Volkswagen has announced the Passat BlueMotion will be making its debut at the Detroit auto show next week.
It may not look different than a standard Passat, but what sets the BlueMotion apart from the rest is its engine. It’s powered by a 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine, rated at 150 horsepower and 184 lb.-ft. of torque, and features cylinder deactivation lifted from the European-spec Polo and Golf. It’s a technology usually reserved for improving fuel economy numbers in large-displacement engines, but in this application, Volkswagen’s variable displacement technology lets the Passat shuts down the third and fourth cylinders when power isn’t needed.
The Passat BlueMotion will make its debut at next week’s NAIAS.
Handout, Volkswagen
This allows the engine to run on two cylinders when you’re simply cruising and, according to Volkswagen, can yield up to 42 miles per gallon on the highway. For comparison’s sake, Volkswagen rates the Passat TDI punches in at 43 mpg on the highway. In addition to cylinder deactivation, Volkswagen has also equipped the Passat BlueMotion with a stop/start system and a function from the Jetta Hybrid that decouples the dual-clutch automatic from the engine as soon as the throttle is lifted, which helps the car coast with as little mechanical drag as possible.
And true to the car’s name, the Passat BlueMotion will be finished in blue when it debuts in Detroit next week.
