Story & Photos by Patrick P. Tulfo
THE Lamando is part of the revamped Volkswagen lineup in the country that includes Santana, Lavida and the Tiguan, which aims to make the brand affordable and more competitive in the market that emphasizes the tagline, “Affordable German Car.”
The Lamando is the company’s entry in the midsize sedan segment, which is traditionally dominated by the likes of Toyota Camry and Honda Accord. It replaces the Passat in the company’s lineup in the country.
A further research about the Lamando revealed it’s based on the fifth-generation Jetta platform just like the Sagitar, another model that was based on the same platform—both the Sagitar and Lamando slots between the Lavida/Bora and Passat in China.
It’s also the same here in the country as the Lamando is a bit smaller than the Accord or Camry but bigger than a Corolla or a Civic. It seems the Lamando has a segment of its own.
Styling wise, it bears a strong resemblance to Passat which boast of a luxurious but sporty styling. The front end with its signature chrome grille that displays the VW logo boldly is flanked by pair LED headlamps that provides great illumination at night. The fog lamps integrated on the bumper has a single chrome bar dividing it. The rear is also very similar to the previous Passat with the Lamando possessing a more artful styling in taillights. The same VW logo can also be found on the middle which also doubles as a latch to open the trunk. This also hides the reverse camera that opens partly when the car is backing up.
The rather large black sunroof pairs nicely with the shiny red paint of the top variant Highline unit. The 17’inch alloy wheels look wider than it is and has nice sporty design on it.
Inside the sporty luxurious theme continues with the sporty bucket seats upfront and molded seats at the back. The seats boasts of classy-looking leather covers while the dashboard uses soft plastic and faux wood that is not out of place. Having driven almost all of the company’s offerings since they came back to the country, the Lamando also boasts of the same excellent ergonomics wherein all controls are intutively within your grasp.
The only gripes I have about the Lamando is the low seating position that requires one to raise it to get a better view of the road. Another thing that I found a bit annoying is the sunroof fabric cover that won’t stay on its place when fully closed. It always slides a few inches back whenever the car encounters road irregularities.
The Highline variant boasts of a 9.2 inches monitor infotainment system which connected easily to both my android phone and iPhone. The control can also be accessed via controls on the steering wheel. The sound that came out of all its speakers are wonderful whatever songs I played, although it takes sometime to memorize all of its functions.
The 1.4 liter TSI (Turbochargedstratified) injection engine may looked small compared with its competitors but its rated at 150 hp and 250 N-m of torque. It pairs perfectly with the seven-speed DSG or dual clutch transmission.
The engine is very refine when idling but lets out a nice growl once the turbocharger spins. The transmission has two settings, the normal drive mode and sports mode, personally, I find the normal mode lethargic to my taste that’s why I just kept it on the sports mode for most of the time.
Driven sedately, this engine returns a respectable average of more than 7/kms to a liter of gas which goes up considerably to more than 15/kms to the liter if driven at steady 100 kph.
The ride and handling are typical of a German car. It handled very well on the corner and swallowed most of the road imperfections that is a common trait of all roads throughout the country.
Safety-wise, it is equipped with seven air bags, ABS, EBD, tire pressure monitor, proximity sensors and, since VW has been in the forefront of child safety campaign, it has ISOFIX child seat tethers.
The Lamando Highline variant is competitively priced at P1.703 million and it comes with a three-year warranty or 100,000 km, whichever comes first.
Image credits: Patrick P. Tulfo