Where you’d be spending your time — the insides — it’s classic Volkswagen. It’s a nice place to be, shining in terms of material quality, put together so well it feels one-piece, though for me, added flair or colour would’ve really sealed the deal.

All things considered, if you’ve got an eye out on the market for an immaculately engineered sedan in the Rs 20-25 lakh bracket, hold your horses till the second quarter of next year. From the looks of things, the Passat will arrive in a bolder and bigger fashion than before in India, and is a very worthy opponent, maybe even a notch-up, on the Accords, Superbs and Camrys that we currently have on offer. It’s a well-rounded, practical, well though-out, safe and smart-looking German saloon that you wouldn’t go wrong with. Don’t believe me? Just ask any one of the 15 million folks who’ve brought the Passat home.

The writer was on a media invite from Volkswagen to drive the new Passat in Spain.