While Volkswagen has found a unique niche with its Jetta wagon, a model that defies nearly every “rule” of American car-buying, the automaker has reportedly decided against expanding its five-door lineup.
A Passat wagon aimed more at American buyers than the outgoing European-oriented model had been rumored for months, if not years, but a VW representative has confirmed to Car & Driver that such a vehicle is a no-go for this market.
VW separated its European and American Passats earlier this year, concentrating on adding comfort and space to the latter and sporting up the former. As a result, the two cars have diverged enough that VW doesn’t see much reason to continue importing a Passat wagon even though it has found a strong niche market with its Jetta wagon.
If the last-generation Passat was a slow-seller here, its wagon variant was like molasses. Last year, the automaker sold 12,497 Passats, just 2,329 of which had five doors. In order to meet its goal of selling 800,000 VW and Audi products here by 2018, the automaker needs to sell about that many Passat sedans a month.
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1.’ Volkswagen is not…’ view
