Volkswagen Signals Next Move in Lux Game With Phideon Sedan

GENEVA – Volkswagen previews a new design language it plans to incorporate into future high-end sedans with the unveiling of the Phideon, a Chinese-market luxury model based on the same platform as the Audi A6.

Revealed on the eve of the 2016 Geneva auto show, where it will make its public premiere Tuesday, the Phideon goes on sale in China in October, filling a niche previously occupied by the first-generation Phaeton.

Conceived to offer a number of advanced functions not previously available on any VW model, it will be positioned above the Magotan, a car closely related to the U.S.-market Passat, in the German automaker’s Chinese lineup.

Design boss Klaus Bischoff says the distinctive front-end treatment of the Phideon will heavily influence the look of VW’s future luxury models, including the second-generation Phaeton.

Boasting a characteristically restrained but highly technical appearance similar to the latest European-market Passat, it was designed at VW’s main styling studio in Wolfsburg, Germany, expressly for the Chinese market.

“The new Phideon, with its flowing and yet precisely drawn lines, exudes highest presence. The progressive design corresponds to the high level of its technical innovations,” says Bischoff.

At 198.8 ins. (5,050 mm) in length, 73.6 ins. (1,869 mm) in width and 58.3 ins. (1,481 mm) in height, the Phideon is 0.2 ins. (5.1 mm) shorter, 1.4 ins. (35.6 mm) narrower and 1.2 ins. (30.5 mm) higher than the standard-wheelbase Phaeton.

To give this some perspective to North Americans, it is a considerably 7.1 ins. (180 mm) longer and slightly wider and lower than the recently facelifted U.S.-market Passat produced at VW’s Chattanooga, TN, plant.

Power for the 4-wheel-drive Phideon on the Geneva stand this week comes from a turbocharged 3.0L V-6 gasoline engine delivering 296 hp and 324 lb.-ft. (439 Nm) of torque. As with the Audi A6 produced and sold in China, production versions of the new luxury sedan also will offer the choice of front-wheel drive and a turbocharged 2.0L 4-cyl. gasoline engine.

In addition, a gasoline-electric hybrid variant of the upmarket Phideon is expected to be revealed at the Beijing auto show in April.

The new VW rides on a chassis closely related to the Audi A6. Chinese buyers will be able to choose between a standard steel-sprung or optional air suspension – the latter boasting five different driving modes.

The Phideon is described as VW’s most advanced production car to date. It boasts a host of technical features brought over from the Audi A6 and its larger A8 sibling, with which it shares its electrical architecture. Included is head-up display, camera-based night vision, adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning and a host of new features providing smartphone connectivity via Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and MirrorLink.

The Phideon will be produced at VW joint-venture partner SAIC’s manufacturing plant in Shanghai. Despite competing in a class currently unoccupied by any Volkswagen model in the U.S., officials say there are no current plans to establish sales of the new luxury sedan in North America.