Volkswagen Passat GTE review

The Volkswagen Passat GTE would appear to let you have your cake and eat it. It's very big, no matter whether you choose the saloon or the estate version, and can effectively operate as an electric car for long enough to cover off most commutes. Yet unlike a pure electric car, it won't conk out when the battery is flat; there's a petrol engine under the bonnet that will keep you going as long as there's fuel in the tank.

It's what's called a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and while it doesn't quite offer the tax incentives of a fully electric model, like the Tesla Model 3 or Kia e-Niro, it's still massively cheaper to run as a company car than any equivalent pure petrol or diesel model. And, as long as you charge its battery regularly, which can be done at home or at a proper charging point, you could save plenty on fuel, too.

The Passat GTE has been around for several years now and when it first appeared it didn't really have any direct rivals. Sure, there were several other plug-in hybrids on sale, including the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, but none that fitted the traditional executive car mould. Now, though, the Passat GTE is up against plug-in hybrid versions of the Skoda Superb (and the smaller Octavia, for that matter), along with premium-badged alternatives, including the BMW 330e and Volvo S60 saloon and V60 estate. 

In this review, we'll not tell you how the Passat GTE stacks up against the plug-in hybrid competition, but also regular versions of the Passat – because it's not all good news on that front. And no matter whether you end up deciding to buy a plug-in hybrid, electric car or petrol or diesel model, our New Car Buying service can offer a great deal on thousands of cars – including the Passat GTE – with no haggling whatsoever.