Exclusive: VW on the new Atlas and global collaboration

Volkswagen’s largest car is celebrating a big anniversary as the Atlas hits ten years old.

Sold in various select markets across north and south America and the Middle East, it is more of a bruiser compared to its siblings like the Touareg and Tiguan, designed for slightly rougher (and wider) roads and nuanced customer preferences for technology and space. It is also available in other markets such as China under the ‘Teramont’ name with some subtle changes.

The all-new 2027 Atlas was unveiled earlier at the New York auto show in April, but Car Design News was the first publication to sit down with the design team for an exclusive chat. Dmitry Panov, an interior designer and his exterior design counterpart, Willam Lee, spoke to us from the studio in Wolfsburg.

Car Design News: You both started working on the new Atlas in 2020. What did you want to elevate with this generation?

William Lee: We believe this car is very revolutionary in terms of its design, but we did try to keep some key elements from the first generation. It is a new car so it should be modernised while retaining good aspects we had before. 

The exterior has a very characteristic shoulder line and we tried to ensure this was still very recognisable from afar, but this time with a modern touch. The surfacing is far more simplified now – we don't have those undercuts anymore – but there is still a lot of sculpture on the bodysides and fenders because we have a lot of space to play with. It's a great package to work on. We kept all this boldness and solidity and stance from the first generation, but simpler, cleaner and more progressive.

CDN: From side view the front and rear arch musculature feels more pronounced as well.

WL: Exactly. And at the front we have this double-stacked headlight, which was present on the previous generation, but now has a modern touch and a new DRL. The rear lamps also have a nice fresh design with an equalizer graphic, plus there is the illuminated Volkswagen badge. It all creates a strong, modern and ‘techy’ feeling.

CDN: What considerations are there for a market-specific model like the Atlas compared to something sold in Europe, like the Touareg? And what are the nuances between the Atlas and the Teramont?

WL: The hood of the Atlas is unique. It's a little bit higher, a little bolder and more solid looking than the Teramont. The Chinese market places more of an priority on visibility, which is less relevant for the American market. There are also some details in the front that differ as a result of Chinese and American engine regulations. 

In the upper mask, for example, the Teramont is closed and doesn't have an air intake. That meant we could add more detail, which is also more relevant for the Chinese market which likes to have this jewellery up front. For the American market that is less relevant, so the grille is open. The Atlas has conventional door handles, too, whereas the Teramont currently has flush ones for the Chinese market. There are some other minor differences.

Dmitry Panov: Interior wise the overall architectures look very similar, but there are in fact lots of differences. The Atlas prioritises a feeling of ‘space’ so we emphasised that with a lower middle console which makes it feel more open, and it allows us to add big cup holders and two ‘magsafe’ decks that can charge two phones simultaneously. On the dashboard of the Teramont we have quite a unique looking thing that combines various elements, and in China there is strong demand for a passenger screen as well. It’s all about understanding the different users.

CDN: Did you both have to spend time in those various markets to better understand your users?

WL: Volkswagen has studios all over the world which means there are plenty of opportunities to collaborate. With the Atlas we had support from the studio in California and the Mexican studio in Puebla; for the Teramont we worked with the studio in China. But as a designer, I studied in America and lived there for many years and have visited China for business trips and such. So all that helps to understand those markets a little bit better.

CDN: Who led the overall design direction for the new Atlas?

WL: I believe the model selection was done by Klaus Zyciora [then Bischoff] and then Jozef Kaban took over.

CDN: Lighting was obviously a key consideration with the interior as well, with perforations at the top of the door card with backlit LEDs.

DP: Yes, although the material is actually only semi-perforated on the door panel – the light shines through the material from the back. In daylight you don't see any holes, it’s just a nice premium material. But at night it lights up and shines through the vinyl. We brought this pattern to the dashboard on the passenger area too, so it is all connected.

We’ve also added a single lighting stripe which loops underneath the area that houses all the functions and separates it from the main structure. What’s interesting is that this light doesn't go just horizontally and stops where the door is: it goes right in the gap between the dashboard and the door, which is quite unique for this car.

CDN: The Atlas is VW’s biggest car and will naturally feel quite imposing. Did that present any challenges in terms of retaining VW’s typical ‘friendly face’ and general approachability?

WL: From the exterior standpoint, I would say yes and no. The Volkswagen brand is always approachable, so we always try to retain that regardless of the size of the car. I would say the Atlas is indeed pretty approachable and not aggressive at all. It's very likable in a way. Yes, it is very bold with a strong stance but at the same time it still has some sympathetic details and graphics.

The ID. Buzz is another example of a larger car that is very approachable and likable nevertheless. Every Volkswagen product is aligned with the core DNA of the brand: a clean and reduced design that is recognisable and timeless.

DP: The most recognisable things are quite often very simple things. With the interior, we tried to reduce the number of parts so that we can instead invest in high quality materials and interesting technologies. We reduced the doors so there are no handles at the top like usual; we moved everything down to the armrest which works surprisingly well ergonomically. By redesigning the top of the door panel we could make the doors thinner and thus create even more room.

CDN: Was there a particular element of the design that might be small but was challenging to resolve? A ‘quiet win’ if you will?

WL: There are too many. For example, the whole front of the car: every millimeter was designed with purpose. We wanted the front section to be as flush and modern as possible while fulfilling key air intake requirements. Getting that balance was a big challenge. At the rear we created a flush tailgate which is a modern touch but a big challenge to achieve – I could keep going but I would consider the whole car a victory.

DP: The step up with the interior in this generation is quite significant, but there are two quiet wins that come to mind. With the air vents on the dashboard there are very strict requirements for the amount of air that needs to be blown out. To make them appear almost invisible was quite a challenge with the tech we have integrated as well. The second is the door handle; the idea of moving it away from the conventional position is quite progressive in itself. Combining the latch with the window controls in one module as a solid control block was very tricky.

CDN: What kind of testing did you do to ensure the new position of the handle would work?

DP: There were a lot of discussions in terms of ergonomics: would it be comfortable, how big did the opening need to be? From a design perspective it was a challenge and an opportunity to create a different optic of the door.

CDN: How was this new generation Atlas created? Was it a mixture of digital and physical tools?

WL: The exterior had a very traditional process, starting with sketches, through renders and then into clay as well. We milled it one-to-one scale to analyse how the car behaves in real life. It's super important. We can only judge the appearance of the car if it's in front of you. But yes, a mixture between digital and analogue because we would work with clay, scan it, work the 3D model and then go back in clay again. We always have this back and forth.

DP: With the interior, the pandemic meant this was one of the first cars where we started to switch to more of a digital way of working as there was no possibility to work so closely with the clay modelers. It became a very efficient way of working because we could make a lot of changes and try different things more quickly.

CDN: Did either of you explore VW’s back catalogue of concepts or past production cars for inspiration – or was it a case of focussing purely on the future?

DP: It was more to develop the product according to the overall brand DNA – which is also developing itself – without looking back at what has already been done. Because otherwise we'll be going in circles. As a designer, I want to think that we did something new.

WL: I would say the same. As I mentioned before we did keep some key characteristics from the past – like the character line along the shoulder – but we tried to execute it in more of a more modern way. We never forget the past, but we are always trying to do something new.