"The whole of China is building a full-size flagship", this is an overall feeling that China's new energy market has given us recently, and full-size SUVs and full-size sedans are one after another. Looking at the increase in the demand for executive luxury in China's auto market, some overseas traditional manufacturers can't help it, including Volkswagen, which started to explore the luxury flagship market decades ago. Now in the market, if you really want to talk about the luxury market, there is only one Volkswagen Touareg in the Volkswagen brand, and the Phaeton, as the most luxurious product of Volkswagen in decades, was discontinued in 2016, and in 2022, a prototype of the second-generation model appeared, but in the end it failed to be mass-produced due to cost and market evaluation. Now, Volkswagen's renewed exploration of the flagship market has once again given us hope for the resurrection of Phaeton.
In the shot, we see a prototype car hanging from the Phaeton D2, which retains a large amount of chrome trim materials to create functional areas such as grille, bumper and ventilation vents, among which the grille maintains an inverted trapezoidal style, but the pairs of cut-out banners and vertical banners make it look fuller; The bumper, on the other hand, features twin chrome banners and separate air deflectors on both sides to optimise wind resistance. And we can see that the sharp lines on the hood of the Phaeton will have the flavor of the Audi odd series sports sedan, which is why this vehicle, which appeared as a prototype in 2014, can continue to maintain an avant-garde feeling in the present.
Of course, the headlights are the most dazzling, the matrix LED headlights present three main light cavities, the daytime running lights are independently laid out, and the light strip below can provide a streamer lighting effect, this light shape and lighting effect for some business people, its appeal is no less than a Mercedes-Benz S-class.
Looking sideways, chrome is still the star of the show, from the surrounds on the edge of the windows to the trim on the mirror caps to the anti-scratch strips on the lower edges, all of which are made according to high-polish silver metal strips. In addition, a high waistline that extends from the headlights to the top of the taillights will form a small slope of the upper and lower layers on the doors, with the metal door handles that fit tightly here, although the Phaeton D2 can not compete with the new generation of Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7 Series in avant-garde, but the spicy and mature it presents can indeed represent the Volkswagen to grab the flagship executive car market consumers, and this maturity actually comes from the Bentley Flying Spur, which has completed the platform sharing with the Phaeton D2.
At the rear, there are no continuous taillights, no quad exhaust pipes, and no independent spoiler rear wing, and everything about the Phaeton D2 is in a traditional style. But the difference is that we seem to be able to find a shadow of the current new generation of products such as the Golf 8 in some panel shaping and edge disposal. For example, the tangent line between the edge of the headlights and the side of the car gives the rear a more three-dimensional appearance than the curves that were heavily used in the first generation model. Through the different degrees of metal chrome plating in the headlights, the rear bumper forms a through decoration, the taillights will produce some contrasting effects, and the bumper can be strengthened in the passability link, which is like saying that the Phaeton D2 is definitely a luxury car, but it is the one that pays more attention to practicality.
Also on display is the car's interior, with a luxurious double-articulation contrasting steering wheel in the front cockpit, which is flat and has waxed and polished walnut spokes in addition to paint and chrome. At the same time, the wood decorative panels will also penetrate into more decorative structures, including door panels, central consoles and gear shifting mechanisms, although this design is old for young people, but for business people, for its craftsmanship details, these designs are absolutely top-notch. In addition, the center console has a dual LCD screen, and we can almost tell that it is shared with the Volkswagen Touareg, 123-inch digital instrument cluster with 15The 0-inch touchscreen forms a conjoined body of the external structure. However, limited by the electronic and electrical architecture of the platform, whether the phaeton D2 is produced or not, it is difficult for it to obtain intelligent driving capabilities above L2, and the on-board system will also be limited to the MIB era.
As for the rear row, we can see the layered headrest design used in the seat lock, and the double-row 4-seat layout means that the rear row will use a fixed armrest box, in addition to storage, the armrest box will also be equipped with a multi-functional touch screen and air conditioning control, and the wood grain decoration position behind the front seat will also hang a double LCD screen to provide more entertainment in the rear.
In terms of power, Volkswagen Phaeton will lay out at least one 3The 0TSI turbocharged V6 engine is also expected to be the one equipped with the Volkswagen Touareg, and the 3The 0TDI diesel version delivers at least 213kW (290PS) of maximum power. In addition, according to relevant sources, Volkswagen has plans to provide a plug-in hybrid system to keep up with the pace of the times, and will choose 3The 0TSI V6 engine is matched with an electric motor and a power battery to achieve a combined system power of up to 339 kW (461 PS).
Write at the end
Although Volkswagen announced a few years ago that Phaeton would not have the next generation, as more manufacturers begin to move towards the higher-end market, Phaeton does have the perfect time to "make a comeback". Especially when Toyota Century, Hyundai Azund and other cars have arrived, China's new energy is also rising, will Volkswagen Phaeton usher in its second generation? Let's wait and see.