Test drive Volkswagen Phaeton 2002 - 2009 sedan

Volkswagen Phaeton Long

This trip was little like a regular premiere test. Rather, we were invited to visit, and not anyone, but the chancellor of the Volkswagen modeling range - Phaeton Long.
He tried to make us recognize him closer, showed us his house and place where his many relatives live.

A responsibility
It was, of course, a bold step to decide to produce premium cars under the Volkswagen brand. The large Phaeton sedan, as well as the Touareg alternate, has fallen a difficult share - to perform at the forefront of the struggle to strengthen the new image of the brand. It is difficult to say which of them was more difficult, but Phaeton invaded the sector, where everything has long been divided and the positions of the ruling triumvirate from the south of Germany seemed unshakable. In addition, the image of Volkswagen as a manufacturer of notorious folk cars, as a good wine, was maintained for years. The buyer needed to get used to the fact that cars under this brand could cost both 50 and 100 thousand euros.
The appearance of an elongated version of the sedan from Dresden is quite logical, because the main competitors also have in their arsenal similar modifications that provide advanced opportunities for the rear passengers. The VW Phaeton Long is longer than a standard version of 120 mm, respectively, the same amount was increased in the back of the salon of an already rather big car. Outwardly, a long -drawn version can only be distinguished by a really huge rear door, and experts will celebrate a small change in the design of the radiator grille, the horizontal strips of which are combined in very stretched trapezes.
 
Phaeton design is a classic of the genre: a huge hood, a large area of \u200b\u200bglazing, an impressive trunk. When you talk about appearance this car, a large and massive words themselves ask for a language - this applies to the manufacturer’s emblem on the radiator grille, and front headlights, and rear -view mirrors. The status of a car obliges! And only the nameplate with the name of the model and the volume of the engine, as if embarrassed by something, are huddled at the end of the trunk lid. Although why are huge chrome letters, when everyone already knows the name of the Volkswagen flagship! Phaeton is of interest even among the inhabitants of Dresden - the city where he was born. Many of them looked at the car for a long time, either nodding their heads approvingly, then in thought, calling its value. And our Phaeton on a beveled pavement felt like the master of life, and the spring sun was reflected in his huge eyes.
 
Behind external solidity hides the rich inner world of the car, provided to us in a very rich configuration. Its salon is more like the interior of the London cigar club. The materials are selected with taste and German pedantry - whether it be soft skin of upholstery or plastic ceiling handrails that are decorated with wood, as well as the front panel. The driver of such a car would have recently be assigned the role of a cabman, his workplace often did not differ in special comfort and a large expanse. All the efforts of the engineers were aimed at satisfying the needs of the rear passengers. Fortunately, the times are not the same, so the Phaeton driver is surrounded by care and he is provided with comfort.
 
A large front panel allows you to place all controls and control devices so that the driver makes as few unnecessary movements as possible. To begin with, he can fit the seat with the help of 18 electric motor, then - again, thanks to the electric drive, to adjust the steering wheel. Now you can understand the purpose of six dials on the dashboard and a certain number of keys on the central console. With all the abundance of sources of information and the multiplicity of the functions laid down in the computer’s memory, the front panel interface is much more friendly than other operating systems.
 
As soon as the key turns in the ignition lock, the 4C-Climatronic system will raise part of the decorations of the walnut tree and deflectors will come to the forefront. Very spectacular. But let's not forget that we are destined for the role of the audience of the presidential box. Extra 12 cm is the complete freedom of action of passengers of the rear sofa. Although this is not even a sofa, but two wide armchairs with ten electric regulations each, heated and massage. Them it shares an impressive size of the console with the control panel of the seats, over which a large liquid crystal display and controls of the rear separate climate control system rise. It would be more logical to see a multifunctional screen in this place, combining the climate and entertainment system, but the Germans decided that the screens of the latter could be located in the headrests of the front seats. Fighting out from prying eyes with mesh curtains, the passenger of the right rear chair can still move forward the seat in front of him, and then any long trip turns into a relaxation session to the accompaniment of a high -quality musical system. In this situation, we had to make a trip to the Phaeton house - to a glass manufactory.
Way home
Phaeton was driving home quickly and confidently. A powerful gasoline V8 under the hood, completely without bothering passengers with obsessive sounds or low -frequency hum, quickly reacts to pressing the accelerator pedal. Only in the upper speed range, he allows himself to work in high colors, compensating for this with a assertive, but comfortable acceleration. Automatic 6-band box does not completely eliminate the programs, it is simply translates with enviable smoothness. The driver can take control of it into his own hands, and then the programs will switch with two petals on the steering column, but this function is rather decorative, because the manual mode for Phaeton involves independent actions of the box when the arrow reaches the tachometer of the red zone. Active hydraulic suspension with changed road clearance and the rigidity of shock absorbers is a thing, of course, interesting and necessary. She herself will lower the car by 15 mm as soon as the speed exceeds 160 km/h. The driver will have to choose the stiffness of shock absorbers himself using a computer. At high speeds, the optimal regime can be considered sports, in which vertical buildups and rolls are minimized. True, a few joints on the asphalt of the autobahn in this case will be clearly felt with the whole body. The night route, illuminated by the light of xenon lamps, has turned into a black tape, radar cruise control monitors the distance to the driven car in front and dumps the speed, the course does not require adjustment, extraneous sounds are bothering passengers, and only brightly illuminated devices do not allow the driver to relax. This car is clearly alien to Pedaling and piloting, how alien to the ocean yacht race with hydraulic cycers. Phaeton loves when they calmly and confidently manage, and he answers the same. Without unnecessary nervousness, he will approach the turn and, barely noticeably tilted, will describe the arc, without bringing the matter to slipping or drift. He protects passengers, so the stabilization system and an all -wheel drive transmission will not give a reason for concern, if the driver of the driver of the driver was an attack.
The final
For Volkswagen Phaeton, an additional 120 mm is, first of all, the final statement of the car in the representative class. Now a fan of the brand, which began with Golf or Polo, can already afford to not be distracted by other brands. In addition to two options that differ in the length of the base, Phaeton offers a wide selection of engines-from V6 3.2 to a 12-cylinder W-shaped motor. In the Russian market, the price of a car is quite consistent with its quality and position - from 92.5 thousand to 134 thousand dollars.
Some technical characteristics of Volkswagen Phaeton Long V8 4.2
(manufacturer data)
Dimensions, mm 5175x1903x1450
Base, mm 3001
Front/behind, mm 1625/1612
Diameter of the turn, m 12.5
Benzine engine type V8
40-valve
Working volume, cubic meter. cm 4172
Max. Power, L.S./rpm 335/6500
Max. moment, nm/rpm 430/3500
The transmission is automatic
6-band
Tires 235/55 R17
Max. Speed, km/h 250
Acceleration time 0-100 km, with 6.9
Fuel consumption (EU), l/100 km 9.3/13.1/18.9
Tank volume, l 90
Maxim Rakitin
Photo by the author
 

 

Source: Avtopanorama magazine