Volkswagen is one of the most popular automakers in the world, but just like any other automaker, this doesn’t mean that all VW models are bound for success. This was the case with the Volkswagen Arteon, which was a sedan that the German automaker introduced in 2019 but has found little success in its short life. Here’s a look at the Volkswagen Arteon and why VW killed off the Arteon just like Toyota killed off the Avalon.

Volkswagen will be discontinuing the last Arteon model very soon

As Car and Driver explained, the 2024 model year will be the last Volkswagen Arteon in the American car market. As is the case with most discontinued cars, VW made this decision primarily because the Arteon has been a poor seller. The German automaker only sold 1,742 units of the Arteon in 2022, and it only sold 5,537 units in 2021. 

Those would be OK sales numbers for a luxury car, but they’re horrible sales numbers for a mass-market car like the Arteon. For context, the German automaker sold 375,000 units in total in America in 2021 and 300,000 units in 2022. As such, the Arteon’s poor sales numbers easily make it one of the worst-selling vehicles in VW’s lineup. 

The Volkswagen Arteon suffered from a lot of problems that the Toyota Avalon had

When the last Volkswagen Arteon is discontinued, it will mark the end of a six-year-long experiment for VW. It’s no secret that the sedan segment has been floundering in America in recent years, but not all sedans have been doing poorly. The worst-performing sedans typically have been full-size sedans, such as the Arteon or the Avalon. Indeed, both the Arteon and the Avalon had a lot in common.

Toyota envisioned the Avalon as a flagship sedan, while the Arteon was designed with luxury in mind. In some ways, the Arteon was essentially a baby Audi. The idea behind both sedans seems to have been to make a sedan that’s more luxurious than the cheapest sedans but not as luxurious as true luxury cars. As it turned out, this was not a good choice. All it did was put the Arteon and the Avalon in an awkward segment that didn’t have a true market.

Because the Arteon and the Avalon were more expensive than smaller sedans, a lot of car shoppers might’ve simply purchased an SUV instead. The last model year of the Avalon, for example, started at $37,000. The 2023 version of the Arteon went for $43,000. The Arteon and the Avalon weren’t bad cars by any means, and they generally received good reviews. But given their price points, it’s not surprising that both large cars failed to find buyers.

It may be a while before an automaker makes a similar car to the Arteon or the Avalon

With the rise of the SUV segment, as well as the death of so many sedans, it may be a while before another automaker takes another swing at building a large car that’s similar to the Arteon or Avalon. It’s a business, after all, and since the Arteon and the Avalon both failed in the business sense, most automakers may be afraid to try again.

It all may come down to how car shoppers feel and what the economy looks like, though. SUVs and trucks dominate America now, but that may not be the case in the future. Furthermore, the Arteon and the Avalon were full-sized sedans that tried to have some luxury features. It’s possible that the next new large car focuses on being more affordable rather than being luxurious.