2024 Volkswagen Atlas

The Volkswagen Atlas has consistently been one of our top-five ranked midsize three-row SUVs since its debut for the 2018 model year. It's maintained that status by way of its ample passenger and cargo room and easygoing driving style. Now for 2024, the Atlas gets a variety of updates that should increase its appeal.

It starts with an infusion of standard features that gives the Atlas a comprehensive set of equipment right off the jump. Check this out: ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel, 12-inch touchscreen, 10.3-inch instrument cluster display, and a wireless charging pad now come on every trim level. That's impressive for a non-luxury family hauler.

There's also styling tweaks, with a new LED light bar and an illuminated VW logo in the center of the four-bar grille and on the tailgate coming on all trims except the base. But the base SE trim won't feel left out — it comes with LED daytime running lights and headlights with an adaptive front lighting system that illuminates to the side of the vehicle when the wheel turns. There's an elongated spoiler at the back of the roof to make the Atlas profile a touch sportier, and new wheel designs ranging from 18 to 21 inches for every trim level.

If you prefer the look of your large SUV to be rugged rather than sporty, look no further than the new Peak Edition trim level. Enhancements start with unique 18-inch wheels with all-terrain tires. Those chunkier tires alone should greatly improve the Atlas' decidedly light off-road capabilities. You also get some exterior styling upgrades such as some tough-looking side sills, minor changes to the front and rear fascia, and two new paint choices: Avocado Green and Pure Gray.

A new turbocharged 2.0 four-cylinder replaces the outgoing turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder as well as the previously optional 3.6-liter V6. It gets a big power jump over the existing four-cylinder to 269 horsepower and 273 lb-ft of torque (up from 235 hp and 258 lb-ft). The new turbo-four's numbers are more in line with the outgoing V6. Volkswagen says the new engine shaves about 0.5 second off the 0-60 mph time compared to last year's Atlas with the V6. An eight-speed automatic transmission and front-wheel drive are standard, and all-wheel drive is optional. Shift paddles are now standard on the Atlas as well.

Volkswagen says that towing capacity will remain the same, topping out at 5,000 pounds.

Volkswagen says that the Atlas trim structure will carry on unchanged, which means we can expect the 2024 trim lineup to include the SE, SE with Technology, SEL, SEL Peak Edition and SEL Premium R-Line.

The interior doesn't just have more features; it also gets classed up a bit with synthetic leather wrapping the dashboard and center console. Adjustable 30-color ambient lighting is also available, and Volkswagen says that real leather upholstery will be available on a lower trim level than before. (It started on the SEL Premium previously, so look for it on the SEL now.) Top trim levels will get quilted seating surfaces as well in a diamond pattern.

There's copious room all over the place in the Atlas, and the third row remains comfortable for small children all the way up to tall adults. Tri-zone climate control keeps everyone comfortable and, you guessed it, that's standard too now. In the center console, the shifter has been redesigned to allow space for a new storage cubby underneath that's an ideal place to stash a small purse or bag.

Sadly, the Atlas does give up the vast majority of its physical controls in exchange for touch-sensitive ones. It's a sleek look but it's also essentially the same system that's given us trouble in the ID.4 and Golf GTI. The temperature and volume sliders below the screen are a particularly troublesome spot given that they don't illuminate at night and are hard to find. That also means no more volume or tuning knobs and no more traditional buttons on the steering wheel either.

We're not a fan of the haptic touch controls for the climate control, and navigating through the touchscreen menus is a bit of a chore. It's also difficult to make any adjustments while driving, as the touchscreen requires you to take your eyes off the road. The new setup looks very clean. It's just not as easy to use as what the 2018-2023 Atlas models had.