Up: A+ looks inside and out.
Down: The screen isn’t touch?
Neutral: This car is 2 – 3 years ahead of its competitors.
On a rainy day in May, I got the pleasure of testing the 2012 Volkswagen CC. Also known as the Passat CC in its first generation, the CC is the Jetta’s older, more luxurious brother while still maintaining all of the sportiness. The version I was driving was the Sport version and although that is the base model, it felt like it had all of today’s necessary features plus a whole lot more!
First thing’s first, the car. The CC is a luxury sport “coupe” even though it has four doors. The reason it is called a coupe is because it has true bucket seats in the back. There are two seats separated by a divider (yes it has cup holders) and they are very comfortable. In fact, the only thing that says “sedan” about this car is the fact that has four doors. The CC comes (standard) with a 200 hp inline-4 turbochared engine, sport suspension with front MacPherson Struts, 17″ wheels, and large ABS disc brakes for stopping power.
The engine and the suspension are just the beginning of all of the features you get. Inside is a touchscreen system in place of all of the old radio knobs and dials (GPS optional) and you can control it from the steering wheel for less distraction. You can connect any device you own whether it be an iPod, auxiliary plug-in, and even Bluetooth. When a phone is connected through the Bluetooth system, a heads up display pops up between your driving gauges that shows the contact’s name and if you answer, they are relayed throughout the cars hands-free set up. To top it all off, you get a premium sound system with 8 high quality speakers. The Volkswagen CC is definitely fully loaded in the non fully loaded version.
But enough about the specs, let’s talk about how good the car is. The benefit to this outing was that I got to drive it alongside of its owner, Dustin, who had owned it long enough to know how good the car really was. Overall he told me the car was really good. He had no complaints other than he wishes the CC came with a sunroof on the standard model. The ride was smooth, the seats are comfortable, all of the electronics functioned well in the car, and it had enough power for quick speed-ups. All in all, he seemed quite satisfied with his purchase.
From my first impression driving the CC, I mostly noticed the ride comfort. You could hardly feel small bumps and the power seats had many different functions to meet your comfort needs. Although most of the drive took place downtown in slow speed limits, the handling seemed spot on with no hints of over or under steer. When putting your foot down, however, there is a slight turbo lag but it is almost unnoticeable to someone who doesn’t know what that is. The CC was a pleasant drive and, since it has a 4 cylinder engine, would be one of the best cars to take on a long road trip.
Throughout my adventure in the 2012 Volkswagen CC, I could not think of a car that is as well equipped as the Volkswagen CC Sport for the same price. I know there are similar models such as the Toyota Camry and the Chevy Malibu for slightly less, but they don’t seem to have the pizzazz of the CC’s sleek look and two-toned interior. The CC Sport is priced right around $30,000 and that comes with seemingly everything except GPS and a sunroof. I would recommend this car to anyone looking for a great sporty sedan and not pay the price of an Audi or Mercedes Benz.
One of the coolest features was the Valet Key:
