Sunday, June 18, 2017

Volkswagen Arteon

This is Volkswagen's better-looking replacement to the better-looking CC luxury four-door coupe, known as the Arteon, and judging by its status as a cut-price luxury car that you can really buy one for 39,675 Euros plus taxes and fees, think of the Arteon as a cut-price alternative for the Audi A7 without the premium pricing to pay for a Volkswagen like this.

2018 Volkswagen Arteon
2018 Volkswagen Arteon

Compared to the CC it replaces, the brand-new Arteon features a strikingly attractive design that is quite unheard for a Volkswagen. From its coupe-like silhouette, stylish front view, dramatic rear view that is arguably mistaken for the coupes of Mercedes-Benz, and stylish wheel arches, one look at the Arteon and you know that it's luxury from beginning to end, which isn't so bad for a German.

2018 Volkswagen Arteon interior
2018 Volkswagen Arteon interior

On the inside, you get the same level of luxury that you get from the expensive German big threes thanks to its impressive state of the art features such as this digital instrumental panel, heads-up display that displays rather well in its "safe zone", gesture control that mimics the ones from BMW, and an impressive infotainment system fit for yuppies to understand what it is, Tech aside, with those Nappa leather seats as an optional extra, spacious seating at the back despite its sloping roofline, 700-watt Dynaudio Confidence sound system, climate, Air Care Climatronic, and many luxury appointments offered, the Arteon really brings everyone inside in a relaxed state of mind wherever they go, and that's pretty good for a four-cylinder luxury car with the aesthetics of a six. Even though it's a luxury saloon, the Arteon's rear door opens like a sportsback and what's in the boot can carry from 563 to 1,557 litres, which sounds unheard for a luxury saloon.

2018 Volkswagen Arteon

Can't blame on VW but the Arteon, despite its luxury saloon look, really is a four-cylinder car because the engine choices are a 2.0L TSI and a 2.0 TDi engine. The most powerful in the range is the 2.0 TSi 4MOTION with 280PS of power output, 350Nm of torque, and with the 7-speed DSG standard, it does 0-100kph in 5.6 seconds and top speed normally limited to 250kph. Now that's German luxury to you, folks. Meanwhile, the 2.0 TDi with 4.5l/100km of combined fuel economy is the most fuel efficient Arteon offered in the lineup but because VW's amassed with the diesel fiasco, there could be doubts about this variant but it's too early to tell right about now.

Because it runs on VW Group's MQB platform, the Arteon is a no-brainer when it comes to its dynamics and with the 4MOTION four-wheel drive, it feels so good to handle through different road conditions no matter the weather forecast be but on the downside, it's way too grippy for a Volkswagen so in normal conditions, it behaves like a front-wheel drive car, making it just another commoner on the road, and it will only show its four-wheel drive capability when things are about to get wet and wild and if things get rough, better start bring some painkillers while you get there. Despite not adept for sporty driving due to its grippy nature, it's surprisingly smooth and comfortable and this is just another thing you would expect for German engineering like the Arteon. Take things carefully with this car and you can see how civilized the Arteon is as long as you understand how it's made and with a wide array of safety features that adapts to the roads of today, it's clever as well.

Time will tell how people will react on the Arteon on the first time they got their hands on this one but for a clear start, its surprisingly alluring design and luxury car comforts sets this saloon a class apart and while the 4MOTION works rather well in most conditions, its understeering woes can warn drivers to bring as much painkillers as they can before going hard on the corners, but needless to say, the Arteon really fits well for those who can't afford an Audi A7 for the time being and for a company car like this, the Arteon really is a fine art in the making.

Available colors: Pure White, Uranograu, Atlantic Blue Metallic, Chilirot Metallic, Crimson Red Metallic, Kurkumagelb Metallic, Mangangrau Metallic, Pyritsilber Metallic, and Deep Black Perleffekt.

Photo: Volkswagen AG

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