I'm afraid VW is diluting their "R" brand as quickly as they built it up.
In case you hadn't heard, VW will be showing a Passat R36 at the Essen Motor Show in Germany later this month.
Sure, it looks great. Sure, it's fast. And even though we've heard nothing about it coming to the US (even the press release is Deutsch-only), I still have a few questions.
First, what's this thing going to cost? The regular Passat 3.6 4Motion is slightly outrageous in its price already... 300 horsepower or not, does the world really need a $40,000 Passat?
Secondly, where are the suspension upgrades? The massive brakes? Where is the loud, snorty exhaust? In my opinion, VW has diluted the R badge just as quickly as they built it. The R32 had the performance goodies to back it up. The R36 doesn't seem to.
Put that gem of a VR6 in anything, and I'll drive it with a smile on my face. But the smile will wear off quickly if the rest of the car isn't up to the task.