2026 Volkswagen Atlas Will Be Much More Elegant

As winter descends on the Austrian Alps, the Volkswagen Atlas has come out to play as cold weather development proceeds. The 2024 VW lineup is quite fresh, but the Atlas is aging. The midsize SUV, known as the Teramont in other markets, is expected to arrive late next year as a 2026 model, and it won’t be a facelift of the existing Atlas but an all-new crossover, albeit with similar proportions. The test mule in these images is wearing extensive camouflage on its front and rear fascias, but the body is mostly exposed, showing both similarities to and differences from the existing SUV. While subtle, the changes modernize the vehicle considerably, giving it a touch more elegance than its blocky predecessor.

Refined Styling

It appears that the large square headlights the Atlas always had will be replaced by slimmer light clusters that harmoniously blend into the upper intake grille. The fascia itself will be more modern, with larger mesh for the functional vents and plenty of closed-off panels for the fake ones. At the rear, it seems that a full-width light bar will carry over, but with new graphics, and the lower fascia will be revised.

Taking a look at the Atlas in profile, we see a larger rear window behind the C-pillar, a fake vent accent in the form of a decal, and flush-fitting door handles. The mirror caps appear to have been refined, too, and the lower moldings on the doors appear sleeker. Also noteworthy is the design of the “bone line;” although the arches remain fairly prominent, they are not as bulbous as before, and the crease below the glasshouse’s shoulder line flows into these in a more coherent manner.

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But is VW’s attempt at a sophisticated cockpit a bit too much?

Combustion To Continue… With Hotter Variants In The Cards For America

The wheels appear to have some testing equipment and are smaller than normal, so there’s nothing to be gleaned from their design, but we expect the all-new Tiguan to influence the styling of the Atlas considerably. We also predict that what powers the wheels will be familiar, with the VW Group’s ubiquitous 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine expected to continue into the new generation, albeit probably with the option of a plug-in hybrid system. VW executives previously indicated the American model may also get an extra shot of performance to appeal to US buyers.

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But the Taos won’t be so lucky.

Our spies didn’t get a look at the cabin, but again, we can expect parts to be shared among the VW family, with the cabin likely to be similar to those of the latest Passat and aforementioned Tiguan. We’ll bring you more information as it becomes available.