And the gleam of chrome on roof rails, window surrounds, dual exhaust ports and accent lines spanning the front fascia, rocker panels, liftgate and rear bumper line combine to add a classic touch to our upscale tester. Stepping back and taking in the view, you notice that a potentially slab-sided profile is broken by a feature line below the door handles, the flow of that line also swooping up and over muscular wheel arches. The Atlas feels fat fitting into tight parking spaces but its ride and driving abilities are more poised than ponderous. Those 100,000-plus sales were global numbers but the Atlas was definitely designed for North American style, swagger and size preferences.īuilt on VW’s award-winning Modular Transverse Matrix (MQB) platform architecture, the Atlas struts a wide stance, emphasized by a big chrome grille that stretches across the front, connecting the LED headlights. Still only in its second year of production and already having racked up over 100,000 sales, the 2019 Atlas tested here gets it right, expanding on VW design DNA, blending originality and classic cues in a good-looking, roomy and comfortable package. This is Vee-dub’s first seven-passenger vehicle since the Routan minivan (2009-2014), which was basically a rebadged Dodge Grand Caravan and a half-hearted effort best forgotten by all concerned.Ī CrossBlue plug-in-hybrid concept hinted at a more promising future in 2013, before it was followed up with the even bigger Atlas that came to Canada as a 2018 model. The crossover wave continues to crest in all categories, with recent additions to family-sized three-row, seven-passenger vehicles like the Subaru Ascent and, tested here, the Volkswagen Atlas.īut Volkswagen is confident they have combined both qualities within the Atlas, technically rated as a mid-size crossover, but still VW’s largest SUV ever.

2019 volkswagen atlas