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Car #1
Make
Model
Variant
Engine
Car #2
Make
Model
Variant
Engine

compare selected cars
2014. - 2019.
D - Large family car
wagon, 5 door
4 x 4
Badges
Production
Vehicle class
Body style
Wheel drive
Safety
2015. - 2019.
D - Large family car
wagon, 5 door
rear

Marketing

Dimensons & Outlines

4767 mm
1832 mm
1477 mm
650 liters
1780 liters
66 liters
Length
Width
Height
Boot (min)
Boot (max)
Fuel tank
4633 mm
1811 mm
1429 mm
495 liters
1500 liters
57 liters
2014 Volkswagen Passat Variant
2015 BMW 3 Series Touring

Engine

Volkswagen
2.0 TDI CUAA
Diesel
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Bi-Turbo
1968 cc
240 hp
500 Nm
Engine
Fuel
Configuration
Aspiration
Displacement
Power
Torque
Diesel
4 - Inline, 4 valves per cylinder
Bi-Turbo
1995 cc
218 hp
450 Nm

Performance (manual gearbox)

 
kg
s
km/h
l/100km
l/100km
l/100km
g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
manual gearbox - 6 gears
1540 kg
6.9 s
238 km/h
6.4 l/100km
4.5 l/100km
5.2 l/100km
137 g/km

Performance (automatic gearbox)

dual clutch - 7 gears
1735 kg
6.3 s
238 km/h
6.5 l/100km
4.7 l/100km
5.4 l/100km
140 g/km
Gearbox type
Vehicle weight
Acc. 0-100
Top speed
Cons. (urban)
Cons. (highway)
Cons. (average)
CO2 emissions
automatic - 6 gears
1560 kg
6.7 s
238 km/h
6.0 l/100km
4.3 l/100km
4.9 l/100km
130 g/km

Expenses

11300 EUR
Price from
7900 EUR

Virtual Adviser's™ opinion

Overview

Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by diesel engines and utilizing the 5-door wagon body style within the same 'Large family car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (4 x 4 for the Volkswagen and rear in the case of the BMW). The first one has a Volkswagen-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 240hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 218hp engine designed by BMW.

Safety

The first thing to look into here would be the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests performed on the two cars. Good thing is that both vehicles got tested, with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. Still, apart from the official crash test results there are other things we need to be aware of. Both vehicles belong to the large family car segment, which is generally a good thing safety-wise, but it doesn't do much to help us decide between the two. Furthermore, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, Passat offers a considerable difference of 13% more metal.

Reliability

Reliability is not the best thing to consider on the make level, but it is worth mentioning that Volkswagen does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Volkswagen, as well as BMW, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. Some independent research have also placed Passat as average reliability-wise, and 3 Series is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as Passat rank it on average as 5.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 3.2 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

Volkswagen is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.6 seconds less than its competitor. Still, it lacks the power to win the top speed competition, topping at 238 kilometers per hour, exactly the same as the other car does. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 5.3 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (53 mpg), in combined cycle.


Verdict

Volkswagen appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Passat offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. It all continues in the same direction, with Volkswagen offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... No mistake, whatever you decide here, but I'd still go for the Volkswagen. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser, out of 12.000+ vehicles we currently have in our database.

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