Road Test
First Drive: 2004 Volkswagen Phaeton W12
A New Fate for Volkswagen
For the naysayers out there, Tony Fouladpour, public relations manager for Volkswagen North America, points out that the autocynic collective is the same body that almost unanimously said that "Volkswagen will never be able to sell a Volkswagen family sedan that costs more than $20,000."
Fouladpour, of course, then goes on to point out that the car that generated that controversy, the Passat, has now gone on to 95,000 annual North American sales compared with the 16,000 Volkswagen used to sell in the mid '90s.
Left unsaid by the VW media machine is that in the early '90s, Honda, Nissan and Toyota faced a similar barrage of cynicism when they chose to take on the might of Mercedes and BMW. Since then, Acura, Infiniti and especially Lexus have gone on to prove that they can indeed build competitive luxury cars. And more importantly, that monied Americans will buy them.
The one advantage those Japanese marques had is that each of the companies involved created an entirely new brand for its march upscale. And yes, Volkswagen already has Audi, a successful luxury brand that builds powerful and sporty sedans in the finest Teutonic tradition. So it's not surprising that more than a few pundits question whether an uber luxury Volkswagen can make its presence felt in what is an intensely competitive segment.
Enter the Phaeton. Not only does it wear the VW logo, writ large, but the front end looks decidedly Passat-like, albeit much more macho in its execution. Its silhouette is equally familiar.
There'll be little mistaking the Phaeton for any other Volkswagen from behind the wheel, however. The W12 version fairly leaps off the line thanks to its 405 pound-feet of torque that kicks in at a low 3,000 rpm. Launch is exciting by any standards thanks to the torque-enhancing variable valve timing mechanism that controls both inlet and exhaust camshafts. This big 6.0-liter 12-cylinder engine will undoubtedly raise the eyebrows of anybody expecting Volkswagen's traditionally conservative nature.
Volkswagen claims the W12 produces 420 horsepower, but our seat-of-the-pants feel says that it's more like 350. We found the same thing with the W8 engine in the Passat, for which VW claimed 275 ponies and felt more like 250 or so. Perhaps it's because the 4Motion all-wheel drive soaks up some of those horses or perhaps it's that the Phaeton weighs in at a hefty 5,040 pounds.
Whatever the case, our ham-fisted stopwatch-timed 0-to-60 mph scored in the low 7-second range. Admittedly, there were three people and their luggage in the car. VW claims the car will do it in 6.1 seconds. To put its acceleration into perspective, the Phaeton W12 feels a little slower than BMW's 745 and faster than the Mercedes-Benz S500. The same circumspection describes the W12's smoothness. It's not quite as vibe-free as the BMW's V8, but it is less raspy than Mercedes' single-cam three-valve-per-cylinder V8. Buttery smooth in normal operation, the W12 gets a little rough above 5,000 rpm despite the offset cranks and other balancing tricks the engineers built into the W12. Of course, both BMW and Mercedes have new-generation V12's on the horizon, and the BMW, especially, promises to outdo VW's unusual format.
If the Phaeton's engine only equals the current status quo in the fullsize luxury sedan segment, then it comes as a surprise how awesome the chassis is. Though it can't match the 745's outright grip nor its flat attitude during hard cornering, the Phaeton's stability at speed is incomparable. Imagine an S-Class with an even more rock-solid feel, even at 150 miles per hour. And the Phaeton manages it with steering as delicate and precise as the BMW.
Though this phenomenal stability at speed is largely academic on our speed-regulated highways, it's an incredible feat to have bettered the established players that have long set the benchmark for high-speed cruising. Credit the 4Motion all-wheel drive (with a 50/50 torque split), the all-independent suspension and the air springs that lower the Phaeton at highway speeds. They all work as advertised.
Almost certainly, though, it's a combination of all three and the way Volkswagen's engineers have managed to integrate the various parts into one cohesive system. Volkswagen also credits the Phaetons' enormously stiff chassis. If Volkswagen is looking to hang its hat in one area that it can seriously challenge, or surpass, the established Germanic duo, it's in road feel.
