The Volkswagen Arteon R Shooting Brake was spotted rubbing shoulders with supercars at a car event in Belgium recently. Porsches, Lamborghinis, AMGs, and others were all present in the front of the camera, though it was the sporty estate that became the focus of the lens for the most part of the video.
If you live on the left side of the Atlantic Ocean, then you have probably already forgotten about the Arteon R Shooting Brake. And for good reasons, because both the regular five-door variant of the facelifted Arteon, as well as the hot R models, were denied U.S. visas.
Meanwhile, in its home market, the Arteon R liftback is one pricey cookie, and so is the R Shooting Brake. Pricing starts at €63,095 (equaling to $73,445) and €63,980 ($74,475) respectively, which puts them in the same zone as the 369 hp (374 ps / 275 kW) BMW M340i xDrive and 336 hp (341 ps / 251 kW) Audi S4 TDI.
Sitting at the top of the 2021 Arteon family, the R models are not as powerful as their main rivals. In fact, the turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine makes only 315 hp (320 ps / 235 kW), from 5,350 to 6,500 rpm, and 310 lb-ft (420 Nm) of torque at 2,100 rpm. The thrust is directed to the all-wheel drive system with torque vectoring via a dual-clutch seven-speed DSG automatic transmission.
In terms of straight-line performance, you are looking at 4.9 seconds required to sprint to 62 mph (100 kph) from a standstill, and a 155 mph (250 kph) top speed. However, order the Arteon R with the optional R Performance Package, and the V-max will increase to 168 mph (270 kph).
Meanwhile, in the States, the Arteon is offered with a 268 hp (272 ps / 200 kW) and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) of torque 2.0-liter four-pot, with FWD or AWD, and an eight-speed auto ‘box. Pricing starts at $36,995 for the SE, $41,595 for the SEL R-Line, and $46,995 for the SEL Premium R-Line.
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
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