# Atlas AWD 2.0T Gas Mileage initial report



## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

Recently bought the 2021.5 Atlas AWD turbo 4 banger. SE. 1400 miles in.

87 octane fuel.

First two tanks were nearly entirely city driving, and by city I mean city - I live in the middle of Seattle, hilly and urban.

22mpg.

Then installed brand new Blizzak winter tires, aired up to 36lbs.

Next 3 tanks road tripping to Bend Oregon. Largest size Thule cargo box on roof. 3 passengers, two large dogs, all of our ski stuff and work stuff for a week.

First road trip tank on the way down all rolling rural highway, so a lot of total elevation change.

24mpg.

Second road trip tank a little around town (just a few grocery trips - we laid low), 5 mellow mountain drives up to Mt Bachelor and back in mostly tough snow conditions. A few drive to see some cool volcanic sites in winter.

22mpg.

Last leg back home. 1/3 rural highway, 2/3s boring flattish Interstate 5 back to Seattle.

27.5 mpg.

In car display said 26.7. With, remember, squashy winter tires and a 22cf Thule box on top. 360 miles exactly back to Seattle from full tank, pump clicked off at 13 gallons. I topped another .5, but gas attendant in Oregon didn't on fill up so I think the 13 gallons is probably fairly accurate.

I find the mileage to be perfectly acceptable, and the cruising range on the 18.6 gallon tank to be good enough. I was worried about the latter before purchase, but the cruising range out paces our bladders and appetites by a large margin, so practically it's just fine.

I drove in Eco mode almost exclusively, or custom mode set to sport handling, eco everything else.

Drove fast-ish but smoothly, 75-80mph on I-5, 68-72 on rural highway passing through several towns with low speed limits and traffic lights. I don't accelerate hard if not totally necessary, and I anticipate slow downs so am not often on the brakes. In my other cars I tend to go 75k+ before I need pads, and I live in the city. I use cruise control at most possible occasions.

So no lead foot but I get places fast and don't frustrate other drivers.

When I needed to pass, which I do regularly, I got on the gas hard. Not the time for economy when you are in the oncoming lane! To me the Atlas had plenty of power to pass quickly, even fully loaded uphill, say from 53mph to 80mph and back to 68mph. Was interested in a tuning chip, but now will hold off I think.

Will say that I've noticed that the car seemed to burn fuel like crazy when it's revving high rpms. After just a few minutes of punching it I could see the fuel dial had dropped quite noticeably. But keep the RPM low in Eco mode and the Turbo 4 has decent fuel economy, particularly for such a large vehicle.

I'm glad about this. Cost if fuel isn't an issue, but I can't stand a car that hits empty at 300 miles on a road trip. Very much like that the Atlas 4 cylinder seems to reward efficient driving styles on road trips! Even with the added weight of the AWD system, heavy load, giant cargo box. Good enough, and the car drives wonderfully on the highway for a big SUV.

Curious if other drivers experience similar or different?


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## yhalps (Jun 20, 2018)

i just swapped from a 18 atlas 3.6 AWD to a 20 se FWD 2.0 and the gas mileage is night and day. i use to get maybe 350 miles on a full tank of 80 MPH, i now get 450+


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

yhalps said:


> i just swapped from a 18 atlas 3.6 AWD to a 20 se FWD 2.0 and the gas mileage is night and day. i use to get maybe 350 miles on a full tank of 80 MPH, i now get 450+


Great to know yhalps. Glad I bought the 2.0T. 

How does the real life driving experience compare?


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

Awesome you're tracking like this and paying attention. Can I suggest you go out and set yourself up on Fuelly.com? Paper and pencil tracking of miles vs gallons over time is generally always more accurate than a car's optimistic fuel mileage estimates.
I'm really considering a 2.0T AWD atlas vs a Subie Ascent. I was just concerned that the mileage benefit wouldn't be real great.
I also wonder if in your neck of the woods, how energy-poor your winter-mix fuel is. In Wisconsin, you can count on a hell of a drop in mileage soon as the gas stations switch.