At those crazy speeds, the Phaeton can certainly make use of the super-sized eight-piston Brembo calipers at each front wheel. Gripping monstrous 14.3 inch ventilated discs, the braking power is well into the "whoa, Nellie" range. All is not perfect, though, since the weight transfer caused by their incredible retarding power can overwhelm the front suspension, causing serious dive. Volkswagen says this is the result of the front weight bias with the heavy W12 engine up front. It would also explain why Volkswagen incorporated the industry's biggest brakes into the front of the Phaeton, but the rear wheels only have single-piston calipers. Of course, antilock brakes are standard, as is a Hydraulic Brake Assist that boosts the brake pressure more quickly than the human quadriceps can and the familiar Electronic Stability Program (ESP) which ensures that the Phaeton remains stable when all these shenanigans are going on.
As with any luxury sedan, the Phaeton will earn its keep by coddling its passengers. Here the Phaeton keeps up with its Munich and Stuttgart neighbors but doesn't exceed them. The one exception may be wind noise. Though only back-to-back comparison will truly determine the superior vehicle, suffice it to say that the Volkswagen is incredibly silent, even at the incredible speeds seen on the autobahn. At North American speeds, it's positively tomb-like. Combined with the incredible stability, it makes for one calm cabin.
A little less stark than the Mercedes', the Phaeton's interior decor reminds most of the new BMW 745. As in the Bimmer, there's copious amounts of bright wood and sumptuous leather, but without the BMW's iDrive controller in the central console. But Volkswagen, too, couldn't help but integrate some of the radio and air conditioning controls into a new navigation system computer. At least VW left more redundant controls — like radio tuning, interior temperature and bass/treble switches — outside the computer's purview so it's less diabolical to operate than the BMW's system. It's also worth noting that the Phaeton's standard 230-watt audio system has eight speakers while an upgraded version adds four more as well as 70 more bass-pounding watts. The audio system's six-disc CD changer is located in the glovebox, as is the navigational system.
North America will only be getting the long-wheelbase version of the Phaeton, some 4.7 inches longer than the standard European versions we tested. The extra rear footroom is definitely welcome and makes this Phaeton more spacious than a standard BMW 745, but a little less so than a long-wheelbase Mercedes.
Volkswagen also makes much of the Phaeton's 17.7-cubic-foot trunk, enough, says the company, to accommodate four golf bags. But the first thing you notice are the trunk lid's struts, beautiful forged aluminum affairs that wouldn't look out of place in the front suspension of a small open-wheel race car. However, the Phaeton's real "way-cool, dude" feature is the power-operated trunk that uses the lid's VW logo as its button. Just a slight touch in the middle of the "V" and pop goes the weasel.
North American base models will see a rear bench seat for five-passenger capacity. The only models available for testing, however, were the four-passenger seating arrangement that features two power-adjustable buckets in the back. It's the way to go, if not for the reclinability of the rear seatbacks, then for the neat rear air conditioning controls with their own LCD screen readout. The standard model still has separate rear air conditioning, but it can only be controlled by the driver. As for the adjustable seats, Volkswagen is currently investigating making the rear bench manually adjustable but that decision hasn't been finalized.
In the safety department, the Phaeton has a full complement: eight airbags, an active front headrest system, an automatic distance control feature for the cruise control and new seatbelts that VW claims reduce belt tension and improve comfort.
As for nits, the cupholders, front and rear, are conceptually neat in that their raised tops slide down to create the base when a cup or bottle is in situ. However, they're fiddly to use and the tops are more than a little wonky.
They're about the only things in the new Phaeton that don't smack of sturdy build quality and excellent engineering. And though Volkswagen isn't releasing any pricing yet, the word is that the 12-cylinder Phaeton's MSRP will fall in between that of the BMW 745i and Mercedes-Benz S500.
Nonetheless, one can't help thinking that Volkswagen may have trouble capturing the minds and hearts of the North American affluent. The Phaeton's designers and VW's board members believe that the Phaeton will appeal to the rich who are "unpretentious" and "will take pride in not having a stuffy badge on the hood." Such a demographic actually exists in their homeland where Germany's rich will often take the badges off their Mercedes and BMWs so to as not to show off too much. It's worth noting that the Phaeton, already on sale in Germany, outsold the Mercedes S-Class in its home market in May.
Volkswagen's North American officials, on the other hand, are all too aware that such unpretentious rich are as rare as hen's teeth on this side of the world. In America, the main reason for buying a luxury car is to lord over the less monied, and therefore less deserving. Subtlety isn't what's sold all the chrome wheels, gold chrome trim kits and fake V12 and M5 badges with which North Americans dress up their Mercs and BMWs to pretend they are richer than they really are. Like many imported products, automotive or otherwise, the thing that makes them attractive in their home markets may be their biggest drawback here.
