New Passat, aka NMS, has slightly different interior to US version to launch on Apri 17th
As The Truth About Car’s Bertel Schmitt has already pointed out, VW’s offerings in China are an interesting mix – one might say that it is some sort of organized anarchy, with different generations of cars competing against each other. To paraphrase the history of the Passat in China into one sentance: SAIC-VW produced the Passat B5, VW offered them the B6 but they didn’t want it, so VW gave it to their other JV partner, FAW, in the meantime SAIC produce the B5.5 aka the Passat Lingyu, FAW produced the B6, now SAIC are getting the NMS or the Passat B7 but FAW are working on producing a stretched long wheelbase B6. Did we make that clear enough?
The NMS that was unveiled at the North American Motor Show in January this year showed a product that would fit perfectly for American and Chinese audiences, but it appears that some ‘Chinese-ification’ of the NMS has already happened. Looking at the below pictures it appears that the parking brake has been deleted from the Chinese version, probably replaced with an electronic version, whilst the GPS/DVD unit appears to have gained more buttons.
The NMS, or New Passat as it will be known in the Chinese market will launch on April 17th and will no doubt be a major winner for Shanghai VW. Engines are likely to be a 1.8TSI and a 2.0TSI, although there is rumor of a 1.4TSI model and later a 3.0L V6 model. An advertising campaign for the New Passat has already begun in Eastern Chinese cities.
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“now SAIC are getting the NMS or the Passat B7 but FAW are working on producing a stretched long wheelbase B6.”
Not quite. The NMS is not the Passat B7. The B7 is a facelifted version of the B6 which is going to FAW as far as I know. The NMS and lwb B7 will therefore be used by each JV to compete against each other.
Mark got it better then CCT, who continoued to confuse everybody with each write up onto the isse in the last monthes.
NMS is not available in Germany/Europe. China NMS will be produced by Shanghai VW.
NMS was originally developed for US/China market only – sedans are bigger in US and China, so its not a Long Wheel Base, there is no short version of it.
VW believes there is no market for such a big Passat in Europe, so its not on sale in Europe, or they are afraid it cuts into sales of Audi’s A6.
B7 – is a follow up of B6, not just facelifted, but also not entirely new developed, could say heavily facelifted.
B7 will be produced by FAW VW.
Makes ense, as FAW-VW already has the B6 (Magotan) in production. The new version will be long wheel base as the old B6 Magotan is not.
Summary:
Shanghai gets the American Passat.
Changchun (FAW) gets the Europe Passat in long wheel base, but keeps calling it MAGOTAN
@CCT: Understood?
The NMS was actually developed by VW Mexico and is based on the B6, while the B7 is really a heavy facelift. The B7 will be replaced in 2014 already (at least in Germany) and will be based on the new MQB, while the NMS will probably live a little longer. VW is not afraid that the NMS would be a problem for the Audi A6. As a matter of fact, the interior materials for the NMS are much cheaper than the European Passat (B6 and B7) and the rear axle is much simpler, as the Americans don’t care for fast cornering and Autobahn speed. I guess that the Chinese version of the NMS really is slightly better than the American version regarding interior material, especially because of the rivalry between SVW and FAW-VW.
I was confused by the relationship between the NMS and B7, after doing some research it is clear:
NMS is the cost-cutting successor to the B6 in North America and China, as North Americans have shown that price and size plays a bigger factor in their purchasing decisions over European handling/ride.
Whereas B7 is the successor to the B6 in Europe. I would expect it to have better interior materials and suspension than the NMS. It could also be a bit smaller, though I haven’t compared the specs. From a driver’s point of view, the B7 is the “better” car.
Where it gets interesting is the Chinese market will see both the NMS (SH-VW) and B7 (FAW-VW). It could very well be that the Chinese NMS will have an upgraded interior, and the B7 might get the “L” treatment (stretched wheelbase).
So I am looking forward to seeing how
1) SH-VW and FAW-VW will localize their offerings for the Chinese market
2) The pricing of the two will compare
3) And finally, how Chinese consumers will view these two offerings – will knowledgeable Chinese auto enthusiasts champion the “true” European roots of the B7?