It’s been nearly nine years since Volkswagen brought to the U.S. market its first purpose-built three-row SUV, the Atlas, which was unveiled at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show and went on sale the following spring.
Built at VW’s plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, which opened in 2011, the Atlas carved out a niche but has also been overshadowed by the Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Chevrolet Traverse and Nissan Pathfinder in the large crossover segment. The current first-generation Atlas had its best year in 2019, when sales reached 81,508 units. That was good for fourth place in a smaller segment, which is now more crowded and more competitive with the arrival of the Hyundai Palisade, Kia Telluride, and Mazda CX-90.
Still, in 2025, the Atlas held its own, finding 71,044 new customers and outselling the CX-90, Subaru Ascent, GMC Acadia and Toyota Highlander (which has lost most of its sales volume to the larger Grand Highlander).
The Volkswagen Atlas Is One Fix Away From Being The Perfect Family SUV
And it may come sooner rather than later.
Winter Testing In Québec
So the time has come for the product planners in Wolfsburg to fully redesign its large crossover, and you can see the results in prototype images of the 2027 Volkswagen Atlas during winter testing on a frozen lake in Québec. Good luck seeing through the camo with all the vivid colors and patterns.
New Atlas Cross Sport Coming Later This Year, Too
But a clear view is coming this spring, when the 2027 Atlas debuts at the 2026 New York International Auto Show. Press days run April 1-2, while public days are April 3-12.
We’ll have to wait until then for details, but the PR department at Volkswagen of America offered TopSpeed some additional information: A new two-row Atlas Cross Sport will also be revealed later this year, also built in Chattanooga.
2nd-Gen ‘Dimensionally Similar’
“The Atlas gets all-new sheetmetal and a new interior. The platform is the latest MQB Evo,” spokeswoman Jessica Arntson says. “Powertrain is EA888 Evo5 that you find in Tiguan, and wheelbase remains the same as the current model, so the second-gen car will be dimensionally similar.”
EA888 Shared With Tiguan Turbo
In the 2026 VW Tiguan Turbo, the EA888 Evo5 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine produces 268 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. The third-generation Tiguan was fully redesigned for 2025 model year.
Source: Volkswagen