What is it?
Meet the VW Arteon, the car formerly known as the VW CC and, prior to that, the VW Passat CC.
We've now driven the production Arteon. Click here for the review
The name comes from the word 'art' and the made-up, but apparently upmarket-sounding, 'eon' suffix, which VW also uses on its Phaeton-replacing Phideon in China. For all that, it is this car's original name that gives the biggest clues as to where it is derived from, but of course Volkswagen, armed with its MQB architecture and its hastening push for more 'emotional' designs, wants to claim it is a unique design and give this European range-topping sports coupé its own space in which to play.
That space is set to be pretty rarified for a car wearing a VW badge, because the target market is traditional premium buyers from both the Audi A4/BMW 3 Series/Mercedes C-Class sector and the larger Audi A6/BMW 5 Series/Mercedes E-Class sector. More directly, it’s a BMW 4 Series Gran Coupé rival.
Although VW isn’t giving too much away, the evidence of poking around this prototype suggests it can compete on the comparison spreadsheets in terms of space and practicality, aided by a wheelbase increase over the standard Volkswagen Passat and outgoing CC, and a presumably (but yet to be revealed) lower price.
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VW getting Audi hand-me-downs now?
Cu ft before cc
More appropriately on to the car..
Sorry, I know that was poor.