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Volkswagen Santana
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Volkswagen Santana
The Volkswagen Santana is a nameplate used by Volkswagen for various sedans and station wagons since 1983. The first generation is based on the second-generation Volkswagen Passat (B2). It was introduced in 1981 while production started in 1983 for China. The use of the "Santana" badge rather than "Passat" echoes the use of different names for the sedan versions of the Polo (Derby) and Golf (Jetta).
In North America, it was also known as the Volkswagen Quantum. In Mexico, it was named the Volkswagen Corsar, while in Argentina it was sold as the Volkswagen Carat. In Brazil and other South American countries it was known as the Santana, while the Passat Variant B2 wagon was marketed as the Quantum. In Europe, the Santana name was dropped in 1985 (with the exception of Spain, where the Santana nameplate was retained) and the car was sold as a Passat. European test production ended in 1988 while Latin American production continued until 2006. Chinese production of the three box sedan continued until January 2013.
The final Chinese versions were named Santana Vista, and the name Santana was used on a new 2013 model, slightly smaller and based on the Škoda Rapid and SEAT Toledo.
The Volkswagen Santana was originally sold in Europe as a four-door sedan based on the Volkswagen Passat B2 from 1981 to 1984. In Europe the Santana was marketed towards the upper middle class. It was only available as a four-door sedan, although Volkswagen did build five two-door, pre-series sedans in 1981.
The name "Santana" was derived from the Santa Ana winds. The Santana was also technically identical to the Passat while being positioned more upmarket, consisting of higher quality equipment and better interior materials. Distinguishing features from the Passat included a unique radiator grill with white indicator lenses right next to the headlight and more chrome decoration.
Volkswagen wanted to position the Santana higher than the Passat, but it was also cautious of the fact that it could possibly cannibalize sales of the Audi 80 B2. The Santana faced competition in its home market from the likes of the upmarket Audi 80, BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz 190 while also competing with mainstream competitors such as the Opel Ascona. The Audi 80 and the VW Santana were marketed through a joint sales channel, and as a result sales remained below Volkswagen's expectations.
From January 1985, the Santana name was dropped in Europe except in Spain, but the car continued to be kept on sale through a facelift and was henceforth known as the Passat notchback until the Passat B2's discontinuation in 1988.
In the first year of sales, The Santana was only offered in the higher-quality CL and GL versions. To emphasize the model's independence, these were changed to LX and GX from August 1982 onwards and from 1984 a more basic CX version was also introduced. The GX5 was the top of the range and came with alloy wheels, leather upholstery, deep pile carpet and central locking as standard as well as a sporty 1.9 inline five engine from the Audi Coupe. This engine was upgraded to a 2.0 litre in the last year of production (1984).
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Volkswagen Santana
The Volkswagen Santana is a nameplate used by Volkswagen for various sedans and station wagons since 1983. The first generation is based on the second-generation Volkswagen Passat (B2). It was introduced in 1981 while production started in 1983 for China. The use of the "Santana" badge rather than "Passat" echoes the use of different names for the sedan versions of the Polo (Derby) and Golf (Jetta).
In North America, it was also known as the Volkswagen Quantum. In Mexico, it was named the Volkswagen Corsar, while in Argentina it was sold as the Volkswagen Carat. In Brazil and other South American countries it was known as the Santana, while the Passat Variant B2 wagon was marketed as the Quantum. In Europe, the Santana name was dropped in 1985 (with the exception of Spain, where the Santana nameplate was retained) and the car was sold as a Passat. European test production ended in 1988 while Latin American production continued until 2006. Chinese production of the three box sedan continued until January 2013.
The final Chinese versions were named Santana Vista, and the name Santana was used on a new 2013 model, slightly smaller and based on the Škoda Rapid and SEAT Toledo.
The Volkswagen Santana was originally sold in Europe as a four-door sedan based on the Volkswagen Passat B2 from 1981 to 1984. In Europe the Santana was marketed towards the upper middle class. It was only available as a four-door sedan, although Volkswagen did build five two-door, pre-series sedans in 1981.
The name "Santana" was derived from the Santa Ana winds. The Santana was also technically identical to the Passat while being positioned more upmarket, consisting of higher quality equipment and better interior materials. Distinguishing features from the Passat included a unique radiator grill with white indicator lenses right next to the headlight and more chrome decoration.
Volkswagen wanted to position the Santana higher than the Passat, but it was also cautious of the fact that it could possibly cannibalize sales of the Audi 80 B2. The Santana faced competition in its home market from the likes of the upmarket Audi 80, BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz 190 while also competing with mainstream competitors such as the Opel Ascona. The Audi 80 and the VW Santana were marketed through a joint sales channel, and as a result sales remained below Volkswagen's expectations.
From January 1985, the Santana name was dropped in Europe except in Spain, but the car continued to be kept on sale through a facelift and was henceforth known as the Passat notchback until the Passat B2's discontinuation in 1988.
In the first year of sales, The Santana was only offered in the higher-quality CL and GL versions. To emphasize the model's independence, these were changed to LX and GX from August 1982 onwards and from 1984 a more basic CX version was also introduced. The GX5 was the top of the range and came with alloy wheels, leather upholstery, deep pile carpet and central locking as standard as well as a sporty 1.9 inline five engine from the Audi Coupe. This engine was upgraded to a 2.0 litre in the last year of production (1984).
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