Passat

Make
Volkswagen
Segment
Sedan

The release of the Passat BlueMotion Concept at the Detroit Motor Show next week could see the first of VW's fuel-efficient BlueMotion branded cars come to the US. Another first is the use of cylinder deactivation in a four-cylinder engine, which is what gives the concept such impressive fuel efficiency figures. Without the use of hybrid or diesel tech, the 1.4-liter turbocharged inline-four rated at 150 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque, returns 42 mpg on the highway.

The direct-injection four-pot turns into a twin by shutting down its second and third cylinders when their power isn't required, and returns to a four when the throttle is more firmly pressed. Other fuel-saving tech include transmission decoupling and Stop/Start. The Reef Blue Metallic concept with two-tone interior is based on a US-spec Passat, so it's only a matter of when and not if, the Passat BlueMotion heads to production.