SEMA 2008 show report: Volkswagen Passat CC

By Ben Whitworth

Motor Shows

07 November 2008 09:00

Volkswagen’s sobriety took a back seat at the SEMA show in Las Vegas this week – it pulled the covers off a pair of muscle-bound Passat CCs, a racy 295bhp Tiguan and a grunty diesel Jetta aimed at cajoling the American market into turning its back on gasoline.

The unambiguously named Performance CC – designed by Volkswagen’s California-based design centre – gets a shot in the arm from a three-stage turbo boost to its 2.0-litre TSI engine. In Eco mode you get a modest 222bhp and 236 lb ft of torque, GT mode hikes those outputs to 252bhp and 268 lbs ft, while the Full Power stage unleashes 311bhp and 313 lb ft. Expect expletive-inducing acceleration – and torque steer – on tap. Behind those 20-inch alloys sit 356mm Brembo brakes gripped by four-pot calipers.

To ensure it looks the part, the CC is kitted out with ‘black chrome’ exterior accents, customer bumpers, a bespoke metallic grey paintjob and a machined aluminium spoiler, while the cabin gets high-gloss piano black touches, matte black graphics and customer Recaro seats.

Eye-catching look-at-me luxury, according to Volkswagen. It’s triple-layer paintjob showcases DuPont’s Pepe Pepper tones, which combine gold, brown and silver. This is complemented by custom taillights, a ground-effects bodykit and 19-inch polished alloys. Inside, it’s Latte Macchiatto and Cornsilk leather on all four seats, and to ensure you can give the fashion police a run for their money, the Gold Coast is powered by a 280bhp 3.6-litre V6 FSI engine.

Click 'Next' below to read more about the VW Tiguan and Jetta SEMA cars 

By Ben Whitworth