Compare the2023 Ford EdgeVS 2023 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

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

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Ford Edge have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Ford Edge has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer knee airbags.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Edge. But it costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

The Edge’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 Edge and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available front and rear parking sensors.

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

	Edge	Atlas Cross Sport
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	212	307
Neck Injury Risk	22.4%	30%
Neck Stress	229 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	21 lbs.	59 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	35.2%	39%
Neck Compression	44 lbs.	117 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	145/201 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 and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Ford Edge is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Edge	Atlas Cross Sport
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Hip Force	192 lbs.	215 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	103	208
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	257	309
Spine Acceleration	38 G’s	41 G’s
Hip Force	425 lbs.	594 lbs.

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 available headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Edge the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 175 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Atlas Cross Sport has not been fully tested, yet.

Warranty

Ford’s powertrain warranty covers the Edge 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Atlas Cross Sport. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Atlas Cross Sport ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

The Edge’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are almost 5 times as many Ford dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Edge’s warranty.

Reliability

The Edge has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Edge has a standard 760-amp battery. The Atlas Cross Sport’s 680-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Edge’s reliability 12 points higher than the Atlas Cross Sport.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in initial quality. With 63 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is rated below average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford above average in long-term dependability. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Ford 5 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

Engine

The Edge’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 15 more horsepower (250 vs. 235) and 22 lbs.-ft. more torque (280 vs. 258) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Edge’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 14 lbs.-ft. more torque (280 vs. 266) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6. The Edge ST’s standard 2.7 turbo V6 produces 59 more horsepower (335 vs. 276) and 114 lbs.-ft. more torque (380 vs. 266) than the Atlas Cross Sport’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Ford Edge is faster than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Edge turbo 4 cyl.	Edge ST	Atlas Cross Sport turbo 4 cyl.	Atlas Cross Sport V6
Zero to 60 MPH	7.6 sec	6.1 sec	8.1 sec	7.9 sec
Quarter Mile	15.9 sec	14.7 sec	16.3 sec	16 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	89.3 MPH	93.4 MPH	84.5 MPH	87.4 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

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

			MPG
Edge
	AWD	2.7 turbo V6	19 city/25 hwy
		2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	21 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

The Edge has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Ford Edge higher (5 to 6 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (3 to 5). This means the Edge produces up to 23.4 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Atlas Cross Sport every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the Edge’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Atlas Cross Sport:

	Edge	Atlas Cross Sport
Front Rotors	13.6 inches	13.2 inches
Rear Rotors	12.4 inches	12.2 inches
Opt Rear Rotors	13.6 inches

The Edge stops much shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport:

	Edge	Atlas Cross Sport
60 to 0 MPH	108 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

The Edge ST’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Atlas Cross Sport SEL Premium R-Line’s 45 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The Edge 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 Edge’s drift compensation steering can automatically compensate for road conditions which would cause the vehicle to drift from side to side, helping the driver to keep the vehicle straight more easily. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer drift compensation steering.

The Edge ST handles at .88 G’s, while the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Edge ST executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.8 seconds quicker than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (26 seconds @ .7 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Edge’s turning circle is 1.2 feet tighter than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (39.3 feet vs. 40.5 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Edge has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas Cross Sport 2.0T (8 vs. 7.1 inches), allowing the Edge to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Edge ST’s minimum ground clearance is .7 inch higher than on the Atlas Cross Sport V6 (8.2 vs. 7.5 inches).

Chassis

The Edge is 6.7 inches shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport, making the Edge easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The front grille of the Edge 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.

The Edge ST uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Edge has .8 inches more front headroom, .9 inches more front legroom, 2.5 inches more rear headroom and .2 inches more rear legroom than the Atlas Cross Sport.

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the Edge SEL/Titanium/ST’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

The Edge ST can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Edge can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Atlas Cross Sport can’t be towed flat on the ground.

Optional Trailer Sway Control on the Edge (except SE) uses the AdvanceTrac® 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.

Ergonomics

The Edge Titanium/ST’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and 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 Edge 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.

Consumer Reports rated the Edge’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Atlas Cross Sport’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

The Edge SEL/ST-Line/ST/Titanium’s standard rear view mirror and optional side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Atlas Cross Sport has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Edge has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning costs extra on the Atlas Cross Sport.

Recommendations

The Ford Edge has won recognition from these important consumer publications:

	Edge	Atlas Cross Sport
Consumer Reports® Recommends	TRUE	TRUE
Car Book “Best Bet”	TRUE	n/a

The Ford Edge outsold the Volkswagen Atlas by 3440 units during 2022.

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