Debuting at the Chicago Auto Show this week is this, the Volkswagen Atlas Weekend Edition – which is importantly a concept, not a production model. The Weekend Edition part isn’t an explicit tribute to your favorite NPR show (it’s just a happy coincidence), but rather an homage to the Weekender variants of the VW Vanagon and Eurovans of yore. This is basically an Atlas crossover with a range of interesting accessories bolted on to support the sort of active lifestyle Volkswagen assumes Atlas owners will engage in. The company is probably right, by the way.
The highlight is up top – a cargo carrier VW refers to as an Urban Loader. It’s a hard-shell box with soft sides that expands to swallow 17.7 cubic feet of cargo. There’s also a really nifty LED light bar stuffed into the grille – it’s not clear if that’s a specially made unit for this application or an aftermarket one that just happens to fit, but it’s still a neat touch.
In back, there’s a cargo divider that looks burly enough to be used in a cage match, in case you want to confine MMA fighters or pooches to the rear. There are also tablet mounts that attach to the front headrests and point at the rear passengers, and a bunch of weather protection like all-weather mats, wind deflectors, and so forth. VW says some of these features will be accessories for the Atlas, available from dealers, but it’s not clear which ones at this time.
A quick reminder: the Atlas goes on sale in Spring 2017.
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