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

Carphuntin_god said:


> Awesome you're tracking like this and paying attention. Can I suggest you go out and set yourself up on Fuelly.com? Paper and pencil tracking of miles vs gallons over time is generally always more accurate than a car's optimistic fuel mileage estimates.
> I'm really considering a 2.0T AWD atlas vs a Subie Ascent. I was just concerned that the mileage benefit wouldn't be real great.
> I also wonder if in your neck of the woods, how energy-poor your winter-mix fuel is. In Wisconsin, you can count on a hell of a drop in mileage soon as the gas stations switch.


Interesting, I also considered the Subaru Ascent. But it's one of the very few 3 row SUVs with predicted reliability as bad as the Atlas, handled like a squishy rolly minivan, and was vastly inferior in passenger and cargo space.

Subie significantly faster 0-60 true enough, but real world driving I've found the factory, un-tuned Atlas 2.0T to be perfectly adequate in power, if not growling and sporty like my wife's BMW X3 for example.

I was coming from a Mercedes as my previous car, and stepping down from that the Ascent felt like a Dodge. The Atlas feels like a VW - solid dignified Teutonic. I don't have evidence to support it, but if I knew I was going to be in a serious accident I'd chose to be in the Atlas over the Aacent no question.

The Kia and Hyundai 3 rows are certainly worth a look. Or rather don't look at them, because they have hideous faux nouveau-riche exterior styling. But excellent cars otherwise on all fronts and you get a lot for your money.


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

hankj said:


> Interesting, I also considered the Subaru Ascent. But it's one of the very few 3 row SUVs with predicted reliability as bad as the Atlas, handled like a squishy rolly minivan, and was vastly inferior in passenger and cargo space.


I've got other threads out there on why these are my two finalists for SUV's, but I'll give my short list of pluses/minuses to each (not to start arguments...just stating why I'm in the air between the two if I get an SUV)

Atlas has 10 feet more cargo space with all seats down; Ascent still has more space than the rest of the competition...and since the rear roof is less sloped...the space remains usable (For background, I'm coming out of a 2004 Honda Pilot which splits the difference in these twos' space...but is boxy and has lots of vertical space...so it's all very usable).

I know both of these have more 2nd row leg space for passengers than their peers. I don't care about third row; I need the space in them for Utility, not bodies.

The Atlas's cockpit doesn't fit me as a tall/big driver as well as the Ascent; the damn center console drop rubs my knee/shin as i drive (short of my New Beetle...a common issue with the VW's i've owned). The window sill is too high as an armrest, the door bolster too low. The driver's seat base is a good size for me...but i didn't feel like i could get the combo of base height plus front/thigh support raised to where it actually supported me. Pretty sure no chance of a sunroof in the Atlas, otherwise i lose too much seat height.. Aesthetically, not a fan of the overly pain Atlas cockpit that reminds me of the decontented Jettas. Whoever thought that faux-wood textured dash was a good idea probably should have been punched.

The Ascent has a better seating setup and position for me; I can sit with the seat base higher and seat back more upright...even with a sunroof, and the center console doesn't get me in the leg. But the seat itself is smaller, and even with it's adjustable thigh extender, it barely exceeds other cars' seat base size... and I can feel the internal cross members of that seat base when driving (this is actually the primary reason, right now, i haven't already bought one. I'm waiting to try and get a 3hr plus test drive to see how bad it feels in real-world driving).

As for mechanicals and ride... they are both grocery getters... i don't expect much... I'm absolutely not a fan of the Atlas's over-assisted, light-feeling steering... I can't remember driving a less-connected-feeling European car.

For my use, I'd suspect the Subie's inc. ground clearance and AWD system would be a tiny bit better than the Atlas for my driving off paved roads and to the old cabin in the woods in winter.... but for that purpose, neither would match a truck (and since neither of the suv's are screaming "take me home,"... I'm also looking at an F150 2.7t.


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## skydaman (Dec 16, 2005)

hankj said:


> Interesting, I also considered the Subaru Ascent. But it's one of the very few 3 row SUVs with predicted reliability as bad as the Atlas, handled like a squishy rolly minivan, and was vastly inferior in passenger and cargo space.
> 
> Subie significantly faster 0-60 true enough, but real world driving I've found the factory, un-tuned Atlas 2.0T to be perfectly adequate in power, if not growling and sporty like my wife's BMW X3 for example.
> 
> ...


