Yes sir, the 5 will be replaced with a boosted 4-banger within the next two years. But even so, it got MT’s choice in the shootout, even though it’s a piece of garbage. The engine is the least competitive engine in the shootout — it’s inefficient, coarse, and loud — yet a vehicle powered by it was somehow voted first place… how does that work?
That, and I don’t think the new North American-market Passat is better than the vehicle it replaced. The B8/B9 Passat is a much better car, albeit a bit smaller and more expensive. I’m not trying to be difficult, I just think there’s some glaring inconsistencies with MT’s 1) mid size sedan shootout that ranked the Passat first and the new Malibu dead last, and 2) awarding the new Passat COTY 2012 even though it’s a step backwards compared to the last-gen model (that still sells, very well — mind you, in Europe).
