2007
The 2007 VW Passat wagon was offered in base, 2.0T, 3.6L and 3.6L 4Motion trims — with equipment largely mirroring that of the 2006 sedan. However, if you’re reading closely, you’ll note the emergence of a model designation that wasn’t mentioned in the description of the 2006 models; Base. This designation was applied to sedans as well and signaled a bit of reshuffling in terms of the way Passat models were equipped.
For 2007, the Volkswagen Passat lineup consisted of Base, 2.0T, 2.0T Wolfsburg, 3.6L and 3.6L 4Motion. The Value Edition was dropped and the Wolfsburg designation was added.
The Base feature-set was comprised of sixteen-inch steel wheels, a tilt-telescoping steering wheel, leatherette upholstery, air-conditioning, a CD/MP3 player with an auxiliary input jack, and iPod compatibility. Cruise control, power windows and door locks, remote keyless entry, power heated exterior mirrors and a trip computer were included as well. If you wanted seventeen-inch alloys, a CD changer, satellite radio, heated front seats, a power sunroof, and fog lights you could get them all together in the Passat 2.0T Wolfsburg.
2008
For 2008, Volkswagen got creative with the Passat’s model designations, renaming them Turbo, Komfort, Lux and VR6.
The Turbo model netted sixteen-inch alloy wheels, faux leather upholstery, a power driver seat, a telescoping steering wheel, air-conditioning, a CD-based stereo system with an auxiliary audio jack, cruise control, full power accessories, heated outside mirrors, a trip computer, and sunshades for the rear seats.
Passat Komfort offered seventeen-inch wheels, a sunroof, an in-dash CD changer, satellite radio, upgraded interior lighting, and double-bladed sun visors. To that feature-set, the Lux package blended automatic headlights, leather upholstery, a power front-passenger seat, memory for the driver’s seat, heated front seats, dual-zone automatic climate control, and front and rear parking sensors. The VR6 got all of that, plus eighteen-inch wheels, adaptive bi-xenon headlights, sport seats, and an upgraded Dynaudio sound system.
For 2008, you could specify a nav system as an option regardless of which Passat you chose. You could get the high-powered DynAudio system on lowly Komfort and Lux equipped Passats, but if you wanted smart cruise control or all-wheel drive, you had to go with a VR6. On the wagon side of the Passat’s house, if you got a VR6, it would be all-wheel drive — period. There was no front-drive VR6 wagon offered for ’08.
2009
After all the madness accompanying the 2008 model year's new trim designations, Volkswagen pared the Passat’s offerings all the way back to one model for 2009 — Komfort.
The 2009 Volkswagen Passat Komfort featured seventeen-inch alloy wheels, heated windshield washer nozzles, a sunroof, air-conditioning, a leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel, premium leatherette vinyl upholstery and power-adjustable, as well as heated front seats. The six-cylinder engine was dropped, and along with it all-wheel drive.
The sound system’s eight-speakers were fed by in-dash six-disc CD changer, as well as any device plugged into its auxiliary audio input jack, or by its satellite radio.
The wagon featured all of the above — plus chrome roof rails.
A nice set of seventeen-inch alloy wheels, an iPod adapter, and a hard-drive-based touchscreen navigation system with a USB port, an iPod interface and 20 gigabytes of memory available for digital music storage comprised the options list.
If you wanted all the lux gear available on previous versions of the Passat, you had to buy the considerably more expensive Volkswagen CC.
2010
The six-speed automatic transmission was replaced with Volkswagen’s six-speed dual-clutch automated manual transmission. The radio was replaced and Bluetooth handsfree connectivity was added.
2011
There was no 2011 Volkswagen Passat. The all-new 2012 model was introduced in 2011.