I looked into the Telluride a good bit, even tried to buy two of them but the dealer experience was horrible and they wanted $10-12k more than a fully loaded Atlas. Between the lackluster build quality and the stigma of driving a Kia it was an easy decision to walk away.


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

a problem for me... while some VW stuff says the 2.0T with AWD can tow... they don't offer the tow package as an option on their build site for that engine in the SE. 
I just reconfirmed the 2000 lb tow limit on the 2.0T... and that they don't offer the tow package. I've installed my own hitches and wiring before... would have hoped to avoid that on this new one... so that's another consideration for me at this point.
Also bugs me you can't get the R-Line in the 2.0


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

Carphuntin_god said:


> I'm absolutely not a fan of the Atlas's over-assisted, light-feeling steering... I can't remember driving a less-connected-feeling European car.


FWIW, the Atlas felt the same to me on a couple test drives, ponderous and a bit disconnected. End of final test drive I found a place to throw it around a little more and it felt good, tighter when you were pushing it. My 1300 mile experience has been that it's a pleasing, stable driver for a car its size, fun enough to carve up the occasional sweeping corner, holds its lane well without lane keep assist, no need for constant adjustments. And the sport mode handling makes a big difference. I set the Custom driving mode to Sport Steering, Eco Engine, Eco Climate, which performed really comfortably in several hundred miles of mountain driving.


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

I'm 6'3 210#, was comfortable on a recent 7 hour drive. I do hear you about the height of arm rests not being dialed/natural feeling. They could improve there.

And the knee thing - I do feel the same issue. For me I'm not uncomfortable but really don't want to have my knee wedged up against the ridge of the console in case of a collision. I try to keep it off that area, but would design this aspect differently if possible.

And different strokes for different folks(!), but I love a clean, stripped down German interior. The essential business at hand and nothing more. I find helicopter-like cockpits in cars gaudy and distracting.


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

Carphuntin_god said:


> a problem for me... while some VW stuff says the 2.0T with AWD can tow... they don't offer the tow package as an option on their build site for that engine in the SE.
> I just reconfirmed the 2000 lb tow limit on the 2.0T... and that they don't offer the tow package. I've installed my own hitches and wiring before... would have hoped to avoid that on this new one... so that's another consideration for me at this point.
> Also bugs me you can't get the R-Line in the 2.0


For sure if you want to tow something serious this is a deal breaker! I'll install a hitch and a nice Thule bike rack, but can't foresee trailering anything, or maybe just a PWC or snow machine in wilder fantasies.

If the Atlas had been available in a turbo diesel 6 I'd have been all over it, would certainly have fit you desire for towing and fuel economy.


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

hankj said:


> And different strokes for different folks(!), but I love a clean, stripped down German interior. The essential business at hand and nothing more. I find helicopter-like cockpits in cars gaudy and distracting.


Ditto... but for me, the Atlas swung a little too far the other way  Reminds me of the old early -80's plastic interiors  It's not so much the lack of flash... more like lack of contours and better looking surfaces, etc.


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## hankj (Jan 2, 2021)

Yeah if I squint at it with the right mindset it looks a little cheap. On the other hand I bought a ~$39k SE on sale for 32k and very generous trade allowance. With 14k total out of pocket for a brand new ride I don't feel too picky.

Another thing I like about the spare interior is that they didn't carpet every damn thing like so many crossovers. I've got a couple of big dogs whose hair becomes a permanent part of carpeted surfaces. $100 for the larger plastic cargo area protector and there's next to nothing for my furry beasts to stick to. I can spruce it up quick with a leaf blower


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

hankj said:


> For sure if you want to tow something serious this is a deal breaker! I'll install a hitch and a nice Thule bike rack, but can't foresee trailering anything, or maybe just a PWC or snow machine in wilder fantasies.
> 
> If the Atlas had been available in a turbo diesel 6 I'd have been all over it, would certainly have fit you desire for towing and fuel economy.


i've got a 1500 lb aluminum boat with about 200 lb tongue weight... so per spec of what i've been told... it shouldn't be an issue. Just a mileage hit on the occasions i pull it. (I don't tow it a ton...otherwise I'd grab a bigger engined-vehicle).