Fouladpour, of course, then goes on to point out that the car that generated that controversy, the Passat, has now gone on to 95,000 annual North American sales compared with the 16,000 Volkswagen used to sell in the mid '90s.
Left unsaid by the VW media machine is that in the early '90s, Honda, Nissan and Toyota faced a similar barrage of cynicism when they chose to take on the might of Mercedes and BMW. Since then, Acura, Infiniti and especially Lexus have gone on to prove that they can indeed build competitive luxury cars. And more importantly, that monied Americans will buy them.
The one advantage those Japanese marques had is that each of the companies involved created an entirely new brand for its march upscale. And yes, Volkswagen already has Audi, a successful luxury brand that builds powerful and sporty sedans in the finest Teutonic tradition. So it's not surprising that more than a few pundits question whether an uber luxury Volkswagen can make its presence felt in what is an intensely competitive segment.
Enter the Phaeton. Not only does it wear the VW logo, writ large, but the front end looks decidedly Passat-like, albeit much more macho in its execution. Its silhouette is equally familiar.
There'll be little mistaking the Phaeton for any other Volkswagen from behind the wheel, however. The W12 version fairly leaps off the line thanks to its 405 pound-feet of torque that kicks in at a low 3,000 rpm. Launch is exciting by any standards thanks to the torque-enhancing variable valve timing mechanism that controls both inlet and exhaust camshafts. This big 6.0-liter 12-cylinder engine will undoubtedly raise the eyebrows of anybody expecting Volkswagen's traditionally conservative nature.
Volkswagen claims the W12 produces 420 horsepower, but our seat-of-the-pants feel says that it's more like 350. We found the same thing with the W8 engine in the Passat, for which VW claimed 275 ponies and felt more like 250 or so. Perhaps it's because the 4Motion all-wheel drive soaks up some of those horses or perhaps it's that the Phaeton weighs in at a hefty 5,040 pounds.
Whatever the case, our ham-fisted stopwatch-timed 0-to-60 mph scored in the low 7-second range. Admittedly, there were three people and their luggage in the car. VW claims the car will do it in 6.1 seconds. To put its acceleration into perspective, the Phaeton W12 feels a little slower than BMW's 745 and faster than the Mercedes-Benz S500. The same circumspection describes the W12's smoothness. It's not quite as vibe-free as the BMW's V8, but it is less raspy than Mercedes' single-cam three-valve-per-cylinder V8. Buttery smooth in normal operation, the W12 gets a little rough above 5,000 rpm despite the offset cranks and other balancing tricks the engineers built into the W12. Of course, both BMW and Mercedes have new-generation V12's on the horizon, and the BMW, especially, promises to outdo VW's unusual format.
If the Phaeton's engine only equals the current status quo in the fullsize luxury sedan segment, then it comes as a surprise how awesome the chassis is. Though it can't match the 745's outright grip nor its flat attitude during hard cornering, the Phaeton's stability at speed is incomparable. Imagine an S-Class with an even more rock-solid feel, even at 150 miles per hour. And the Phaeton manages it with steering as delicate and precise as the BMW.
Though this phenomenal stability at speed is largely academic on our speed-regulated highways, it's an incredible feat to have bettered the established players that have long set the benchmark for high-speed cruising. Credit the 4Motion all-wheel drive (with a 50/50 torque split), the all-independent suspension and the air springs that lower the Phaeton at highway speeds. They all work as advertised.
Almost certainly, though, it's a combination of all three and the way Volkswagen's engineers have managed to integrate the various parts into one cohesive system. Volkswagen also credits the Phaetons' enormously stiff chassis. If Volkswagen is looking to hang its hat in one area that it can seriously challenge, or surpass, the established Germanic duo, it's in road feel.
At those crazy speeds, the Phaeton can certainly make use of the super-sized eight-piston Brembo calipers at each front wheel. Gripping monstrous 14.3 inch ventilated discs, the braking power is well into the "whoa, Nellie" range. All is not perfect, though, since the weight transfer caused by their incredible retarding power can overwhelm the front suspension, causing serious dive. Volkswagen says this is the result of the front weight bias with the heavy W12 engine up front. It would also explain why Volkswagen incorporated the industry's biggest brakes into the front of the Phaeton, but the rear wheels only have single-piston calipers. Of course, antilock brakes are standard, as is a Hydraulic Brake Assist that boosts the brake pressure more quickly than the human quadriceps can and the familiar Electronic Stability Program (ESP) which ensures that the Phaeton remains stable when all these shenanigans are going on.
