Compare the2022 Toyota CamryVS 2021 Volkswagen Passat

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Camry have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Passat doesn’t offer pretensioners for the rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Camry are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Passat doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Toyota Camry has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Passat doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Camry has standard Whiplash Injury Lessening Seats (WIL), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WIL system allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Passat doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tests front crash prevention systems. With a score of 6 points, IIHS rates the Pre-Collision System in the Camry as “Superior.” The Passat scores only 3 points and is rated only “Advanced.”

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Camry XLE/XSE offers an optional Rear Cross Traffic Braking that use rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Passat doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Camry offers all-wheel drive to maximize traction under poor conditions, especially in ice and snow. The Passat doesn’t offer all-wheel drive.

The Camry XLE/XSE offers an optional Bird’s Eye View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Passat only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the Camry and the Passat have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Toyota Camry is safer than the Volkswagen Passat:

	Camry	Passat
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	140	312
Neck Injury Risk	20%	39%
Neck Stress	262 lbs.	391 lbs.
Neck Compression	13 lbs.	47 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	335	384
Chest Compression	.7 inches	.8 inches
Neck Injury Risk	21%	41%
Neck Stress	136 lbs.	297 lbs.
Neck Compression	45 lbs.	85 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Toyota Camry is safer than the Volkswagen Passat:

	Camry	Passat
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Chest Movement	.7 inches	.9 inches
Abdominal Force	136 G’s	136 G’s
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	48 G’s	61 G’s
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	14 inches	15 inches
HIC	164	305
Spine Acceleration	35 G’s	44 G’s
Hip Force	622 lbs.	671 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Camry its highest rating: “Top Pick Plus” for 2021, a rating granted to only 63 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Passat has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Camry 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Passat. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Passat ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The Camry’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Passat’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are almost 2 times as many Toyota dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Camry’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Camry has a standard 600-amp battery. The Passat’s 480-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Camry’s reliability 35 points higher than the Passat.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota fourth in reliability, above the industry average. With 65 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 28th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in reliability. Volkswagen is ranked 24th.

Engine

The Camry AWD’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 28 more horsepower (202 vs. 174) than the Passat’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Camry’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 29 more horsepower (203 vs. 174) than the Passat’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Camry XSE AWD’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 31 more horsepower (205 vs. 174) than the Passat’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Camry XSE’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 32 more horsepower (206 vs. 174) than the Passat’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Camry’s optional 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 127 more horsepower (301 vs. 174) and 61 lbs.-ft. more torque (267 vs. 206) than the Passat’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Car and Driver the Toyota Camry 4 cyl. is faster than the Volkswagen Passat:

	Camry	Passat
Zero to 60 MPH	7.3 sec	8.3 sec
5 to 60 MPH Rolling Start	7.9 sec	9 sec
Passing 30 to 50 MPH	3.8 sec	4.4 sec
Passing 50 to 70 MPH	5.5 sec	6.3 sec
Quarter Mile	15.7 sec	16.2 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	92 MPH	88 MPH
Top Speed	131 MPH	116 MPH

Transmission

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Toyota Camry, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a six-speed automatic is available for the Passat.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Camry TRD’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Passat:

	Camry TRD	Passat
Front Rotors	12.9 inches	12.3 inches
Rear Rotors	11.06 inches	10.7 inches

The Camry stops much shorter than the Passat:

	Camry	Passat
70 to 0 MPH	156 feet	191 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	126 feet	136 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	133 feet	147 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

The Camry has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Passat’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Camry is .3 inches wider in the front and 1.9 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Passat.

The Camry TRD handles at .94 G’s, while the Passat pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Camry XSE executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.4 seconds quicker than the Passat R-Line (26.7 seconds @ .66 average G’s vs. 28.1 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

Passenger Space

The Camry has .8 inches more front shoulder room and .2 inches more rear headroom than the Passat.

Cargo Capacity

A low lift-over trunk design makes loading and unloading the Camry easier. The Camry’s trunk lift-over height is 26.8 inches, while the Passat’s liftover is 28.2 inches.

Ergonomics

The Camry XLE/XSE offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed, tachometer and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Passat doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

If the windows are left open on the Camry the driver can close them all at the outside door handle. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows at the outside door handle or from a distance using the keyless remote. (This window function must be activated by your Toyota service department.) The driver of the Passat can’t use the remote to operate the windows.

The Camry’s speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Passat’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the Camry XLE/XSE keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Passat doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

On extremely cold winter days, the Camry’s optional (except Nightshade/TRD) heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Passat doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Toyota Camry (except Nightshade/TRD) offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) for the front seat. The Passat doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Camry is less expensive to operate than the Passat because it costs $54 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost much less on the Camry than the Passat, including $5 less for a water pump, $341 less for a muffler, $186 less for a starter, $5 less for a fuel pump and $61 less for front struts.

Recommendations

The Toyota Camry has won recognition from these important consumer publications:

	Camry	Passat
Consumer Reports® Recommends	Top Pick	TRUE
Car Book “Best Bet”	TRUE	FALSE

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Camry first among midsize cars in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Passat isn’t in the top three.