Auto Test

This is it

When Volkswagen first presented the Phaeton in 2007 the strategic goal was quite clear… finally the marque wanted to be represented in the premium automobile segment, to find favour with the business tycoons, political leaders and even rapper super-stars who were hitherto courted by other German makers of prestigious limousines.

Since a third major facelift in 2010 the ‘GP3’ model reflects the Volkswagen styling DNA and is more dynamic at the front and the back.

Four years after the model launch the Phaeton underwent a third facelift and is now referred to as ‘the new Phaeton’ or… less evocatively… as the Phaeton ‘GP3’. But in the interim the car maker has had to submit to a reality check. In this country the Phaeton does not have the slightest chance of rivalling the competition in terms of new vehicle registrations. To be more precise… from January to October 2011 there were 4,135 Mercedes S-Class, 4,386 BMW 7-Series and 4,213 Audi A8 models purchased. In the same period only 1,999 buyers chose the Phaeton. What explains the big difference? To a large extent the Phaeton’s image is to blame. Although it is a car which has seen record sales achieved in China early last year, in the home market the marque Volkswagen stands for TDI, GTI and the compact car ethos. It seems to be little help that the Phaeton is an automobile which is truly of the highest quality.

In short… the Phaeton offers opulence in every respect, plenty of space for the car’s occupants and abundant high tech at the disposal of the driver.

This is what it offers

This level of quality is the first impression we had when we climbed into our test car, the 3.6 litre V6 basic version. The impression of fine workmanship, the carefully stitched upholstery and the choice materials is reinforced, too, at second glance. This is a car which has no difficulty in embodying all the attributes to be expected of the premium segment automobile. The technical highlights support the Phaeton’s claim to belong in this category… Xenon curve-adaptive headlights, high-end sound system, lane-changing and distance-holding assistant systems and much, much more. The inviting leather seats in the front can be adjusted eighteen ways. The six-stage automatic transmission can also be manually controlled with the ‘Tiptronic’ shifter paddles on the large format leather covered steering wheel. The roof lining in Alcantara adds a further luxury feeling of well-being inside the Phaeton.

Such generous interior space has its consequences in terms of the car’s overall dimensions and its kerb weight… it is 5.153 metres long, 1.903 metres wide and tips the scales at 2.143 kilos.

And so in short… the Phaeton offers opulence in every respect. This holds of course for the space available for the car’s occupants. Even the tallest member of the board will find himself with adequate leg-room in the back. The car’s boot has a capacity of 500 litres. Inevitably the provision of such generous space has its consequences in terms of the car’s overall dimensions and its kerb weight… it is 5.153 metres long, 1.903 metres wide and tips the scales at 2.143 kilos. It could be assumed that for a car of this size a relatively small 3.6 litre V6 might turn out to be less than an optimal motorization.

The V6 in the car we tested proved better than we had imagined. The 280 horsepower and 370 Nm of torque sufficed in almost any driving environment.

This is how it drives

But the V6 in the car we tested proved better than we had imagined. The 280 horsepower and 370 Nm of torque sufficed in almost any driving environment, whether in the city, on country roads or on the autobahn. There was no feeling that the Phaeton was under-powered. The Phaeton comes with the all-wheel-drive ‘4Motion’ technology as standard and with the ‘Airmotion’ pneumatic suspension. This can be adjusted by the driver even during the journey with settings ranging from sport to comfortable. It is when in ‘comfort’ mode that the Phaeton really comes into its own, even if it is less than ideal on winding country roads. Although it must be said that even in the latter setting the two tons of automobile can be handled surprisingly easily. The six-stage Tiptronic zooms through the gears when ‘sport’ mode is engaged although the shifter paddles are not ideally positioned behind the steering wheel which makes shifting and steering at the same time a bit tricky.

The basically sedate suspension of the Phaeton can be given settings from ‘sporty’ to ‘comfortable’ via the touch-screen of the multi-media system. But in a Phaeton ‘firm’ is not an option.

The steering is unfortunately far from perfect in respect of the feedback the driver gets from the road, above all when driving in ‘sport’ mode. It goes without saying that the suspension is set mainly for comfort even when the damping is set for the more sporty profile. Bumps and pot-holes will still be cushioned well in the VW flagship. The Phaeton we drove took just 8.9 seconds to accelerate from a standing start to a hundred kilometres an hour… and that was with winter tyres fitted! With summer rubber the sprint is stated to be achieved in 8.6 seconds. Given the restrictions applicable to winter tyres we were not able to push the Phaeton over 230 kilometres an hour. And the car autonomously reminded us with both an acoustic and visual warning on the display when this limit loomed. In fine weather it should be no problem to reach 250 kilometres an hour at the wheel of the Phaeton, should the driver be so inclined.

The high-end ‘Dynaudio Temptation’ sound system lives up to its name and as an optional extra for just 810 Euros it can be considered affordable, too.

This is what it costs

The starting price for an entry-level Phaeton is 73,100 Euros. Standard equipment includes the ‘Airmotion’ suspension already mentioned and the ‘4Motion’ drive train. There are welcome gimmicks, too, such as bi-Xenon headlamps, LED technology for the direction indicators and brake lights, air conditioning and a range of safety features including a veritable Armada of air-bags, ESP, electronic differential lock and active head-rest units… all these coming as standard. However there are also some tempting and exclusive optional extras suited to the premium model of the Volkswagen range. In the car we tested there was the Alcantara trim package the car maker have dubbed ‘Volkswagen Exclusive’, 20 inch aluminium wheels, the Phaeton car telephone, rear-view camera, touch-screen navigation system with high-end audio, lane changing ‘Side Assist’ system and front-seat adjustment for eighteen different criteria.

The chrome-finished 9x20 inch wheels are from the 'Volkswagen Exclusive' package and go by the name ‘Megara’. The rims are an option priced at 4,755 Euros.

To list all of the options on offer would be exhausting… but suffice to say that in comparison with our ‘basic’ Phaeton the one we drove would have cost precisely 117,869 Euros. It must also be noted that the top version with the V8 motor and 335 horsepower can not be had for less than 96,600 Euros. Then there is the matter of fuel consumption which Volkswagen states as 11.7 litres of Super Plus per hundred driven kilometres. The result from our test driving came quite close to this value… with about 12.3 litres showing on our computer. Given the car’s weight and performance the consumption must be seen as reasonable.

The Phaeton is in every way worthy of its place in the premium category. Now it must just solve the image problem it has in the home market… the Chinese are already won over.

This is what we conclude

The Phaeton is a strange phenomenon… for German buyers it is insufficiently prestigious while the Chinese seem to find it just right. It is their enthusiasm which has probably saved the Volkswagen premium model from extinction and indeed given it new life. It is somehow sad that here in Germany there is so little recognition and acceptance for the model’s quality, driving characteristics and luxurious appointments… they are in no way exceeded by those of directly comparable automobiles. Drivers who place their emphasis on truly sporty motoring will not be those interested in a luxury sedan and the Phaeton is certainly not built for buyers of this persuasion. But members of the board or cosseted super-stars look for a smooth running, spacious, reliable and safe automobile in which they can be transported in superb comfort to their destination. And in this respect the VW Phaeton is an ideal choice… not at all to be compared unfavourably to a 7-Series BMW, a Mercedes S-Class or an Audi A8, even if there are ‘only’ 280 horsepower coming from the V6 under the bonnet.