder engine.

Unlike its predecessor, the top-of the line versions received five-cylinder Audi or VW engines of 1.9–2.2 litres.

This, also called the "Formel E" had a particularly long top gear, which combined with a freewheeling mechanism, provided better gas mileage.

The Syncro's bottom plate was almost entirely different, requiring a transmission tunnel, a relocated gas tank and no spare tire well (to make room for the complex rear axle assembly).

In 1985, the range received a slight facelift, consisting of new, larger bumpers, interior retouches, a new front grille and new taillights on the hatchback versions.

[5][6] At the time, it was the first transverse engine layout Passat to be built on a Volkswagen-designed platform, rather than sharing one with an Audi saloon.

The facelift revised external body panels except for the roof and glasshouse, with most obvious exterior change seeing the reintroduction of a grille to match the style of the other same-generation Volkswagen models of the era, such as the Mk3 Golf and Jetta.

The interior was mildly updated and included safety equipment, such as dual front airbags and seat belt pretensioners, although the basic dashboard design remained unchanged.

It carried a US EPA fuel efficiency rating for the sedan of 45 miles per US gallon (5.2 L/100 km; 54 mpg‑imp) highway.

An all-new Passat, based on the Volkswagen Group B5 platform, was first launched in Germany in 1996 and later on in February 1997 in Continental Europe and the United Kingdom, and 1998 in North America as well as Australia.

A 4.0-litre W8 engine producing 275 PS (202 kW) was introduced in 2001 in a luxury version of the car that included standard 4motion all-wheel drive.

The B6 debuted at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2005, and launched in Europe in the summer of 2005 for the 2006 model year.

[9] Volkswagen facelifted the Passat CC in late 2011 for the 2012 year, with styling updates akin to those of the larger Phaeton.

The B6 Passat was facelifted by Klaus Bischoff and Walter de Silva[11] and was unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in September 2010.

The eighth generation model of the Passat was unveiled on 3 July 2014,[12] with sales commenced in November 2014 in Continental Europe and in January 2015 in the United Kingdom as a four-door saloon and estate.

[13] The Passat B8 continued to be sold in China under the name Magotan; this version has an 80 mm longer wheelbase.

[14] The Magotan sedan was unveiled on 25 April 2024 at the 2024 Beijing Auto Show, being based on the same platform as the B9 Passat estate sold globally.

The Passat Pro based on the same platform as the B9 Magotan, developed from the SAIC Volkswagen joint venture exclusively for the Chinese market and released in September 2024.

The NMS is more downscale compared to the European Passat to achieve a lower price point and penetrate the mainstream mid-size sedan market.

At its introduction, the Passat NMS was part of Volkswagen Group's strategy to sell over 800,000 vehicles per year in the North American market.

The Passat NMS is marketed in the North America, South Korea, Middle East,[23] and China, with no plans for a wagon/estate version.

North American, Middle Eastern and South Korean models are manufactured at its Chattanooga Assembly Plant.

The 2020 Volkswagen Passat NMS featured revised styling and added standard safety and technology features, which include a suite of standard driver assistance technologies and a 6.33-inch glass-covered touchscreen infotainment system with next-generation VW CarNet 4G LTE in-vehicle telematics.

Following the 2022 model year, Volkswagen discontinued the Passat in North America due to slow sales.

[28] In China, the European version Passat is sold as the VW Magotan from the B6 generation, produced by FAW-Volkswagen.