Volkswagen Passat, the Ultimate 'Dad Car'

The first car I remember my father owning was a Jeep Cherokee XJ, a model highly valued by off-road enthusiasts for its indestructible build and an improvement over the previous Cherokee, where the American brand had "refined the architecture to achieve a smoother ride and lower fuel consumption."

Reading this and recalling the smoothness of those endless journeys at the age of 13, it's hard to take the press releases of car brands seriously. The Cherokee was a motorised brick that, yes, could go anywhere without tarmac, but for the rear passengers, that was not a plus point.

The iconic 'dad car' is part of the collective imagination. While the 'mum car' is easy to imagine as less powerful models, probably SUVs and perhaps some questionable ones like the Renault Modus, the dad car is a D-segment saloon or estate, suitable for commuting to the office or long trips, and always smells of tobacco.

Notable examples of dad cars include the BMW 5 Series, Mercedes E-Class, Audi A6, Honda Accord, Jaguar X-Type, Renault Laguna, and Volkswagen Passat. All of them represent the golden era of European saloons and, although their sales have given way to SUVs, they remain an excellent silhouette for road travel.

Volkswagen, riding high on this wave, created the Phaeton, a large sedan that surpassed its country's premium rivals in price because it featured the best technology available from the Wolfsburg giants before the Dieselgate scandal erupted, when they were the kings of the world.

It featured a W12 engine, which is unnecessarily complicated, but they combined two V6s in parallel powering a rigid chassis to show they could do it and prove, with facts, that they had nothing to envy in terms of engineering to other German groups.

The problem was the buyers' perception. Cars, once they surpass a certain price barrier, become status objects, and any executive who could afford a Phaeton preferred to buy a Mercedes. However, the learning was significant for Volkswagen, and many of the advances they achieved with it were transferred to their larger sedan, the Passat.

For example, the chassis rigidity. For the Germans, being able to withstand the high speeds of the Autobahn is a requirement, and the Passat offers a comfortable ride, ideal for long journeys. The Passat is also a considerable improvement compared to my father's Cherokee, and the rear seats are comfortable, plush, and spacious, something that would have made those hours on the road much more comfortable.

Then, the engines. They are not two V6s in parallel, but Volkswagen has combined a thermal engine with an electric one to create a plug-in hybrid system with 270 horsepower and an enviable smoothness of ride – thanks to electrification – that comes with the Zero label from the DGT for parking anywhere.

The Passat is only available in an estate body style – a statement of intent – and the boot is one of the largest in its segment. It can fit snowboards, bicycles, dogs, and several suitcases. The price for the hybrid model starts at 50,345 euros, but it's around 10,000 euros less if you opt for the mild-hybrid version.