2024 VW Atlas Loses Its V6 but Gains a More Powerful 4-Cylinder

• Volkswagen's three-row Atlas and two-row Atlas Cross Sport get a "major refresh" for the 2024 model year, and the biggest development is under the hood.

• Last year, you could get an Atlas with a V6, but the '24 model will only offer a new 2.0-liter, four-cylinder turbo TSI.

• Inside, the refreshed crossovers will come with a standard 12-inch infotainment display and a 10.25-inch screen in front of the driver for Digital Cockpit Pro information.
  

Without a Beetle or standard Golf in the US product lineup, Volkswagen leans harder on its remaining models, particularly the crossovers. The Tiguan was VW's best-seller in the US, with more than 88,000 deliveries in 2022, followed by the still relatively new compact Taos crossover, which found its way to more than 59,000 American driveways last year, according to Wards Intelligence data.

But Wolfsburg would like to see more sales traffic from its larger crossovers—the three-row Atlas and two-row Atlas Cross Sport, both produced in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Combined sales for the two models reached 82,000 units in 2022. These upsize models get a "major refresh" for the 2024 model year, and the biggest development is under the hood.

Last year, you could get an Atlas with a tubocharged four-cylinder TSI engine or a workhorse VR6. This year, a new 2.0-liter, four-cylinder turbo TSI is your only option. The new engine produces up to 269 hp and 273 lb-ft of torque. That's roughly the same as last year's VR6 (276 hp, 266 lb-ft) and far more than the outgoing 2.0-liter unit (235 hp, 258 lb-ft).

VW is holding back some details of the new Atlas crossovers, but the automaker says it expects this new powerplant to offer both better acceleration and improved fuel economy. A few things that didn't change with this refresh: the 5000-pound maximum towing capacity, an eight-speed automatic transmission, and standard front-wheel drive, with 4Motion all-wheel drive available for all trims.