Volkswagen has responded to customer requests by adding an optional 3-seat rear bench. Many customers believed that the car needed this additional practicality, enough customers to make VW add it.

To add even more practicality, the folding backrest has been asymmetrically split, so that you can transport large objects. This option will cost 100 Euros.

The Passat CC is a fine car, a practical sedan with a coupe look, and this will make it even better. Sadly though, Volkswagen claims this is exclusive to Europe. Doesn’t make too much sense to me, but I guess that VW’s done their homework and concluded that other markets don’t have as high a demand for it.

Press Release:

Volkswagen’s Passat CC Now Offers Space for Five
Convenient Rear Bench Seat Option Available for Order Exclusively in Europe

Wolfsburg, Germany (Jan. 22, 2010) — The Passat CC is making an elegant appearance on our roads with its coupé lines and sporty note. With a new, optional rear bench available for order only in Europe, the Passat CC can now be considered a stylish five-seater as well.

Volkswagen is adding this new product feature in response to requests by many customers to give the Passat CC even greater everyday utility by adding a seating position. The new rear bench fulfils all necessary safety aspects with its third head restraint and three-point seat belt at the centre position. In addition, the folding backrest is asymmetrically split, so that even larger objects can be transported effortlessly. The 3-seat rear bench system is available as an option for 100 euros.

The Passat CC has successfully established itself on the market, one and a half years after its launch. Nearly one out of five customers in Germany chose the four-door Comfort Coupé in 2009. This market share is not all that surprising, given the many technical innovations to choose from. For instance, Volkswagen offers extremely efficient common rail engines with BlueTDI technology on the Passat CC; today, they already conform to the stringent Euro 6 emissions standard with a multi-stage emissions control system that reduces nitrogen oxide emissions by 90 percent. Also providing a maximum of safety are optional assistance systems such as the active lane-keeping system “Lane Assist” and the dynamic chassis control “DCC”.

Source: Volkswagen