Beijing 2016: Volkswagen Phideon – Exclusively Chinese

Revealed at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show in February, Volkswagen’s Phideon luxury saloon made its Chinese debut at the ongoing Beijing Auto Show yesterday.   

The luxurious four-door sedan, which is positioned above the Passat and the Magotan in China, will be available for customers only in the third quarter of 2016.

According to Volkswagen's design team, the Phideon was derived almost directly from the C Coupé GTE concept car, which was presented at Auto Shanghai in 2015, with only minor changes. From a technical perspective, the Phideon is the first Volkswagen to be based on the Modular Longitudinal Matrix (MLB).

Available in two trim levels, the Phideon 3.0 TSI 4MOTION, which comes with four-wheel drive as standard - is powered by a 3.0 litre V6 turbocharged direct injection petrol engine that produces 300 PS and 440 Nm of maximum torque. Meanwhile, the lower specced version is powered by the brand’s existing 2.0 TSI engine with front-wheel drive configuration. The company announced that a model with a plug-in hybrid drive is also planned for the future.

Measuring at 5.05 metres long, 1.87 metres wide and 1.48 metres high, the Phideon’s exterior features dual LED headlights, alloy wheels derived directly from the C Coupé GTE, LED rear lights, a wrap-around chrome strip in the lower body, as well as stainless steel exhaust tailpipes.

The interior on the other hand, is both sporty and elegant. The dashboard and the interior architecture are designed to focus on the technical design and driving dynamics in the cockpit. The  seats (in the front and rear passenger compartments) can be electrically adjusted in several directions, including individual settings for the ergonomically curved sides, and have integrated seat ventilation and heating as well as a massage function.

The design team created a relaxed lounge atmosphere. The atmosphere inside the car is also made more pleasant by a wrap-around ambient light strip that can switch between three different colours.

Other notable features include air suspension system, five individually selectable driving modes, electric soft-closing system for the doors, head-up display which projects information onto the windscreen, camera-based night vision system, and Area View camera among others. 

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