Anthony on Autos: 2024 Volkswagen Atlas SEL Premium R-Line

by Anthony Fongaro - photos by VW - 11/17/2023

What can I say about three-row SUVs that hasn’t been said? They’re large, practical, can have good tech, and can haul a family. It’s the same with Volkswagen’s large SUV. Volkswagen’s Atlas has been around for a few years, and 2024 brings some changes. Volkswagen has increased competition with the Jeep Grand Cherokee L, Hyundai Palisade, Kia Telluride, and others. Even with the upgrades, can the Atlas compete with some of these juggernauts?

The biggest difference for the exterior is in the front. Atlas now comes with a lightbar, and it has strong illumination. Since the taillights are more curved, the front end looks more aggressive. Along with a no-cost Platinum Gray Metallic paint and 21-inch wheels, that more aggressive look continues. It may not look aggressive from the side and rear, but that’s not an issue. Some fake exhaust surroundings look extremely fake, but the rear isn’t offensive. Taillights are squared off and the Volkswagen logo is under some silver trim. Good job with the exterior refresh.

Jumping inside, there are…physical buttons on the steering wheel. Great! They’re easy to use and can be used for media along with digital dials. The dials have plenty of adjustability and you can make them look either traditional. Unfortunately, this is a Volkswagen, so it has its stupid climate control slides. They’re not backlit and you can’t see them at night. A workaround to this is to press a little icon to bring up the climate control. The infotainment system itself isn’t too bad, but I always used wireless Apple CarPlay. This SEL Premium included a wireless charger, but it made my phone very hot.

As for the rest of the interior, the black seat Vienna seats with silver trim pieces were comfortable and came with strong heated, and ventilated seats. A nice standard feature is the heated steering wheel. Bring a few USB-C chargers, since the Atlas only uses those. Rear passengers have plenty of room, comfortable heated seats, and their own climate control. Leave the third row for children or people you don’t like. Another Volkswagen standard is a little switch for the transmission. It isn’t a big deal and leaves plenty of space for the auto-hold button.

Previous Atlas SUVs used a V6, but Volkswagen ditched that for a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four. This produces 269 horsepower/198 kW and 273 ft-lb/370 Nm. With an all-wheel-drive and an eight-speed automatic, the Atlas gets from 0-60 MPH in 7.3 seconds. It feels faster than that and returns around 22 MPG. A little engine hauling a large SUV does get penalized in the fuel economy department. Handling is what you expect as a large SUV, which means, not the best. There’s a lot of body roll and the steering is dull.

Volkswagen’s safety technology is called IQ.DRIVE. Sounds fancy! It includes adaptive cruise control, rear traffic alert, lane keep assist, and automated braking. Since this uses regular buttons on the steering wheel, IQ.DRIVE is easy to use. When you want to go faster (or slower), there are a few drive modes. Eco is if you want to drive slower and get maybe one MPG more. Comfort is what you think; it makes the Atlas relaxed. Sport mode will eat up your fuel economy, but it’s useful on the highway to overtake. A stand head-up display also helps the Atlas to be more relaxing and less distracting. It has your speed along with navigation.

With all Atlas SUVs, the trim levels don’t come with many options. That means this top-of-the-line SEL Premium R-Line comes with almost everything I said above is standard. The only option was $695 for second-row dual captain chairs. If you don’t need to haul seven people, it’s a good option. This brings the Atlas SEL Premium R-Line to $54,000. You can get an Atlas for as little as around $38,000 for the SE. Skip that and either look at this SEL Premium R-Line or go for the regular SEL for $48,000. That one is the most popular trim, but I’d go all out with the SEL Premium R-Line.

Should you look at the 2024 Volkswagen Atlas? I would say think about it. Korean competition does have better technology and interior quality. There is plenty of tech in the Atlas, but the stupid infotainment system and climate controls do let it down. Still, there is a good engine with decently quick acceleration. It still looks good, and the revisions make it handsome. There are those who are Volkswagen fans, and they should enjoy the Atlas. Plenty of room, comfortable seats, and a good engine can make it compelling. Still, I would shop around to see if this is the three-row SUV for you.