It's not just a VW thing. ALL 18", 19", & 20" wheels are at high risk of bending the bead. Shorter the sidewall the higher the risk. I too switched to 16" wheels from a base Passat S model. I picked up some nice 16" alloys for a Wolfsburg Passat for summer and steel wheels for winter. High sidewall tires cost a lot less than low sidewall tires.
Now that I'm retired and am no longer driving 150 miles/day, I have 18" wheels. I sold my 2014 back to VW with the 16" steel wheels with the crappy Hankook tires. For my 2015 SE I scored a set of 18" wheels with some nice Michelins. I swapped wheels & tires with a friend who was selling back his Passat SEL.
Yes, I like the ride better with the 18" wheels. A lot of that also depends on what tire one has. I have Michelin Premier A/S for my summer tires. For winter I have Michelin X-ice on 16" wheels. I was able to score a set of 18" wheels with Pirelli Cinturato P7 for the wife's car. This was a swap with another friend who sold his SEL back to VW. Even my wife who is NOT a car person, noticed how much better her car rode, tracked, and cornering was a lot tighter after we installed the 18" wheels with the Pirellis from the stock 17" wheels with the Hankooks. I have practically two identical Passats, one with Pirellis and the other with Michelins. The ride between the two is dead even. I cannot say anything about either tire having anything over the other.
Here's a photo I took a few years back at the Detroit Auto show. A Pirelli P-Zero mounted on a 22" wheel. That's probably a quick $1500 to replace both the wheel & tires after hitting an average pothole. Not for me.