2012 Volkswagen New Midsized Sedan unveiled as US Passat

Not to be confused with the yet-to-be announced Volkswagen Passat Australia will get in the next couple of years, this will be an exclusively-American model specifically designed for the country. It will also be built in the country, Tennessee to be exact. This means, as our previous report mentioned, it will be cheap compared with other similarly sized European sedans.

Reports say power packages will range from five- and six-cylinder engines, with the entry-level model being a 2.5-litre five-cylinder engine offering 127kW of power. This model will head into the market with a price tag around the $US20,000 mark.

Topping the range will be a Volkswagen Passat R36-equivalent called the VR6 which will use a similar 3.6-litre V6 engine as our R36, only in the US version it'll output 209kW of power (Australian version 220kW). Like the Australian edition, it will feature a DSG dual-clutch transmission.

The design of the car does look the same as the 2011 Volkswagen Jetta we first saw six months ago, featuring very similar body contours. Quite handsome and very Volkswagen-esque overall.