The never-to-be Volkswagen Phaeton Mk2 was envisioned with a W12

The team of Auto Motor und Sport has managed to obtain several bits of data about the second-generation Volkswagen Phaeton, which the company has recently revealed in its unfinished prototype form. There are a couple of interesting insights in this belated revelation.

For one, Volkswagen imagined the Phaeton Mk2 as a stretched car no less than 5.3 meters (207 inches) long. This is comparable to the latest BMW 7-Series. Launches were planned in the United States, China and South Korea, but not Europe.

As a flagship, the new Phaeton was set to come with a wide assortment of engines to choose from, ranging from 286 PS (282 hp / 210 kW) to 650 Nm (641 hp / 478 kW) in power output. The low-end powertrains were petrol and diesel six-cylinders, while the top-of-the-line mill was a formidable six-liter W12. It was even expected to ship as a hybrid car supporting induction (i.e., wireless) charging.

The design team used the MLB unitized architecture for the project, planning to unveil the final result before the masses in 2016, but the executives shelved the project at test mule stage due to the Dieselgate scandal and the overall paradigm shift towards electrification.