Driver's Seat: Have fun driving the 2012 Passat

2012 Volkswagen Passat SEL: Volkswagen appears no longer content being merely a Saab alternative.

Price: $28,395 (The base S model starts at $19,995, and Bluetooth Technology is standard.)

Marketer's pitch: "Designing a bigger smile."

Conventional wisdom: Edmunds.com says it deserves "serious consideration."

Reality: Whatever Volkswagen is doing must be working; sales for the 2011 calendar year are up 22 percent in the U.S. over the same period in 2010.

Not a U.S. hit: While they're gangbusters elsewhere (4.4 million in sales worldwide), Volkswagen's U.S. products have been fairly lackluster over the last couple decades (about 10 percent of that worldwide sales figure).

A reputation for broken interior parts, expensive fixes, and mechanical issues hasn't helped.

The turnaround: If they can get more sedan buyers to give the Passat a shot, I think they might pull this off.

For a relative bargain of about 25 grand (for a midlevel SE, which would include automatic but not have the premium sound system), the Passat is roomy, comfortable, and extremely competent. All the pieces fit precisely, the doors close with ease and everything feels durable.

Driving it: Like the Jetta I drove earlier this year, the Passat made driving fun. The handling is superb, and the 170 horses from the 2.5-liter five-cylinder motivate this rather large sedan better than I expected. Getting yourself onto a crowded I-95 will not be a problem.

Three-headed transmission: The Passat's automatic (an $1,100 option) features Volkswagen's special TipTronic transmission with Drive mode, Sport mode and Shift mode. Both Drive mode and Sport mode require a definite accelerator punch to overcome a lag that almost feels like a hesitation. Only in Shift mode did the Passat's accelerator seem to get the car rolling quickly.

Save yourself some pennies and buy a stick.

Information, please: I panned the Jetta's engine temperature light. I'm happy to report the Passat features a temperature gauge, which should be mandatory on all cars.

And the temperature and fuel-level gauges are in nice, easy-to-read dials inside the larger speedometer and tachometer gauges.

Homely dash: Lest you think I've breathed in too many VW fumes, I admit the rectangular heater vents are unattractive and don't offer the versatility of round units. And wood veneer is not my thing, although the Passat's is not cheap looking. (No veneer in the cheaper models, hooray!)

Night shift: The gauges are a comfortable white at night. No glare, no confusion. Four overhead lights focus on the four corners and don't interfere with the rearview mirror.

Different kind of Fender: The SEL model offers Fender's Touch Screen Premium VIII sound system. Simply, it is a delight. The touch screen controls are easy to operate, while knobs and buttons still let you pick CD or satellite radio or crank up the volume.

And the sound? Wow. I broke out the Vivaldi and felt like I was sitting at Verizon Hall. Like things a little more funky? The woofers rattle the windows just fine.

Keeping comfortable: Volkswagen has simplified the heater and AC controls. Three simple knobs: One controls temperature, one controls speed and one controls which outlet the air blows from. Nice.

A Buick look? Volkswagen seems to have gone for a more General Motors approach. The Passat looks like a big Jetta, and definitely has a Buick ring to it because it's so large.

Friends and stuff: You can cart full-size people around in the Passat in comfort. Head room is great; rear legroom is great.

The trunk is enormous, and the rear seats fold down for long items.

Fuel economy: The large Passat averaged 30 m.p.g. while I tested it, even better than baby brother Jetta.

Where it's built: For 2012 the Passat is built at the company's new Chattanooga, Tenn., factory.

How it's built: Volkswagen scores below average on J.D. Power & Associates overall dependability score for 2011. The 2010 Passat was about average.

In the end: If I had to have a Volkswagen sedan, I'd skip the Jetta, dip deeper into my bank account, and head straight for the Passat.

It's worth a look against the competition, as well. If only Volkswagen would man up and match the Koreans with 10-year warranties . . .