2010 Volkswagen CC Sport

The CC is Volkswagen’s new four-door coupe that was introduced in 2009 and Volkswagen describes as combining sports car dynamics and dimensions with sedan comfort. It features a long hood, strong shoulder line, rear-swept roofline and short trunk lid, the athletic but elegant look is accentuated by large wheels and tires, deep front air dam and bold grille. And yes, it has pretty much the same profile as the Mercedes CLS.

As far as the styling goes, there’s no question that the CC is a very sleek looking sedan and I got comments a plenty about my Shadow Blue Metallic test car confirming that. The car looks great from any angle with styling reminding me in its own way of the “sleek smooth and sassy” slogan of the ’57 Chevy. The sloping roofline finishes of in a short deck with just a trace of a spoiler. The front end is elegant with sculpted headlamps that sweep smoothly back into the front fenders giving the car a very elegant look.

Inside is no less stellar with the instrument panel smooth and uncluttered with a no-nonsense yet sophisticated cockpit. The center stack houses the information center and the ergonomics are well thought out and relatively easy to use. The seats are sporty yet stylish and offer good support up front and the rear seating area is decent with the caveat that tall rear seat passengers will feel the squeeze from the sloping roofline, but all in all it’s very nice inside.

Driving the CC is what I’d describe as a pleasant experience; nothing very scintillating about it but nothing unpleasant. That may be a different story with the VR6 Sport or 4Motion iteration but the rather lackluster performance of the 2.0 turbocharged test car was rather boring. That said I’m not sure the 10 to 12 thousand dollar price differential is something I’d be willing to pay because of the competition that comes in to play in the mid-thirty to forty thousand dollar range. When you start pulling the BMW 3 Series, the Lexus IS and Infiniti G into the mix you have some pretty strong proven competition and it’s unfortunate that Volkswagen didn’t put some of the vaunted German engineering into the CC to give it just a bit more of a performance edge.

All in all by bringing sleek luxurious styling to bear, I think Volkswagen is on the right track with the CC however in many ways it reminds me of the somewhat infamous VW Phaeton. A well built decent performing comfortable vehicle but seemingly trying to morph into a luxury car that it just doesn’t have the heritage necessary to convince anyone to buy other than a brand loyal buyer.

I could be wrong and if the Volkswagen CC Sport is snazzy enough and is the size vehicle you’re looking for in a price range that works for you, I’d certainly recommend driving one. You may just find it’s exactly what you’re looking for.