Volkswagen Passat versus Skoda Superb

Volkswagen is the third largest car manufacturer in the world today. Volkswagen builds cars for the people and is renowned for its engineering marvels and German build quality. Volkswagen Passat is the latest entrant in the Indian luxury sedan car segment and brings its Volkswagen pedigree to its customers in India. Volkswagen owns several luxury brands of cars including the Skoda. However in India Skoda has been around for a while is a well known brand in the luxury sedan segment. Skoda Superb is the latest luxury car from Skoda in India and today we compare these two luxury giants on all that they have to offer their customers.

Looks and design:

Volkswagen Passat looks great with its classy looks which give a feel of premium luxury as soon as you set your eyes upon the car. The new iterant of the Passat has contemporary styling and excellent build quality which feels first class and solid and reminds of the typical German standard of engineering. It looks fabulous with the large chromed front grille sporting the VW batch and clear Xenon headlamps which give touch of class. It has a sporty styled front design and an equally beautiful rear design. It has very cool looking 5 spoke alloy wheels and clear fog and cornering lamps.

Skoda Superb is a radical looking extremely well styled cotemporary luxury sedan in India today. It has large attractive looking headlamps and chromed front grille featuring the exquisite Skoda badge. It has body color door handles and rear view mirror mounted turn signals. Superb also has multi spoke allow wheels. The overall design gives it a mature yet slight sporty look while maintaining the classy and premium nature of the car. The car looks big and muscular and sports a variety of features. Its build quality is second to none and the paint and finish are top notch and exude German build quality.

Looks overall – Volkswagen Passat – 8/10
Looks overall – Skoda Superb – 8/10

Interiors – design, space and features:

Volkswagen Passat has classy interiors which are typical of German built cars. It has a grey dashboard with wooden trim and sporty looking instrument panel featuring the speedometer, MID and other monitors. It has comfortable seats with arm rests and seats come standard with leather upholstery and they do a great job with providing a comfortable driving experience thanks to the excellent lumbar and under thigh support. The car has a 12 speaker and 6 CD changer audio system with the Aux port in the glove box. It has ample storage area and the glove box has a cooling function to it. It also features a large boot space of 560 liter to carry your entire luggage. VW Passat has unmatched luxury in the luxury sedan segment and is quite a class act.

Skoda Superb has amazing interiors which are well executed and features beige interiors with a match of wood trim and feels very classy. The driver seat is a 12 way adjustable seat with memory functions. The dashboard in this sedan looks classy and the instrument panel on the Superb features trip meter with trip and odometer, warning lights, tyre pressure monitor and has been well designed and looks great while retaining excellent functionality. Superb has great driver and passenger comfort levels and offers excellent lumbar support. It also includes a 12 CD stereo music system with Aux-in and USB input. It also has electrically adjustable rear view mirrors, seat belt warning lights. It includes excellent storage compartments spread throughout the car and a 545 liter boot space to carry your entire luggage.

Interiors overall – Volkswagen Passat – 8/10
Interiors overall – Skoda Superb – 7.5/10

Engine – performance, power, torque, fuel economy, smoothness:

Volkswagen Passat diesel variant sports a new 2.0 liter 4 cylinder common rail diesel engine which makes a maximum 168 BHP and 350 NM of maximum torque. This amount of power makes this car a fast luxury sedan and Volkswagen has certainly upped the ante with its new engine offering in the latest generation of the Passat. It also delivers excellent fuel economy thanks to its 6 speed gear box with the 5^th and 6^th gear with overdrive ratios to improve fuel efficiency. ARAI has rated the Passat to deliver a maximum fuel efficiency of 12.69 to a liter of diesel making it a very fuel efficient and high performing sedan in the market today.

Skoda has been known to produce high performing luxury cars and in the past given the Indian market some fun to drive luxury sedan. The new Skoda Superb continues this thanks to its powerful 2.0 liter TDI diesel engine which makes a respectable 138 BHP of maximum power while delivering 320 NM of maximum torque which starts as low as 1750 RPM to make it easy to drive in the city and ample highway performance. The Skoda Superb luxury sedan has been rated by ARAI to provide a maximum fuel efficiency of 11.5 kmpl making it a fuel efficiency diesel car with top class German engineering.

Engine overall – Volkswagen Passat – 8/10
Engine overall – Skoda Superb – 7/10

Suspension – Ride, comfort and handling:

Volkswagen Passat has a unique combination of engine and handling characteristics. Passat has a very finely tuned suspension given the road conditions in India it has a slightly firm tune but still retain a high level of comfort to absorb all the bad road conditions and potholes. It offers plush ride quality and maintains a high level of high speed stability and in city nimble driving capabilities. These unique characteristics make Passat a mile-muncher and ensure that the driver and the passenger don’t feel any fatigue when on a long drive. It comes with the ABS + EBD with ESP and which makes sure that the car has optimum braking and traction under emergency braking situations.

Skoda Superb has excellent on road dynamics and offers great level of high speed stability and in city driving comfort. It has a excellent ride quality and easily glides over the worst of Indian roads without making any fuss. It has excellent steering feedback and allows for some enthusiastic driving moments and the chassis can cope with this which makes it a fun car to drive when you feel like and fantastic car to be driven around when it’s time to go to work. The long wheelbase gives it stability and there’s no hint of any body-roll or instability. It had wide tyres which give it excellent level of grips on dry and wet surfaces and can easily stop the car under any circumstances and speed. All these attributes ensure that the Skoda Superb stands out amongst its rivals and bears the flag of the ultimate luxury sedan in India.

Suspension overall – Volkswagen Passat – 7.5/10
Suspension overall – Skoda Superb – 7.5/10

Value for money – sticker price, standard features:

Volkswagen Passat Highline 2.0 TDI is priced at (ex-showroom Delhi) 25.69 lakhs making it a excellent product at the right value. Passat brings all the latest features and ultra modern technology at an excellent value, it brings you luxury that is often seen only in higher segment luxury cars. It is one of the most successful cars from the Volkswagen stable and has a long production history. Volkswagen Passat is a combination of design, luxury, safety and performance given all that it offers is a fantastic car at very good value. If you are someone who loves to driven around need a car that does a great job at it then Passat is the car for you.

Skoda Superb is amazing car and thanks to its long length and wheelbase gives you endless luxury and rear passenger comfort and leg room, giving a stretch limo a run for its money. The market for the Superb remains excellent thanks to the contemporary features on offer and considering that it is a well known brand in India it has a excellent base already. Skoda Superb has been priced (ex-showroom Delhi) 22.45 lakhs for the diesel variant Skoda Superb 2.0 TDI PD and this pricing makes it great value for money. This car is offers a unique combination of modern features combined with great styling, superior performance and high level of safety and the pricing is just the icing on the cake and make the Skoda Superb, a super luxury sedan in India.

Value for money overall – Volkswagen Passat – 8/10
Value for money overall – Skoda Superb – 7.5/10

Verdict:

Volkswagen Passat is new and comes loaded with several great features and is a luxurious car to own and chauffeured around every day. It comes at a great price and offers a very good combination of luxury, ride quality and fuel economy. Passat also has the Volkswagen dealer network which so far has offered excellent service backup to all its customers. This makes the Passat a great car to buy at good value. Skoda Superb is fantastic car which offers class leading space and comfort matched by few in the market. It has a good service network and Skoda has been doing a good job taking care of its customers. It offers a range of features and top notch German build quality and they generally attribute towards perfection. Superb is indeed a superb car to buy and considering all that it has on offer, including brand value it is indeed a value for money luxury car to own today.