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

hankj said:


> Yeah if I squint at it with the right mindset it looks a little cheap. On the other hand I bought a ~$39k SE on sale for 32k and very generous trade allowance. With 14k total out of pocket for a brand new ride I don't feel too picky.
> 
> Another thing I like about the spare interior is that they didn't carpet every damn thing like so many crossovers. I've got a couple of big dogs whose hair becomes a permanent part of carpeted surfaces. $100 for the larger plastic cargo area protector and there's next to nothing for my furry beasts to stick to. I can spruce it up quick with a leaf blower


cost is a plus on the Atlas... to get what i need... it should cost me less than the Ascent or F150...easily. plus they are common as dirt around here...so should be easier to work a deal on.


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## Alpinweiss2 (Jan 9, 2017)

My 2021 Atlas SE 2.0T 4-Motion seems to be averaging about 25 mpg, in combined city and highway driving (more city than highway). I have about 2500 total miles on the odometer. I am using exclusively premium gasoline (also Top Tier), which is usually 91 octane in this area. I consider this to be amazing fuel economy for such a large vehicle.

I live at about 6000 feet above sea level, so the 2.0T is significantly faster than the 3.6 VR6.

🍺


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

I test drove the a couple of Atlases and Ascents again last night. Overall... short of the center console issue... I liked the Atlas seats better. I did find, too, that even with a sunroof, I could get a good, high seating position. In testing... i tried an S with manual seats and an SE with power seats. I want to confirm numbers... but the two seem to have significantly different seat base heights with adjustment.


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## skydaman (Dec 16, 2005)

I previously drove a 2.0 Q7 on a ~1900 mile road trip and it got 26-27 MPG highway along the east coast which I was please with because that's about what our smaller Subaru gets. To compare to my VR6 AWD Atlas my previous extended average was 19MPG always driving in sport mode and mostly all city commuting. After seeing this thread yesterday, I reset the MPG before a 50 mile mostly highway trip with cruise on and in eco mode for the first time keeping an eye on the screen I hit a high of 27.4 MPG and overall for the trip was 26.9 MPG. Granted mine isn't totally stock with subtle intake and exhaust mods and the 2.0T would benefit even further with similar mods and get closer to or over 30MPG. 

As a preference the VR6 has more character to me, even coming from a guy that loves turbos. I think the VR6 has a bit more low end torque and feels better over 5500RPM while the 2.0T has a solid mid range coming in at 2700 or so but seems to die off after 5500 RPM. Granted the tunability of the 2.0 is currently leaps and bounds better, I also have an integrated stage 2 Golf R and wish I could get that power out of the VR6 (so much room back there for a turbo ).


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

Based on the 2.0 Atlas data from Fuelly. Always a great data set based on the math/real mpgs and not just the readout in the vehicle which is about 8% high/optimistic.


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## Carphuntin_god (Jun 5, 2000)

I use fuelly for all my stuff. Used to post my fuelly iimage on my sig...but i've found that some forums don't like it now because it has two url domains in the link.

Problem with the fuelly data is it doesn't break out bout awd/fwd. you can make educated guesses... but it's been a problem for a long time
I was also surprised to see that it must not force people to pick an engine... when you bring up a year's data... if you use the engine type filter... I've seen cases where each engine is marked with some number of vehicles... but when you look at the list of cars... there's obviously more cars than the total of the engine filters.


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## Col-Buddy-Greenleaf (Jun 27, 2007)

I wanted to bump this thread for the helpful information. 
I am looking at a 2.0t Atlas 4motion SEL Premium (the premium has the better seats!). I love the sound of a VR6, but don't like the gas mileage, especially since I would be using this vehicle for hauling the family on roadtrips. I am trying to decide between this one and a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, which are heavily discounted right now. I was wondering if anyone has gas mileage experience for an APR (or other company) tuned 4motion atlas?


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

Col-Buddy-Greenleaf said:


> I wanted to bump this thread for the helpful information.
> I am looking at a 2.0t Atlas 4motion SEL Premium (the premium has the better seats!). I love the sound of a VR6, but don't like the gas mileage, especially since I would be using this vehicle for hauling the family on roadtrips. I am trying to decide between this one and a 2021 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, which are heavily discounted right now. I was wondering if anyone has gas mileage experience for an APR (or other company) tuned 4motion atlas?


