Volkswagen Passat saloon production for Europe has ended

Volkswagen has hammered the final nail on the coffin of the Passat saloon. According to a report by Autocar, the German marque has ended the production of the four-door saloon in Europe. The reasons for this decision include the stronger sales of the Passat estate and the arrival of the similarly positioned Arteon.

News of VW killing the Passat saloon in Europe has been out since 2020. It's expected to bow out in 2023, but it seems like the automaker has pulled up the timeline. As a side note, the Ford Mondeo, one of the Passat's main competitors, will be discontinued in March this year.

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The current B8-generation Passat is due for a major revamp in 2023. The ninth-generation model will be built atop an updated MQB platform. With this latest development, the ninth iteration will be solely available as a long-roof model when it arrives in the Old Continent.

Of note, the VW Passat has been available as a saloon and a estate ever since the Giorgetto Giugiaro-designed original model was launched in the '70s. We checked various customer-facing VW European websites and we can confirm that the Passat saloon is not being offered as of date.

A successor is coming:

VW Aero B electric saloon rendered in unofficial final form

VW Aero B EV spied for first time, future replacement for Passat

The death of the Passat is speculated to pave the way to the upcoming VW Aero B. The all-electric saloon is currently in development, which takes design inspiration from the ID Space Vizzion concept from 2019. As the concept came as an estate, it's expected that the Aero B will arrive as both a saloon and an estate, just like the Passat.

The Aero B is reportedly the model's tentative name. VW could change it to follow the ID naming convention for EVs, but a debut late this year or in early 2023 is expected.