Despite the ongoing scandal, Volkswagen is largely continuing its normal operations — case in point, the company recently released the Volkswagen Passat GTE plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) to the German market. The model is now available for €44,250 (~$49,000) as a sedan, or for €45,250 (~$51,000) as a wagon.
The new Passat GTE marks the company’s second PHEV offering, following the earlier release of the Golf GTE.
The new model features a 1.4-liter TSI engine, which altogether delivers “115 kW / 156 PS and an electric motor producing 85 kW / 115 PS.” As a combine system, the total system output is 160 kW / 219 PS.
Green Car Congress provides some more information on the new offering:
In all-electric mode the Passat GTE can drive up to 50 kilometers (31 miles). With the 50-liter (13-gallon) tank full of fuel and the battery fully charged, the range is more than 1,100 kilometers (684 miles).
Many of the Passat GTE’s functions can optionally be controlled and monitored via smart phone using the ‘Car-Net e-Remote’ app. These include charging the battery, activating the air-conditioning functions or seeing where the car was last parked.
One can’t help but wonder what the sales of the model will be like, given all of the company’s recent trouble. Will the sales lost by the brand as a whole be made up, to some degree anyways, by people switching from “clean” diesel to electric? How substantially will diesel car sales as a whole fall (including other manufacturers)? Will electric cars see their sales surge? Or will most people simply switch back to gasoline-powered cars?