According to goauto.com.au, the Atlas, which is also sold as the Teramont in China, could very well become available in markets such as Australia, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Japan after the lack of a diesel engine, size and left-hand drive availability were cited as the main reasons for not classifying it as a world vehicle.
“The Altas is being reconsidered but here’s the challenge with Atlas: there has to be a business case for right-hand drive. Speaking initially (with the existing model) … Africa didn’t want it because they didn’t make it in diesel; UK didn’t want it because it’s too big; and the same goes with Japan. We always wanted it. We always put our hand up for that car,” Volkswagen Group Australia Managing Director, Michael Bartsch, told the online publication.
“When that car first came out it fell flat. Now everybody’s reconsidering it. England is now reconsidering it, South Africa is reconsidering it … so we’re going through a reappraisal of that car. Does that mean we are going to get it next year? No. Is it back on the agenda that’s possible in three years time? It comes down to critical mass – and that is always a challenge”.
Bartsch also claimed that Australian Volkswagen dealers had come back with positive feedback following test drives of the Atlas in the Hawaii, adding that only a business model needs to be drawn up in assuring that the next generation becomes available Down Under.
“Things change over time because as the left-hand-drive initial development costs are amortised. Then you start getting a different perspective on the business cases as the car goes through its lifecycle in left-hand drive, seeing how it performs, you know what costs have been amortised and so on,” Bartsch said.
“It’s the normal course of business – there are a lot of things in life one would like, but ultimately it has to make business sense, otherwise there’s no point doing it”.
The first all-new Volkswagen model to go on sale in the States following the dieselgate emissions saga, the Atlas has been on sale since November 2016 and rides on the ubiquitous MQB platform with power coming from a 2.0-litre TSI making 175kW/350Nm, or a 3.6-litre VR6 developing 206kW/360Nm. It is offered only with an eight-speed Tiptronic gearbox with the option of front-or-4Motion all-wheel drive.
