On April 3, 2019, the Passat broke the production barrier of 30 million units at the Volkswagen plant in Emden. The bestseller thus sets a new record in its segment: no other model in the mid-size class and no other company car has been sold more often in the world than the Passat.
The number 30,000,000 - a Passat GTE Variant with plug-in hybrid drive in "Pyrite Silver Metallic" - is already one of the first models in a new evolutionary stage with a far-reaching technical update (pre-sales start in Europe in May). The 30 millionth Passat will be used as a press test car for the international media in the coming months.
Since 1973
Since its debut 46 years ago, 30 million Volkswagen customers have opted for the Passat. As a result, the Passat has become a global phenomenon that is as much at home in Beijing today as it is in Berlin, Sydney, Johannesburg or on the streets of San Francisco.
On May 14, 1973, Volkswagen launched production of the first Passat at the Wolfsburg plant under the motto "The beginning of a new VW era". The model heralded a completely new family of vehicles with water-cooled engines, front-wheel drive and an ultra-modern all-steel body. Positioned as a mid-range model, the Passat succeeded the VW 1600 (Type 3 with air-cooled rear engines and rear-axle drive).
In that May 46 years ago, nobody in Wolfsburg could have guessed that the Passat, with 30 million units produced, would outsell even the legendary Beetle (21.5 million). Together with the Golf (35 million) and the Beetle, the Passat is one of the three best-selling Volkswagens of all time. It has been built in eight generations to date, and a new evolutionary stage of the last one has just been launched on the market.
