Test drive Volkswagen Phaeton 2002 - 2009 sedan

Once again about prestige

Someday, the Germans will definitely put Ferdinandy Pikho a bronze bust in their homeland. Or they will fork out the monument near the Volkswagen headquarters. At least his merits to the concern are not in doubt. And the new flagship with the strange name Phaeton is the brightest confirmation of this. In the 99th, journalists who illuminated the Frankfurt Motor show, without saying a word, arranged an incredible crush on the VW stand. Everyone wanted to become a witness to a historical event: the German concern dropped a bedspread from a concept car, designed to become the leader of the Volkswagenes in a hitherto-unheated class. The calculation turned out to be true: not a single respected publication was silent of this event. Through years, the concept turned into serial Phaeton and even managed to acquire a 12-cylinder W-shaped engine with a drive for all wheels. So what? And the fact that fans of the most respectable and powerful personnel received a headache in the form of a worm of doubt. After all, now the luxury segment of car business cards of monetary magnates has been replenished with another brand. Along with the traditional Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen entered the elite club. That, indeed, will not be expected, they do not argue about appearance. But in relation to the German upstart, this is not the case. Someone finds the VW Phaeton design flawlessly licked, and someone is ready to argue that the broken line of the back of the roof on the side windows is a tribute to conservatism and nothing more. Some delight frowned eyes, others are alarming with wide wings with these eyes would not have scratched with now. Tales that the owner of such a car should not know how the hood opens or where the gasoline is poured. Of course, it is not a royal business to dig in a motor. And, suppose, you need to splash water in the washer tank what then?
 
As engineers from Wolfsburg managed to make the first pancake as a kind of aristocrat without a genealogy will remain a secret in the bowels of the company until better times. But the fact that it was not without regard to the experience of colleagues from Ingolstadt, as they say, do not go to the fortuneteller. It didn’t reach a frank cast, but you won’t hide four rings with all the desire. When I first saw the list of configurations of the tested VW Phaeton, it was darkened in my eyes as if an inventory of the arrested oligarch-amateur fell into my hands. What was not there! The air flow and anti-icing efficiency sensor, digital Sound package, electric control of the front passenger chair from the rear seat, the ski cover immediately remembered the joke in the subject.
The new Russian comes to the doctor and complains of pain in his hand.
 
Yes, you, a bat, a fracture, says the doctor. I will apply gypsum.
What for me gypsum, the patient is offended. Put marble, I tower
 
Laughter laughter, but some things in the VW Phaeton equipment list seem superfluous. One gets the impression that the manufacturer stuffed the machine with equipment in order to somehow justify its high price. But the same fact can be regarded as a zeal to customers: they say, look how we took care of you. At the same time, the minced meat is not complete. And in this sense I remembered another joke.
 
The teacher asks which of the children something is missing and who strives for something. Petya says that they do not have a DVD player at home, and he seeks to raise money for him. Masha does not have enough wool to tie the brother of a scarf.
 
Vovochka, why are you silent? The teacher asks.
And now we have everything.
Like this?!
Daddy came to us yesterday, and he said that only she was not enough for us.
 



What, in my opinion, lacks a car at a price of more than 120 thousand euros? For example, a car driver of the door closing. Whatever you say, but there is on representative merc and bimmers. The company would not go bankrupt and after installing the side curtains on the rear doors for machines of this class, this is not a whim, but an urgent need. I think the buyer would be willing to pay for heating the steering wheel, whether he is his own driver. But the boss, accustomed to traveling on the back sofa, would not mind seeing the electrical adjustment of the pillows and backs, since there is not a sofa in the rear, but in our case two separate chairs. Let us further? In my opinion, it would be very helpful to be built into the rear central console on the on -board refrigerator you never like anything on the road. After all, drinking warm champagne on the go is at least not aesthetically aesthetically pleasing. The same DVD player would be on board the VW Phaeton very helpful. Yes, and from the LCD-display with the possibility of viewing TV programs, few would have been refused. The recruit of high society has something to work on, although with the existing set he looks worthy. If it is a minute to allow the idea that each item has its own energy, then, no doubt, VW Phaeton is good. A charge of positive emotions gives every trifle, from decorative inserts from natural myrte wood to elegant, with an accuracy of the fitted details of the luxurious interior. Manually processed skin collected in a rectangular block of control buttons all indicates a pedantic German approach. The abundance of the keys does not cause parallels with the cabin of the aircraft, where you need to know the bink and the purpose of each of them. Distributed icons, like a solid cheat sheet, instantly remind of what opportunities they open when it pressed. And the clarity of contrasting characters allows them to read them with one cursory look.
 



