Life & Style | Motoring
Volkswagen Phaeton: a statement in luxury
The volkswagen phaeton offers the motorist total comfort and convenience. With its luxurious interiors and impressive range of gadgets and gizmos, the vehicle is great for an ideal cruise, says Shiva Kumar Thekkepat
- By Shiva Kumar Thekkepat, Feature Writer
- Published: 23:40 December 11, 2008
- The volkswagen phaeton offers the motorist total comfort and convenience. With its luxurious interiors and impressive range of gadgets and gizmos, the vehicle is great for an ideal cruise
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OK, the bad news first. The Volkswagen Phaeton is not the car for people who want to get noticed. It's not flashy, in-your-face or even particularly stylish like the Mercedes, BMW or Jaguar that it's targeting.
You can even say that it's the car for people who are not particularly bothered about wanting their cars to speak for them. In fact, it's ideally suited for those who have arrived in life, who can afford to be driven to the office by a chauffeur.
Take one drive in the Volkswagen Phaeton and you won't need any more convincing that it is a car for people who get driven in large luxurious s-t-r-e-t-c-h saloons. Think luxury yacht and you wouldn't be far off. The leather-washed, wood-finished interior screams subtle opulence. Yes, that's an acceptable paradox).
And the space! My 6-foot-odd son, who is usually only excited by Ferraris and Lamborghinis, was ecstatic by the lounging space in the rear. He could actually put his legs up and do his best Travis Barker imitation. Says something for these long limo-like cars.
Entry is easy as the doors open very wide, almost to 90 degrees. The flip side is that you have to lean across to close the doors. Exercise your spine in order to avoid cramps.
(This is strictly for the don't-move-a muscle kinds). The focus is clearly on the interior here – mostly on the rear seats. There appears to be acres of luxury among the yards of leather. And it bears repetition. I sat there just to verify my son's paeans and I must admit I couldn't touch the front seats with my feet. Rear passenger legroom is second to none, and with a full complement of separate climate, audio and seat adjustment controls.
The Phaeton boasts one of the finest hand-finished interiors in a production car, but that is not all. There are air bags front and sides for all outward seats and twin head curtains run the length of the car. But then so do all major luxury cars have these today. There's a navigation system, a huge sunroof, four climate zones. Everything's powered, including the standard VW remote key fob. But it's nothing we haven't seen before.
Driving force
So, where else can you look for the 'edge'? In driving it, of course. Again, you just can't help admiring the super-soft feel of the seat as you slide into it, adjusting yourself with deep pleasure into a perfect driving position with the help of sliders and switches. The driver's seat adjusts 18 ways and you could spend happy hours finding the perfect combination.
When you crank up the Phaeton's V8 there's no roar from the engine. It's quiet, almost vibration-free, as befits such luxury. The V8 has an all-wheel drive transmission, with a six-speed automatic gear system. With such massive length and weight, it is not surprising that the Phaeton takes 7.5 seconds to reach 100km/h from start. But it's smoothness all the way, like a rocket launch.
There's no afterburner kick. Pull onto the Dubai-Abu Dhabi highway and set cruise control. Notice how the transmission sometimes kicks down on deceleration to use the engine for braking.
The signs are all good – there's a deep, satisfying purr that can only come from a silky-smooth V8. The
air-conditioning vents reveal themselves slowly and dramatically behind motorised, wood veneer dashboard panels when you start the engine. Gizmos and gadgets are aplenty, but don't expect too much of grunt from the V8. Though it is sufficient, it's a little less grunt than what you'd want on the motorway.
Short hauls are a breeze but if you want to do some quick lane-hopping, you have to prepare for it and be quick with your right toe. Tapping the power at the right time is what it's all about. Obviously, this car isn't really about racing, or quick getaways. Even though VW has included an electronically adjustable suspension with a 'sport' setting that lowers the suspension, and 'comfort' that raises the ride height from 'sport' into 'comfort'.
All versions come equipped with the four-wheel drive and air suspension combination as standard, which VW claims provides excellent driving dynamic qualities and drive comfort, and guarantees a high level of active safety even under the most adverse weather conditions. The air suspension with continuous damping control enables the body to be lowered at speeds above 140 km/h; VW says this optimises handling performance and lowers average fuel consumption.
What I found was that 'sport' may not be inducive to racing; the extra length doesn't exactly allow leaning into tight corners or take the roundabouts too swiftly. But 'comfort' certainly increases the suspension suppleness and makes it glide over bumps. You soon learn to set it at 'comfort' and loll around as the car does what it does best: glide around.
Novel features
According to VW, the technical modifications and the systems used in the Phaeton include adaptive cruise control (ACC) with new features like Front Assist stopping distance reduction, Side Assist lane changing assistant and automatic activation of low beams when driving fast on the motorway (starting 10 seconds after reaching 140 km/h) or when raining.
The ACC apparently helps prevent rear-end collisions with the Front Assist system. The system uses a radar sensor to monitor the distance to vehicles in front of the Phaeton. When approaching too fast, it warns the driver in two stages. At the same time the vehicle is prepared for the possibility that the driver may slam
on the brakes.
The new system is said to work as a stopping distance reduction system. As part of the ACC, the system is operated via buttons on the steering wheel. When ACC is activated the
car automatically brakes, even stops completely if necessary, and accelerates within a range of speed previously set by the driver.
The system can be switched on at speeds ranging from 30 to 200 km/h. The system uses radar to measure traffic travelling up to 200 metres in front of the car. The systems can be switched off too. Side Assist is the lane-changing assistant. This system uses radar sensors in the rear bumpers to monitor the area to the back and side of the Phaeton at 60 km/h and above.
It uses a warning light in the wing mirror casing to signal a potential risk of collision. The sensor monitoring area covers a distance of about 50 metres behind and 3.60 metres to
the side of the car.
A DVD-based navigation system,
an information and entertainment system, and a new voice-controlled Bluetooth telephone with extra Bluetooth earphone are all part of the wish list come true.
It even has a storage capacity of up to 1,000 telephone numbers (up to four numbers can be saved per entry). My fav among the list? A tyre pressure monitoring system.
These innovations may give you peace of mind, but you still would not be advised to drive carelessly.
Or too fast. The thing to do in a Phaeton is to cruise. Once you reach the speed you want, cruising is extremely comfortable and effortless. There is almost no wind noise and only the faintest of hums from the all-wheel-drive wheels and tyres.
This then seems to be the thing the Phaeton was made for. Don't smart talk it into doing twists and turns. nstead, put on the music, set the cruise control and lean back and drive. It's pure enjoyment. At Dh320,000? Why not?
Shiva Kumar Thekkepat is Feature Writer, Friday
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