The future of Volkswagen in America has arrived with the Atlas SUV

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Late last week, Volkswagen unveiled the latest addition to their US lineup – a mid-size SUV called the Atlas. The Chattanooga, Tennessee-built crossover is the first major arrival in Volkswagen’s SUV revolution that will see the venerable German brand completely transform its lineup over the next few years.

“This is the biggest and boldest Volkswagen we have ever built in the United States, delivering the distinctive design and craftsmanship we’re known for, now with room for seven,” Volkswagen North America Region CEO Hinrich J. Woebcken said in a press statement. “The Atlas marks a brand new journey for Volkswagen to enter into the heart of the American market.”

The new SUV will make its world debut at the 2016 LA auto show in Novembers and will go on sale in the Spring of 2017.

When it arrives, the 7-seat family hauler will join VW’s compact Tiguan and mid-size Touareg SUVs already on sale today. Unfortunately, even in a market that craves SUVs, Volkswagen has failed to make any significant headway with consumers.

Even though Tiguan sales are up 36% this year in the US, VW has only managed sell 30,000 of the compact crossovers through the end of September and currently accounts for just 1.3% of the segment. In that same period, Honda, Toyota, Nissan, and Ford have each managed to sell more than 230,000 of their respective compact crossovers.

The news is even worse for VW with the Touareg which has seen just 3,200 examples of the SUVs rolls off dealer lots through the end of September. As a result, the Teutonic off-roader accounts for a measly 0.2% of the US mid-size SUV market – the same segment in which the Atlas will do battle.

Thus, the three-row SUV will serve as much need reinforcement for VW’s ailing lineup as it attempts to beef up SUV sales and recover from the debacle left in the wake of the company’s multi-billion dollar emissions cheating scandal.

Following, the arrival of Atlas next Spring, VW will roll out the second generation Tiguan crossover for the US market later in 2017.

Over the next few years, the Wolfsburg-based auto giant plans to have three more SUV models, in addition to the Atlas, Tiguan, and Touareg.

In addition, there are plans for a sub-compact crossover and a compact model that will both slot in below the next generation Tiguan in the model hierarchy.

To differentiate the two mid-size SUVs, Volkswagen is expected to push the Touareg upmarket by rebranding the SUV, with its strong Porsche DNA (Porsche is part of the VW Group), as a performance-oriented model. Above the Touareg – at the top of VW’s SUV food chain – will be the production version of the T-Prime GTE Concept that was introduced earlier this year at the Beijing auto show.

In the mean time, here’s a closer look at the new 2018 Volkswagen Atlas.

Volkswagen introduced the new Atlas SUV last week in Los Angeles ahead of the 2016 LA auto show.

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Upon its arrival next spring, it will join…

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… The first generation Tiguan compact crossover and…

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… The midsize Touareg on VW’s SUV lineup.

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The Atlas is slated to compete against such industry heavy hitters as the GMC Acadia, …

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… Ford Explorer,…

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… Toyota Highlander, and…

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… The Jeep Grand Cherokee.

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The Atlas will be built on VW Group’s modular transverse or MQB platform shared with…

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… The second-generation 2018 Tiguan that will be introduced to the US market later in 2017.

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The Atlas will be available with two engine options. The base model will get 2.0 liter, 238 horsepower, turbocharged, four-cylinder while higher spec cars will get a 3.6 liter, 280 hp VR6 V6 engine. Both engines will be paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission.

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The crossover will come standard in front-wheel-drive with 4Motion all-wheel-drive available as an option.

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Styling wise, the front fascia of the Atlas is dominated by LED headlights flanking VW’s new corporate grille design.

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The rear-end of the Atlas boasts twin-exhausts along with a roof-line that’s more wagon than rugged off-roader.

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Inside, the SUV features three-rows of seating and room for seven occupants.

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The Atlas is loaded with safety tech including adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning and autonomous emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, lane departure warning and assist, and park steering assist.

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VW’s version of Audi’s Virtual Cockpit digital instrument cluster is also available as an option.

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The Atlas will be built in Chattanooga, Tennessee alongside the…

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… The North American version of the Passat sedan. Volkswagen has not released official pricing for the Atlas.

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