Sedan takes hazards of rough route in its stride
LONG-TERM FLEET/ The Volkswagen Passat remains a great package, but its navigation system takes some getting used to, writes Lerato Matebese
While the Volkswagen Passat continues to be one of the market’s most well hidden gems, thanks to its great styling, high quality finishes and an enormous cabin and boot space, it’s a great pity that not many South Africans have warmed to it — but then again, it is a shrinking segment that is losing ground to the SUV market.
Also, the segment is largely occupied by Audi’s A4, BMW’s 3 Series and Mercedes’ C-Class, so it is not surprising that the Passat, as good a package as it is, sells in small volumes.
HIGH CLASS INTERIOR
Nonetheless, that does not detract from the fact that it continues to impress the team, thanks to its high class interior and optional items such as the digital instrument cluster.
Among all the toys specified on our vehicle, I finally got to put the navigation system to the test to see how it fared. Murphy seems to have something of an underwhelming sense of humour with his law. There I was on a Monday morning heading to a car launch in Tshwane and all I had were the co-ordinates to my destination, but no idea where it was.
To factor in traffic delays, I gave myself a two-hour time buffer to cover the 80km-odd sojourn. Unfortunately for me, both the N3 and R21 freeways — the quickest routes to get to Tshwane from the south of Johannesburg — were experiencing delays due to accidents, no doubt influenced by the inclement weather.
This meant the freeway was not an option, so I decided to choose one of the three route options available, which meant cutting through suburbia and myriad traffic lights that would subsequently extend my trip. Nonetheless, I opted for the slightly longer (time-wise that is) route that managed to take me through back routes, many of which were unfamiliar.
All was going well until the last 20km of my trip, when the navigation suggested I take a dirt road which resembled a mushy, muddy rally stage. Perhaps this was the only road leading to my destination, I thought to myself, so I proceeded with care. The initial 12km was tricky, but manageable, and the Passat took everything in its stride. Thereafter, things got a little — how should I put it — interesting.
The once wet dirt road now resembled a slushy, off-roadonly vehicles kind of surface. Having gone too far into the route, there was no way I would be turning back and time was definitely not on my side, so I proceeded — I mean how bad could it get, I thought?
Well, things did get rather hairy as the Passat started to slip and slide through the muddy, waterlogged patches. Momentum, keep the wheels straight and feather the throttle I kept lamenting to myself, courtesy of having attended numerous offroad courses over the years. The Passat began to feel out if its depth as the ESP light starting flashing profusely as the front wheels tried in vain to find any traction on the slippery surface.
PLOUGH ON
Thoughts of placing a call to VW’s roadside assistance service did cross my mind as the vehicle started to bog down slightly. Nonetheless, I decided to plough on — in the literal sense — through the slushy surface that would admittedly suit an Amarok instead.
The Passat proved its mettle, though, and got me to the venue in one piece, albeit the vehicle was covered in a Durban curry red coat of mud. What a car, I thought, feeling triumphant after what seemed to have been an endless and rather outrageously impossible route for anything without 4WD and significant ride height to conquer.