Description
The Phaeton was the Volkswagen that shouldn't exist, or at least not in 2002 when the German carmaker introduced it on the market.
Ferdinand Piech was in charge of the Volkswagen Group when he decided and pushed hard to introduce the Phaeton on the market in 2002. The carmaker had the A8 as a competitor against the S-Class from Mercedes and the 7-Series from BMW, but Piech asked for more. When the carmaker introduced the new model, the customers were confused. Even though it offered features unavailable for the A8, it was still wearing a Volkswagen badge. But the carmaker didn't stop there. Two years later, it introduced the Phaeton with an extended wheelbase.
The Phaeton long featured a three-meter (118.1") long wheelbase, visible especially on the rear doors, which were longer than on the regular version. Other than that, the exterior was similar to the regular Phaeton, with the same front fascia and thick C-pillar.
With a cabin long enough to park a SMART for-two between the dashboard and the rear bench' seatback, the Volkswagen Phaeton featured increased legroom for the rear passengers of up to 1214 mm (47.8"). Despite its size, Volkswagen made it for up to four passengers due to the tall transmission tunnel and the low roofline. While it was the priciest car that wore a VW badge, it was less expensive than a Mercedes-Benz S-Class or a BMW 7-Series.
Under the hood, the carmaker installed a choice of three gasoline engines. The base model featured a 3.2-liter V-6, which was appropriate for fleet vehicles, while the top-spec version featured the W12 engine used on the Bentley Continental, but without turbochargers. Unlike the SWB Phaeton, the LWB version was available exclusively with all-wheel-drive.
