Spied: Is This a Three-Row Volkswagen SUV With Barely Anything On?

by Steph Willems

Published: April 1st, 2016

spied is this a three row volkswagen suv with barely anything on

What seems to be a barely disguised Volkswagen SUV has been photographed driving near the automaker’s southern California test facility.

If it is what we think, it’s an important vehicle for the automaker. A three-row SUV has long been part of Volkswagen’s U.S. growth plan, but now it might serve as its survival plan.

Drawing design cues from the 2013 Crossblue concept, the midsize SUV was green-lit in 2014, and production is planned for the end of 2016 at Volkswagen’s Chattanooga, Tennessee facility. The timeline for deliveries is tentatively set for early 2017.

Even as the costly diesel emissions scandal raged around it, the automaker didn’t take money earmarked for the Chattanooga plant off the table. Having an entry in the lucrative midsize SUV market would have been a boon for Volkswagen before the scandal broke, and is even more important now.

The unnamed SUV is expected to seat seven passengers and be similar in size to a Honda Pilot, with power likely coming from a 3.6-liter V6 sourced from the Volkswagen Passat. Earlier speculation about a diesel powerplant has to be taken with a dose of reality now, for obvious reasons.

A gas turbo four-cylinder is another possibility, as is a hybrid setup. With Volkswagen trying to become a leader in electric vehicle development, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a plug-in version to compete with the likes of the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.

#Crossblue #SUV #Volkswagen #VW #VwDieselScandal

Steph Willems

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2 of 47 comments

Thegamper on Apr 04, 2016

Obviously it not production spec, but VW sure isn't swinging for the fences on styling lately. Drivers wanted for the new Volkswagen Frumpebarge.

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Sportyaccordy on Apr 04, 2016

This thing looks pretty bad. Thankfully the new Tiguan is way more relevant to my (and most people as evidenced by its competitors' top 20 sales positions) interests

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Lou_BC Hard pass
TheEndlessEnigma These cars were bought and hooned. This is a bomb waiting to go off in an owner's driveway.
Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Thankfully I don't have to deal with GDI issues in my Frontier. These cleaners should do well for me if I win.
Theflyersfan Serious answer time...Honda used to stand for excellence in auto engineering. Their first main claim to fame was the CVCC (we don't need a catalytic converter!) engine and it sent from there. Their suspensions, their VTEC engines, slick manual transmissions, even a stowing minivan seat, all theirs. But I think they've been coasting a bit lately. Yes, the Civic Type-R has a powerful small engine, but the Honda of old would have found a way to get more revs out of it and make it feel like an i-VTEC engine of old instead of any old turbo engine that can be found in a multitude of performance small cars. Their 1.5L turbo-4...well...have they ever figured out the oil dilution problems? Very un-Honda-like. Paint issues that still linger. Cheaper feeling interior trim. All things that fly in the face of what Honda once was. The only thing that they seem to have kept have been the sales staff that treat you with utter contempt for daring to walk into their inner sanctum and wanting a deal on something that isn't a bare-bones CR-V. So Honda, beat the rest of your Japanese and Korean rivals, and plug-in hybridize everything. If you want a relatively (in an engineering way) easy way to get ahead of the curve, raise the CAFE score, and have a major point to advertise, and be able to sell to those who can't plug in easily, sell them on something that will get, for example, 35% better mileage, plug in when you get a chance, and drives like a Honda. Bring back some of the engineering skills that Honda once stood for. And then start introducing a portfolio of EVs once people are more comfortable with the idea of plugging in. People seeing that they can easily use an EV for their daily errands with the gas engine never starting will eventually sell them on a future EV because that range anxiety will be lessened. The all EV leap is still a bridge too far, especially as recent sales numbers have shown. Baby steps. That's how you win people over.
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