Update? It looks more like the launch of a 100% new model, taking into account the number of debuts that Volkswagen has given us in revealing the renewed and much reinforced Arteon. The main novelty is the already anticipated and stylish van Arteon Shooting Brake , but it doesn't stop there.
For the first time, a Arteon R , the new top of the range; and also for the first time a hybrid plug-in variant, the Arteon and Hybrid.
And there are even more mechanical, technological and also visual novelties: the Arteon received new wheels, bumpers, it is now possible to extend the luminous signature through the grille, and the interior also receives a new center console, in addition to ambient lighting.
Arteon family bigger than ever…
Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Brake
Starting with the biggest novelty, the new Shooting Brake adds to Arteon a more practical, but at the same time full of style, van variant.
The exterior differences are obvious — just look at its rear volume. Despite maintaining the same length as the car, the Arteon Shooting Brake is slightly taller (19 mm) and the roof's horizontal development allows for an important gain in height space behind 48 mm, in addition to making access easier.
2020 Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Brake Elegance
The luggage compartment capacity, on the other hand, remains virtually identical (565 l against the car's 563 l), but can grow, with the seats down, to 1632 l against the car's 1557 l.
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Volkswagen Arteon R
With Arteon Shooting Brake also arrives an unprecedented R version — available in both bodies — which was originally promised to us in… 2018. And after much speculation about which engine would be under the bonnet — a new VR6 was put forward as a hypothesis in the height — Volkswagen opted for a new version of the ubiquitous EA888 (Evo4).
2020 Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Brake R
In other words, it's yet another variant of the same 2.0 l turbo in-line four-cylinder that we can find in so many Volkswagen Group models, from the Golf GTI, the CUPRA Ateca to the Audi S3. In the case of Arteon R, we find out about its most powerful version to date: 320 hp between 5350 and 6500 rpm complemented with a massive 420 Nm of torque at 2000 rpm . Values that are transmitted to all four wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox (DSG).
The Arteon R and Arteon Shooting Brake R also come equipped with the R Performance Torque Vectoring (torque vectorization). This system manages the distribution of torque between the two axles and between the rear wheels (one wheel can receive up to 100% of the torque). How the management is done depends on the throttle position, steering angle, lateral acceleration, velocity and the angular velocity of rotation about the vertical axis (yaw). Also at the chassis level, the R comes with adaptive suspension as standard (DCC).
2020 Volkswagen Arteon R
Finally, the Arteon Rs are distinguished by their use of 20″ wheels — and 18″ discs with blue jaws —, reduced ground clearance by 20 mm, exclusive bumpers, sports exhaust and, if you choose, the color Lapiz Blue, exclusive to this version.
Volkswagen Arteon eHybrid
On the other side of the spectrum there is also an unprecedented Arteon hybrid plug-in, the Arteon eHybrid and Arteon Shooting Brake eHybrid. The version may be unprecedented, but the powertrain is well known, sharing it with the Passat GTE — a model we've already had the opportunity to test at Razão Automóvel. See the link below:
2020 Volkswagen Arteon eHybrid
Thus, as in the Passat GTE, the Arteon eHybrid duo combines a 1.4 TSi combustion engine with 156 hp with a 115 hp electric motor, providing a combined power of 218 hp. The electrical energy needed by the electric motor comes from a 13 kWh lithium-ion battery, that promises up to 54 km of 100% electric autonomy.
From the Passat GTE, the Arteon eHybrid also inherits the six-speed DSG — the drive is still front only — and its driving modes, including the sportier GTE mode.
There are still more mechanical innovations
It's not just about the R and the eHybrid for the news under the bonnet. Arteon also introduces a new variant of 2.0 TSI which works according to the so-called B cycle (of Budack, its inventor) of combustion, a variant or evolution of the more well-known Atkinson and Miller cycles.
Your goal? Increase combustion efficiency, which Volkswagen says is 10% higher — resulting in lower consumption and emissions —, albeit at the expense of specific performance. How it works? Review our article that explains it in more detail, when the Volkswagen Group unveiled it three years ago:
Its greatest efficiency is seen in the advertised compression ratio of 12.2:1, a very high value for a turbo engine — normally the compression ratio of a modern turbo engine is 10:1. The engine itself produces 190 hp and 320 Nm between 1500 rpm and 4100 rpm.
Arteon also received the latest engine evolution 2.0 TDI which we saw being debuted by the new Golf, appearing in two power levels, 150 hp and 200 hp, always associated with the seven-speed DSG, with two-wheel drive (150 hp and 200 hp) and four-wheel drive (200 hp) versions .
2020 Volkswagen Arteon R Line
The big news, as in the Golf, is the addition of another SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) catalyst, positioned closer to the engine, which means that it also reaches its ideal operating temperature more quickly. The result: up to 80% less harmful NOx emissions (nitrogen oxides).
Finally, we find the 150 hp 1.5 TSI (Miller cycle) and the 280 hp 2.0 TSI, exclusively with four-wheel drive.
And more?
The renewed Arteon and the new Arteon Shooting Brake also gained more technology. The highlight goes to the reinforcement of the driving assistance systems, with Arteon now allowing semi-autonomous driving (level 2) thanks to the Travel Assist, which we have already seen being introduced in other models of the brand and the group.
elegance
Arteon also receives the latest MIB3 system, the digital instrument panel becomes standard, there is a new multifunction steering wheel and even the climate controls are now… digital, with a solution identical to the one we saw in the Golf 8 .
Also in terms of connectivity, the We Connect and We Connect Plus are now available, which allow, among others, real-time navigation and control of various functions via the smartphone, with the latter even serving as a mobile key for the car (only for some Samsung models).
the range
The renovation also brought a restructured Arteon range. Starting with Arteon “base”, it declines in two equivalent versions, but specific in purpose: a more refined one called elegance and another sportier looking one called R Line . At the top resides the Arteon R and Arteon Shooting Brake R.
We know they will arrive later this year, during the month of November, but prices have not yet been advanced for the renewed Arteon and for the unprecedented Arteon Shooting Brake.