Compare the2023 Hyundai TucsonVS 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Payload and Towing
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Tucson are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Tucson’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Tucson and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Hyundai Tucson is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Tucson	Atlas Cross Sport
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	24%	30%
Neck Stress	164 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	14 lbs.	59 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	27/60 lbs.	67/229 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	35%	39%
Neck Stress	125 lbs.	129 lbs.
Neck Compression	59 lbs.	117 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	51/13 lbs.	297/97 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH, results indicate that the Hyundai Tucson is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Tucson	Atlas Cross Sport
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	37	208

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Tucson its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 127 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Atlas Cross Sport is not even a standard “Top Safety Pick.”

Warranty

The Tucson comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Atlas Cross Sport’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Tucson 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Atlas Cross Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Atlas Cross Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The Tucson’s 7 year corrosion warranty has no mileage limitations, but the corrosion warranty on the Atlas Cross Sport runs out after 100,000 miles.

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Tucson for 1 year and 16000 miles longer than Volkswagen pays for maintenance for the Atlas Cross Sport (3/36,000 vs. 2/20,000).

There are over 29 percent more Hyundai dealers than there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Tucson’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 45 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Hyundai higher than Volkswagen.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 69 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 21st.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Hyundai 10 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Tucson gets better mileage than the Atlas Cross Sport:

			MPG
Tucson
	FWD	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	25 city/32 hwy
	AWD	2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	23 city/28 hwy
Atlas Cross Sport
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 city/25 hwy
		3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/24 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/24 hwy
		3.6 DOHC V6	18 city/24 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Tucson uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Atlas Cross Sport with the 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Tucson higher (7 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (3 to 5). This means the Tucson produces up to 24.5 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Atlas Cross Sport every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Tucson stops shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport:

	Tucson	Atlas Cross Sport
60 to 0 MPH	118 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	131 feet	134 feet	Consumer Reports

Suspension and Handling

The Tucson has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Atlas Cross Sport’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The Tucson Limited AWD handles at .82 G’s, while the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Tucson Limited AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (27.4 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Tucson’s turning circle is 1.9 feet tighter than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (38.6 feet vs. 40.5 feet).

Chassis

The Hyundai Tucson may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 750 to 800 pounds less than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport.

The Tucson is 1 foot, 1.2 inches shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport, making the Tucson easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the Hyundai Tucson amounts to more than styling. The Tucson has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .33 Cd. That is lower than the Atlas Cross Sport (.34 to .36) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Tucson get better fuel mileage.

The front grille of the Tucson uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The Tucson has .7 inches more front headroom, 1.7 inches more rear headroom and .9 inches more rear legroom than the Atlas Cross Sport.

Cargo Capacity

The Tucson has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Atlas Cross Sport with its rear seat folded (80.3 vs. 77.8 cubic feet).

Pulling a handle automatically lowers the Tucson’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Payload and Towing

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Tucson uses the Electronic Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Tucson has a much higher standard payload capacity than the Atlas Cross Sport (1301 vs. 1091 lbs.).

The Tucson has a much higher maximum payload capacity than the Atlas Cross Sport (1305 vs. 1091 lbs.).

Ergonomics

The Tucson Limited’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Tucson has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Atlas Cross Sport only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Tucson Limited’s Remote Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Park Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line’s automatic parking system requires operating the brakes and transmission to safely park and it doesn’t offer remote control parking.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Tucson and the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Tucson third among compact suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Atlas Cross Sport isn’t in the top three.

The Hyundai Tucson outsold the Volkswagen Atlas by over two to one during 2022.

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