Volkswagen’s customers won’t have to look to other brands such as Mercedes Benz for a sleek looking “four door coupe”. As of November 2008, the new Passat CC will be available across the region, opening up a whole new segment for VW which up until now has been dominated by the likes of the pricey CLS class from Mercedes Benz and the even pricier upcoming Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide. VW is aiming lower with a more reasonably priced car based on the chassis of the excellent no-nonsense Passat saloon while appealing to the more emotional side of its customers’ taste. VW doesn’t go overboard with styling either, keeping the CC’s design down to Earth while managing to make it far sexier than the ordinary Passat.

The CC will host an impressive array of technology and gadgets, ranging from the adaptive chassis control (DCC) system with normal, sport and comfort settings, to the lane assist setup which monitors lane markings via a camera and automatically counter-steers if the computer senses that the car has left its lane unintentionally. Intrusive as it may sound, this system may actually do a bit of good for us on our long, straight highways. If only it gave the driver a polite poke to wake them up, and pulled their mobile phone, cigarette or sandwich out of their hand while driving, it might be even more effective!

The CC comes equipped with 17 inch alloys, safety headrests, airbags and electronically controlled dampers as well as traction and stability control as standard. Optional equipment includes the new “ambiance package” lighting system, navigation and entertainment system with in-built hard disk, Park assist and automatic distance control. Two engines will be available for the Middle East market, starting off with a 1.8 litre turbocharged four cylinder unit with 160 bhp or an optional 2.0 litre with 200 bhp and a top speed of 237 km/h. Not exactly the most powerful VW engines around, but they’ll do for day to day use.