As with any luxury sedan, the Phaeton will earn its keep by coddling its passengers. Here the Phaeton keeps up with its Munich and Stuttgart neighbors but doesn't exceed them. The one exception may be wind noise. Though only back-to-back comparison will truly determine the superior vehicle, suffice it to say that the Volkswagen is incredibly silent, even at the incredible speeds seen on the autobahn. At North American speeds, it's positively tomb-like. Combined with the incredible stability, it makes for one calm cabin.
A little less stark than the Mercedes', the Phaeton's interior decor reminds most of the new BMW 745. As in the Bimmer, there's copious amounts of bright wood and sumptuous leather, but without the BMW's iDrive controller in the central console. But Volkswagen, too, couldn't help but integrate some of the radio and air conditioning controls into a new navigation system computer. At least VW left more redundant controls — like radio tuning, interior temperature and bass/treble switches — outside the computer's purview so it's less diabolical to operate than the BMW's system. It's also worth noting that the Phaeton's standard 230-watt audio system has eight speakers while an upgraded version adds four more as well as 70 more bass-pounding watts. The audio system's six-disc CD changer is located in the glovebox, as is the navigational system.
North America will only be getting the long-wheelbase version of the Phaeton, some 4.7 inches longer than the standard European versions we tested. The extra rear footroom is definitely welcome and makes this Phaeton more spacious than a standard BMW 745, but a little less so than a long-wheelbase Mercedes.
Volkswagen also makes much of the Phaeton's 17.7-cubic-foot trunk, enough, says the company, to accommodate four golf bags. But the first thing you notice are the trunk lid's struts, beautiful forged aluminum affairs that wouldn't look out of place in the front suspension of a small open-wheel race car. However, the Phaeton's real "way-cool, dude" feature is the power-operated trunk that uses the lid's VW logo as its button. Just a slight touch in the middle of the "V" and pop goes the weasel.
North American base models will see a rear bench seat for five-passenger capacity. The only models available for testing, however, were the four-passenger seating arrangement that features two power-adjustable buckets in the back. It's the way to go, if not for the reclinability of the rear seatbacks, then for the neat rear air conditioning controls with their own LCD screen readout. The standard model still has separate rear air conditioning, but it can only be controlled by the driver. As for the adjustable seats, Volkswagen is currently investigating making the rear bench manually adjustable but that decision hasn't been finalized.
In the safety department, the Phaeton has a full complement: eight airbags, an active front headrest system, an automatic distance control feature for the cruise control and new seatbelts that VW claims reduce belt tension and improve comfort.
As for nits, the cupholders, front and rear, are conceptually neat in that their raised tops slide down to create the base when a cup or bottle is in situ. However, they're fiddly to use and the tops are more than a little wonky.
They're about the only things in the new Phaeton that don't smack of sturdy build quality and excellent engineering. And though Volkswagen isn't releasing any pricing yet, the word is that the 12-cylinder Phaeton's MSRP will fall in between that of the BMW 745i and Mercedes-Benz S500.
Nonetheless, one can't help thinking that Volkswagen may have trouble capturing the minds and hearts of the North American affluent. The Phaeton's designers and VW's board members believe that the Phaeton will appeal to the rich who are "unpretentious" and "will take pride in not having a stuffy badge on the hood." Such a demographic actually exists in their homeland where Germany's rich will often take the badges off their Mercedes and BMWs so to as not to show off too much. It's worth noting that the Phaeton, already on sale in Germany, outsold the Mercedes S-Class in its home market in May.
Volkswagen's North American officials, on the other hand, are all too aware that such unpretentious rich are as rare as hen's teeth on this side of the world. In America, the main reason for buying a luxury car is to lord over the less monied, and therefore less deserving. Subtlety isn't what's sold all the chrome wheels, gold chrome trim kits and fake V12 and M5 badges with which North Americans dress up their Mercs and BMWs to pretend they are richer than they really are. Like many imported products, automotive or otherwise, the thing that makes them attractive in their home markets may be their biggest drawback here.
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