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CAP Blog > CAP Blog > Martin's Blog
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Jul
8
Written by:
Martin Ward
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
It is very difficult to achieve less than 55mpg from the Passat BlueMotion 2 and very easy to achieve over 60mpg; quite remarkable for a car of this size. On a normal motorway journey at 70mph, the car will easily achieve over 63mpg without any effort. So how do Volkswagen manage this?
 The Passat BlueMotion 2 is based on the S model but it has lowered suspension, more efficient under body airflow, a revised five speed gearbox with longer gearing and an engine management system designed specifically to improve fuel consumption for city driving. With all these changes, it all adds up to lower running costs. The Passat BlueMotion 2 is powered by a 2.0 litre TDI common rail diesel engine that produces 110ps, goes from 0-62mph in 11.7 seconds and has a Co2 emissions figure of 128g/km.
It is very unusual to drive a car where the MPG figures shown on the on-board computer are regularly exceeding the official combined figure. The BlueMotion 2 has an official figure of 57.6mpg but over the past few months we have noticed that many manufacturers’ fuel consumption figures are more accurate and nearly achievable. Volkswagen has provided very accurate information and sold themselves short.
 The BlueMotion 2 also has the fourth generation VW stop/start system. This is expected to be good as Volkswagen were the pioneers in this technology for the mass market. The first one was released fifteen years ago and called the Ecomatic. Like all stop/start systems, the engine shuts down when the car is stationary and the clutch is released. The engine starts again when the clutch is pressed but it only needs to be lightly touched and pressed down a matter of a centimetre before it fires up. There is a small amount of vibration when the engine shuts down but hardly any on start-up. Volkswagen has not quoted a start-up time but they estimate it to be around one second, so it is not the quickest on the market, nor the slowest either. Like all stop/start systems, it will only operate in perfect conditions and will not work if it is too hot, too cold, the air con is working at full or the battery is not fully charged. It seems strange to be testing a car so late in its life as the all new Passat is expected late next year but the BlueMotion 2 is worthy of a road test and it gives us a chance to try the stop/start technology.
 The Passat is still a good seller and very popular as both a new car and on the used market. It is large, comfortable, ultra-reliable and has low running costs. The BlueMotion 2 offers all the benefits of the standard Passat but with outstanding, fuel consumption. However, I am not sure whether the stop/start system actually saves that much fuel in normal driving conditions as I tried it with the system on and then off and found it to have very similar fuel consumption figures. It may benefit in large cities where there is heavy traffic and more congestion but the journeys I did were relatively light. Usually you want the green light to show and there to be no traffic at the T-junction but when driving a car with a stop/start system, you sometimes want to see a red light or to wait in a queue of traffic and be held up at roundabouts just so you can test the system and see how quick and quiet it is.
Pricing for the Passat S with Co2 emissions of 143g/km is £17,545 and pricing for the BlueMotion 2 with Co2 emissions of 128g/km is £18,095.
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