In a world where the large family sedan has largely (I know, I know) been put out to pasture, it's a rare thing to find an automaker who continues to build one---especially one that sells as few copies as the Volkswagen Arteon.
Only 1,178 Arteons found homes in the United States in calendar year 2022. A couple of months saw sales of 15 units. Volkswagen reports its sales quarterly, so I can't tell you how April and May of this year went for them, but January through March found VW dealers moving a grand total of 529.
That's a shame, because there's a lot of good stuff about and in the Arteon.
Not least among those is the 300-horsepower 2.0-liter 16-valve turbo four-cylinder engine. Packing 295 lb-ft of torque and mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission, it's plenty quick, with 0-60 runs at 4.6 seconds. Fuel economy is impressive for the size of the car and the level of performance, at 22 city/31 highway/25 combined.
Our tester was the SEL R-Line with 4MOTION all wheel drive. That includes selectable drive modes, a cross differential system, electric power steering, four-wheel independent suspension, multi-mode adaptive chassis control and vented front and rear disc brakes. The mix of power and control makes for a very satisfying road car.
All Arteons begin above the $40,000 mark, so it really makes sense to just go for the top-of-the-line SEL R-Line like our tester. $47,995 including destination isn't cheap, but for a large, premium family sedan, it's not out of line. And choosing the SEL R-Line loads the car with an impressive list of standard equipment, including 20-inch wheels, automatic LED headlights, adaptive front lighting with dynamic cornering lights, rain-sensing wipers with heated washer nozzles, a power panoramic sunroof, three-zone automatic climate control with 2nd row vents, heated steering wheel, heated front seats, leather seating surfaces and steering wheel, a complete suite of active safety features and an 8-speaker audio system with wireless charging.
It's almost a one-price, all-inclusive deal---our car just had one extra-cost option---the Kingfisher Blue Metallic paint, at $395. So the as-tested price came to $48.390.
I can't tell you why Volkswagen continues to build the Arteon---most family sedans have walked the plank with significantly better sales numbers----but I'm glad they do.
