Photo: ABT Sportsline
The Passat could be considered the car that revived the mid-size sedan segment in Europe. There's a huge variety of available models, from the super-frugal 1.6 TDI to the lifted Alltrack. Taking that into consideration, it's no wonder that famed German tuner ABT has paid close attention to the Passat.
We've seen this tuning project before, at the Geneva Motor Show if we remember correctly. However, the number of available power packs has increased substantially. In fact, the only models they don't cater to are the entry-level 1.6 TDI 120 hp and 1.4 TSI 125 hp.
Let's start things off nice and slow with the 1.4 TSI that comes from the factory with 150 hp and 250 Nm. It's a decent engine, but the Passat can be a heavy car, especially as a wagon. So ABT can boost this little fellow to 180 hp and 290 Nm of torque. Now that's more like it!
Until the 2.0 TSI retires it, you can still buy a 1.8 turbo. It's not exactly the pinnacle of German engineering that its old 5-valve cousin used to be, but the modern TSI can deliver a maximum output of 210 hp and 310 Nm, provided that you allow some tuning magic to happen.
Finally, we arrive at the 2.0 TSI, which is the most powerful engine of any kind you can buy with this car. 280 hp is a decent standard output, but ABT says the VW deserves 336 hp. As you may remember, the 2-liter turbo can also be ordered with the same 220 hp output as a Golf GTI. IN that case, the tuners say they can offer you 290 hp and 420 Nm (production version: 350 Nm).
On the diesel front, we start things off with the 150 hp model being boosted to 170 and 380 Nm (production car: 340 Nm), the 190 hp at 215 hp and a torque of 440 Nm (production car: 400 Nm). The most powerful 2.0 TDI version with two turbos now shows 270 hp, up from 240 hp (176 kW). Its maximum torque is now a respectable 540 Nm (production version: 500 Nm).
Let's start things off nice and slow with the 1.4 TSI that comes from the factory with 150 hp and 250 Nm. It's a decent engine, but the Passat can be a heavy car, especially as a wagon. So ABT can boost this little fellow to 180 hp and 290 Nm of torque. Now that's more like it!
Until the 2.0 TSI retires it, you can still buy a 1.8 turbo. It's not exactly the pinnacle of German engineering that its old 5-valve cousin used to be, but the modern TSI can deliver a maximum output of 210 hp and 310 Nm, provided that you allow some tuning magic to happen.
Finally, we arrive at the 2.0 TSI, which is the most powerful engine of any kind you can buy with this car. 280 hp is a decent standard output, but ABT says the VW deserves 336 hp. As you may remember, the 2-liter turbo can also be ordered with the same 220 hp output as a Golf GTI. IN that case, the tuners say they can offer you 290 hp and 420 Nm (production version: 350 Nm).
On the diesel front, we start things off with the 150 hp model being boosted to 170 and 380 Nm (production car: 340 Nm), the 190 hp at 215 hp and a torque of 440 Nm (production car: 400 Nm). The most powerful 2.0 TDI version with two turbos now shows 270 hp, up from 240 hp (176 kW). Its maximum torque is now a respectable 540 Nm (production version: 500 Nm).
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