Automotive Trends

The (Rich) People’s Car

     Who would have ever thought that in the same showroom as the iconic, smiling, affordable Beetle, would someday sit a behemoth luxury sedan casting a shadow of nearly 204 inches? And not only is this land yacht uncharacteristically big, it’s expensive too. Before the 2004 model year, a check in either of those two categories would disqualify a vehicle from wearing the Volkswagen badge flat out. But when the silk sheet dropped off the first Phaeton, all long-held stereotypes of what Volkswagens were, dropped with it. The Phaeton was charged with taking VW upscale, and way up scale, at that. To that end, it could be called a success. Volkswagen now offers a lineup that spans from $20k Golfs to $100k Phaetons. Unfortunately, for Volkswagen, it turns out nobody wants a six-figure car that shares a badge with Herbie. Actually, that’s not entirely true, they did sell 64 last month. But a report on subconscious buying habits, this is not. We’re all about the iron here. To that end, we loaned a Phaeton V8 for a week to see for ourselves where it ranks on the luxury sedan scale.
     Outside, the Phaeton appears to have graduated from the understated elegance school of sedan styling. For sure, the look is far from radical and falls inline with fellow classmates, like the Lexus LS430. Some critics have said the Phaeton looks like a supersized Passat, and that its ultra-conservative styling keeps flashy customers with deep pockets away. We can see why they might say that, but then if VW had gone radical, you’d be alienating the conservative buyers. Either way, it’s hard to strike a perfect balance. As it sits, the Phaeton looks fine to our eyes, but we’ll admit that the Phaeton has a shelf life closer to milk than creamed corn. In fact, for its second model year, VW has already modified the grille. The car’s profile is probably its most boring angle, although it looks substantial from any angle. We mean that in a good way. It reminds us a lot of the mid-‘90s Mercedes S-Class cars. It sits with a heavy, solid, quality essence about it. Those are traits that are getting harder and harder to come by. We’re not fans of the black plastic that circles the bottom few inches of the car. Note to designers: black plastic never helps. We do like the integrated dual exhaust tips and the 18” 12-spoke wheels. The latter is an especially noteworthy improvement over the first year’s lackluster offering. You’re free to decide for yourself, but if you’re passing up the Phaeton simply because you don’t find it stylish enough, you’re missing the best part.
     That would be the interior fit for royalty. It starts with plenty of room for all passengers, but especially generous rear seat accommodations. We usually prefer the driver’s seat, but in the Phaeton the rear quarters are nothing to complain about. There is the obvious leather and wood, but it’s the additional luxuries like power lumbar and massage for the outboard seats, as well as heated and cooled ventilation to keep everyone comfy that really establish the Phaeton as a card carrying member of the luxury class. Rear seat passengers can also control their own section of the 4-zone climate control. It should also be noted that the climate system in the Phaeton is top notch. It features “draftless” ventilation so if you tire of having cold air blown directly in your face, you can turn off any individual vent and the air will permeate from a screened section on the dash or rear shelf. It effective and watching the little wood covers motor down over the front vents is always entertaining. VIPs being chauffeured around can elect to veil themselves from the commoners or pesky paparazzi by the power rear sunshade and the manual side shads. Things are equally luxurious up front where the driver can adjust his perch 18-ways and the passenger 16-ways and both can enjoy the massage function that Editor Muxlow warns should not be used when you’re tired. Those pleasing chairs are part of the Comfort and Cold Weather Package ($4,800) and also includes a heated steering wheel among other things. Our tester featured a $1,000 upgraded 270-watt sound system that is simply among the best sounding factory systems available. A $1,150 Technology Package bundles the electronic parking assist and the cool power opening and closing trunk. The trunk can be opened from the key fob or a “concealed” button in the large rear VW badge. Your editors, too proud to crack open the War and Peace owners manual, spent the better part of 5 minutes poking and prodding the general area before finding the magic spot. Keyless access was included for $500 but we’d opt to live without this system, as it really doesn’t save you much time or effort since the key is needed to start the vehicle anyway. The quality of materials and design cannot be faulted, but the way outdated CD-based Nav system needs to go. A touch screen DVD-setup would be the ideal replacement. Passengers never cease being amazed at the little built-in flashlight and we’ll admit it’s pretty cool.
     VW nailed the mechanics of the Phaeton almost as well as the comfort. 4.2-liters of V8 power provide the Phaeton with 335hp and 317lb-ft of torque. The engine breathes through 5-valves per cylinder and purrs powerfully as the tach needle sweeps higher. It’s really a great sound but it’s amazing any of it makes it though the Phaeton’s sound deadening and double pane glass. The interior is so quiet at highway speeds it’s scarcely believable you’re doing 75mph. 4MOTION all-wheel drive puts the power down effectively and the six-speed automatic hustles the heavy Phaeton to 60mph in 6.7 seconds. Be warned if you do that too often you are unlikely to see the EPA’s rating of 16mpg city and 22mpg highway. As we’ve found with other VW/Audi 6-speed autos, the 1-2 shift is particularly lazy but running in “S” for any spirited driving will cure that. Unfortunately, the Phaeton filters out all steering feel so spirited driving is best left to your BMW. The air suspension provides a wonderfully smooth ride that only rarely becomes too floaty. Sport mode seemed about right to us but even then, priority is given to overall comfort. A comment in the logbook summed it up best: “would you like normal, soft, softest, or softer?”
     The Phaeton appears to us a comfortable and fast cruiser, fully competent in the ways of a true luxury sedan. Phaetons start at $66,950 but options quickly put the as-tested total to $76,315. If you’re looking for a truly comfortable, spacious sedan, built to the highest standards, that price will look well worth it.

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