Volkswagen Arteon Elegance FULL REVIEW fULL rEVIEW

As we wafted down Oxford Street in the heart of Sydney’s gay Mecca, a twink crossing at Taylor Square gave us the thumbs up, saying, “nice!.” Not for a moment did I suspect the attractive blonde was talking about anything but the Volkswagen Arteon.
We continued down Oxford, through the city, and on to The Rocks for our pub lunch. After a quick Shepard’s Pie and low-count beer, we continued over the Harbour Bridge, and on to our overnight digs. Ethan’s place on the Hawkesbury sits high on the sandstone cliffs, overlooks the river, and has sea glimpses beyond.
I could go on about the quirky sandstone cottage from Australia’s early days as a colony, but it was Ethan who turned our attention to the Arteon by bringing drinks to the verandah. The day’s driving done, we tucked into a cleanskin red. If I’m honest, it tasted like a bottle worth nearer the hundy than a fiver. In many ways it paralleled our VW. It is a car that looks and feels more than it costs, at least hear in Australia.

It is A cheap Audi in a different frock
Even in the base model elegance, the only option is a sunroof, unlike Audi that has a host of pricey options.
The LED matrix lights work brilliantly, and is something hard to live without if you like an evening spin. Leave lights and wipers in fully automatic mode, and you never need worry, and the same goes for the rest of the driver aids. There is the usual blind spot monitor, and a vast array of airbags, and the Travel Assist makes long distance touring feel stress free. Smart cruise and lane centering make the car feel more like all passengers are being chauffeured, even the driver.
Active damping changes with drive mode settings, but it is the engine that was most surprising. 140kw/320Nm might sound a trifle limp, but even in normal mode, the front wheels scamper when the loafer is thrust into the carpet. I’d prefer VW’s 8-speed automatic to the 7-speed DSG
If the 7.9sec 0-100 is not enough for you, there is a 206kw/400Nm model that’ll do the same sprint in 5.5 seconds. That gets you to your destination a whole 3 seconds faster, big deal.
The weekend, and the shortish drive out to the city limits, was hardly a test of what Arteon can do, but was more likely what it will be used for.
The big tourer would take a couple in the back with plenty of legroom, with the outer seats being heated. Front seats are heated and cooled, with a gentle massage available at the touch of a button.
In short, Volkswagen Arteon is a cheaper Audi A5/A7. The infotainment system is the older VW system so has proper climate controls separate from the infotainment screen, HOORAH. My love/hate relationship with the brand-new system is turning, and not in a good way.
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[martinloney]

Your reviews are always interesting and great to listen to and watch. I love the detail work so obvious in both the exterior and interior of the Arteon. A well named, great value and excellent effort from VW.

[johnedds]

Another great VW and another top review. Cheers.

[gregturner_awod]

Another well delivered review, and a beautiful car. The automation for parking works well, interior is lovely, design is great. Power in the lower model is excellent, the all wheel drive would be great to own. I never will, but an interesting and informative review as always. The back seat headroom doesn’t look to good, leg room is great though. Thanks for the review.

[timkoeppler]

Really like this car and have test driven the Elegance a couple of times. The only let down that I could find was there is no 12V socket in the boot area (either the liftback or shooting break variants). Strange as they put a 12V even in the Golf Life in the boot but not the Arteon. Aside from that really could not fault it. Back seats have stacks of room even with heated outboard seats whilst the front have both heated/ventilated and the driver gets massage too.

[ThunderToysOfficial]

Hi Alan what is your favourite Volkswagen 👍🏻

[davidarter]

Where has David got to? We are missing him!!!

[robertceroli]

I wish uber prestige would implement the use of these as a condition or criteria to drive the van artion or something similar getting sick of jumping in Toyota SL Camry Hybrid they are so boring.quite no soul often I'm half full and so boring of a ride I fall asleep

[WazzaG]

How will VW sell any Audis after this effort? Oh yes four wheel drive to overcome that disgraceful wheel spin on rapid acceleration. All that tech and they can’t solve that?

[coldude]

That little piece of glass for the HUD...hate it!!!looks cheap!@ Why can't they just do it on the windscreen??