When the Volkswagen Atlas was officially revealed back in October, the brand said the seven-seater would be built in Tennessee, primarily for the North American market.
There was also talk that the SUV would eventually be sold in China, Russia and the Middle East. But now a VW executive has confirmed that the brand is considering offering the vehicle in other markets, too.
“We are thinking about Europe. For most regions, the Touareg is the right car, but there are certainly markets like Russia and the Middle East where we see the Atlas could be popular,” Elmar-Marius Licharz, the Wolfsburg automaker’s product control chief, told Autocar.
“The Atlas is quite big, so we need to evaluate the likely demand – it might even be too big to fit in many European garages. But clearly there are some markets in Europe where it would make sense, and there is spare capacity at the Chattanooga plant where we are building it if we choose to do this,” Licharz added.
Licharz admitted that if the Atlas were to make it to Europe, it would likely need to be offered with a diesel powertrain, which is not the case in the United States (where the engine range comprises two petrols: a 2,0-litre TSI four-cylinder and a 3,6-litre VR6).
“At the moment, we are just thinking about it, but it is possible,” he explained.
The Atlas runs on Volkswagen’s MQB platform, and measures more than five metres in length, which sees it slot in above Touareg.
While it remains to be seen what this latest development could mean for the chances of local introduction, we doubt there are any plans to make the Atlas available in South Africa any time soon. Indeed, there would have to be a compelling reason to build the SUV in right-hand drive configuration first (for a variety of markets), before a business case could be made.
