Volkswagen Passat review

Even those six feet tall or over will find plenty of space up front, and there’s enough width to prevent occupants from feeling uncomfortably close to each other. The Passat joins its Skoda Superb and Ford Mondeo rivals in feeling more spacious than premium executives like the Jaguar XE, 3 Series and Audi A4.

You get buckets of storage space, too. This includes generous door bins and a large glovebox, as well as cubbies and a pair of central cupholders behind the gear selector.

Wide-opening rear doors make access to the back easy for passengers or when dealing with child seats, and a pair of tall adults will have lots of space to stretch out and get comfortable. There’s more space than in the Jaguar XE or Audi A4, but not quite as much as is offered by the Skoda Superb. A third passenger can be accommodated, but they’ll have to negotiate and straddle a relatively chunky central tunnel, with protruding rear air vents that detract from the knee room available.

Map pockets on the back of the front seats are standard on all but S models, as is a central armrest with a small storage box and cupholder. Each door pocket will hold a 1.0-litre bottle.

All Passat models get 60/40-split rear seats, but rivals including the 3 Series get a more flexible 40/20/40 arrangement. Go for SE Business trim or above and you get levers in the boot that allow you to fold the spring-loaded seatbacks easily without opening the rear doors.

Manual lumbar adjustment for the front passenger seat is standard across the range, while fully electric adjustment is optional on all but S trim.

The boot offers a seriously big luggage bay, not far off what you'll find in the Superb and bigger than the sizeable Mondeo. That's the good news; the compromise here is that those models are both hatchbacks whereas the Passat is a saloon, and its narrower boot opening simply won't accept really bulky items.

Models from SE Business upwards get a through-loading hatch in the rear seatback that means you can carry long items, such as skis, while still carrying passengers. Folding down the rear seats leaves a step in the elongated load-bay floor, and the angle at which the seatbacks lie makes it difficult to slide heavy objects in.