Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport may turn heads for the wrong reasons

2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport vs. Hyundai Santa Fe vs. Toyota 4Runner: Three approaches for roomy SUVs.

This week: Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport V6 SEL Premium R-Line

Price: $51,535 as tested. Red paint added $395.

Conventional wisdom: Motor Trend liked the “capacious cargo area, large second row, premium design,” but not the “lackluster efficiency, poor driving dynamics, subpar interior materials.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Consider the head turns a standard feature.”

Reality: The heads may be turning as passersby notice one’s Mr. Magoo-esque driving and shout, “Watch it, pal!”

What’s new: The Atlas Cross Sport is intended to be a more fun version of the three-row family unit, sans the third row. This is its fourth year and changes are few. It will get a more powerful turbo and some refreshing touches for 2024, if you want to wait.

Competition: In addition to the Santa Fe and 4Runner, the Honda Passport is another example of a spacious two-row SUV.

On the road: Before our first outing, I had time to set up CarPlay, and adjust the mirrors and the heat in a more focused manner than my usual “hop in and go” approach.

Lucky I did, because it likely would have been “hop in and crash.” The Cross Sport is a difficult machine to handle, drifting because the steering is too loose in normal or eco modes, and too tight in sport mode.

The Cross Sport can still be fun on the curves, but when passing an oncoming car on a tight, old Chester County road, Mr. Driver’s Seat would feel real fear.

Even after a few days, I took the Cross Sport on a trip to Delaware, and still never felt comfortable making simple adjustments that, in most other units, I can do on the fly without a second thought.

Up to speed: The acceleration was serviceable. The 276-horsepower 3.6-liter V-6 gets the SUV to 60 mph in 7.9 seconds, according to Motor Trend’s test of a 2021.

A 238-horsepower 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder engine is also available, and it takes just 0.2 seconds longer.

Both versions fall far short of the Santa Fe, and even a bit short of the 4Runner.

Shifty: The 8-speed automatic worked fine in automatic mode, whether in sport or normal mode.

Shifting, though, felt like a lot of hard work. The shift lever pushed back hard and didn’t have a solid feel. Toggle shifters were not available in the test model.

Driver’s Seat: The Cross Sport is nice — in fact all of Volkswagen’s lineup is — because Volkswagen has found a winning formula and stuck with it. The black with silver buttons and trim, the clear graphics, the easy buttons all make the experience much nicer.

A lack of a real speedometer seemed like a disappointment at first, but it quickly became something I didn’t miss. It’s there in the corner of the screen when you need it. Still, I’m not sure the other information Volkswagen plays up instead is quite so necessary.

Pass the eye drops: I complained about Mazda’s five-sided blowers recently, but the Atlas Cross Sport’s are even less adjustable and more prone to blowing straight into Mr. Driver’s Face.

The Atlas Cross Sport features three dials for heating, but two of them are for temperature and one for blower speed. Fan source is relegated to a button, but at least it’s a toggle so there’s only one button to worry about.

Play some tunes: The Fender stereo provided very nice sound, about an A-. The playback was really good but none of the dazzle of finding lost instruments.

Operation is as easy as any Volkswagen — dials for tuning and volume, ebony buttons for many choices, and then a touchscreen that functions admirably, despite its smallish 8-inch size.

Friends and stuff: Because the two-row Atlas Cross Sport is a refashioning of the Atlas three-row SUV, the rear seat space is dynamite and cargo space is cavernous. Comfort for rear-seat passengers will also dazzle.

Cargo space is 77.8 cubic feet with the rear seats folded and a still-huge 40.3 behind the rear seats.

Fuel economy: I averaged a dismal, consistent 16.4 mpg through my entire test. This is terrible and must be addressed.

Where it’s built: Chattanooga, Tenn.

How it’s built: The Atlas Cross Sport gets a predicted reliability of 3 out of 5 from Consumer Reports.

Next week: Hyundai Santa Fe