  Another thing is the Infotainment Information Computer System. In the blink of an eye, the driver will recognize the pressure in the tires, quickly set the specified road clearance and set the necessary user settings. One bad thing: the menu is served only in German or in English. In other words, either you need to learn languages, or remember the corresponding functions of comfort, on -board computer, phone and navigation system. The pleasant compensation is that any of them is activated by a simple press of the button, and the execution of commands is duplicated on a 7-inch color display on the middle console. It is unrealistic to verify the legal capacity of all functions during the test. Therefore, I selectively prompted only some of them. Say, installed the maximum road clearance (+25 mm to the standard) and in this position drove and drove through a couple of curbs for beautiful pictures. Experimented with the settings of the steering column and the driver's seat impressed. But even more I was imbued with sympathy for the car after meeting with a four-zone climate control, which allows you to adjust the temperature separately for each sitting in the cabin. And here the two points were pleasantly surprised: the function of automatic control of air humidity and the absence of narrowly directed air flows that prevented the glasses, and in other words, the drafts, and do not forget about controllability.
 
In this sense, it was curious to find out what the most compact 12-cylinder motor in the world was capable of. Previously, this monster was put only on the sports Volkswagen W12 Coupe, on which there are 10 world speed records. And since for me it was the first rendezvous with W12, there is nothing to compare the sensations with. Unless with a V6 volume of 3.2 liters used on modification simpler.
 
The sensation is the first. Rowing the motor be healthy. Power transmission is such as as if a guard dog was lowered from a circuit or a stone was released from a sling. A dashing pickup is welcome when starting from the first line at a traffic light and overtaking. In digital terms, the dynamics is equivalent to a set of hundreds when starting from a place in 7 seconds.
 
The sensation is the second. The motor and gearbox, although they areathered together, are required to be on the alert all the time, especially the checkpoint, which you need to be adopted. Entrance to the tow truck, parking in a limited space do not allow to mug the gas pedal freely. He pressed weakly and, in addition to increased engine speeds at the output, nothing. Hardly drowned to get a powerful jerk, swift, like a boxing blow. In traffic, you know, not very comfortable.
 
The feeling is third. The power unit diligently dragging the two -ton -ton fraud readily absorbs high -octane fuel poured into his womb. And the appetite is noticeably higher than moderate. Ah, yes, the car is all-wheel drive. God with Him, with gasoline, but on a slippery road, the advantage over cars with a monotive is obvious. The VW Phaeton destruction in dynamics made it possible to establish two small inconveniences. The first low -set steamed switches. However, he is ready to admit that this is a matter of habit and a purely subjective assessment. But there is nothing to be done with the second: the flags of switching the stages of the KP when turning the steering wheel remain in place and from the assistants turn into a hindrance. The current balm for the motorist is a smooth course of the car under the silent accompaniment of a 420-horsepower motor around the outside. Bravo to those who worked on sound insulation. Bravo and those who came up with four options for the rigidity of the suspension. If for analysis, several test days would have given out thorough results. And to act as a judge of the technical features of the design in a short time is at least unfair to both readers and in relation to those who have corrupted over a miracle named VW Phaeton for more than one year.
 

The car is provided by Rus-Llan.
During the test, the car is insured by LLC Nation Center.
 
Text: Alexander Trokhachev
Photo: Alexander Nozdrin
 
 
 
 
 
 

Source: Wheel magazine [No. 72/2003]