I don't believe you can get the standard Atlas with 4Mo and the 2.0 - only the Cross Sport. The 3.6 will easily achieve low to mid 20s for mpg on highway drives if you don't speed, use the cruise, etc. The difference in a few mpgs over a year will be so minimal unless the difference is huge which it may be with a hybrid vehicle...but ~2-3mpg isn't a lot.


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## Alpinweiss2 (Jan 9, 2017)

Beginning in 2021, the Atlas (also Teramont) is available with the 2.0T and 4-Motion (AWD). It is the preferred choice for high altitude.









Builder


Build and configure your new Volkswagen. Choose from the different versions of our models to create the car that best suits your needs.




www.vw.com





🍺


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## skydaman (Dec 16, 2005)

KarstGeo said:


> I don't believe you can get the standard Atlas with 4Mo and the 2.0 - only the Cross Sport. The 3.6 will easily achieve low to mid 20s for mpg on highway drives if you don't speed, use the cruise, etc. The difference in a few mpgs over a year will be so minimal unless the difference is huge which it may be with a hybrid vehicle...but ~2-3mpg isn't a lot.


Lowered with small intake/exhaust mods I've seen 29 cruising at 65 with the 3.6 4motion. I would think an equally modded or tuned 2.0T would get a bit better.


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## Col-Buddy-Greenleaf (Jun 27, 2007)

skydaman said:


> Lowered with small intake/exhaust mods I've seen 29 cruising at 65 with the 3.6 4motion. I would think an equally modded or tuned 2.0T would get a bit better.


How much are you lowered?


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## skydaman (Dec 16, 2005)

Col-Buddy-Greenleaf said:


> How much are you lowered?


3 - 3.5"


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## Col-Buddy-Greenleaf (Jun 27, 2007)

skydaman said:


> 3 - 3.5"


Nice! Good to have a real-world example of gas mileage efficiency gains from lowering!


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## zhuskerdave1 (Mar 26, 2021)

I have a 2020 ACS with the 2.0 4Motion. I am averaging 32 to 35 mpg back and forth to work doing between 55 to 65 mph on cruise. I couldn't be happier! My oldest daughter has a 2019 Atlas with the V6 and getting 25 mpg is quite a feat. I traded my 2019 Tiguan in on this vehicle and that was my biggest concern was losing the mpg but after 21k miles it is still doing great. At 75 mph I was able to squeeze out 29 mpg and I felt pretty good about that.


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## skydaman (Dec 16, 2005)

zhuskerdave1 said:


> I have a 2020 ACS with the 2.0 4Motion. I am averaging 32 to 35 mpg back and forth to work doing between 55 to 65 mph on cruise. I couldn't be happier! My oldest daughter has a 2019 Atlas with the V6 and getting 25 mpg is quite a feat. I traded my 2019 Tiguan in on this vehicle and that was my biggest concern was losing the mpg but after 21k miles it is still doing great. At 75 mph I was able to squeeze out 29 mpg and I felt pretty good about that.


Nice! Daughter needs a couple mods and 25-30 won't be a problem, especially at 55-65 MPH. At 80'ish I get 26-27 fully loaded. If I have time to kill and set it at 55-60 I've got as high as 29-31.


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## Blind1 (Jun 30, 2021)

We’ve had 24+ and 25+ mpg hand calculated on the first two long distance Hwy trips we’ve done in our first month of ownership.

we are getting 19-21 In mixed mostly city short tripping.

2.0T FWD.


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## Jreemy (Jun 28, 2021)

hankj said:


> Recently bought the 2021.5 Atlas AWD turbo 4 banger. SE. 1400 miles in.
> 
> 87 octane fuel.
> 
> ...


I have a 2021 2.0T AWD w/tech package and APR Stage 1 tune.
I run at least 91 octane, try to put 93 if possible.
Average city mpg depending on how much I get on it is between 18 to 20 mpg.
Average highway mpg is around 23 to 24 mpg.


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