Volkswagen Arteon Saloon Production Stopped in Europe

Volkswagen has stopped the production of the Arteon sedan in Europe

Volkswagen is in the midst of a big transition, with the Wolfsburg-based marque set to become a full-fledged EV maker by 2035. Part of its transition has prompted VW to discontinue and axe some of its current ICE models, including several lower-volume ones.

The latest model to meet the cutting block is VW’s flagship midsize saloon, the Arteon. Responding to Motor1’s inquiries pertaining to said model, VW representative Martin Hube confirmed that production for the Arteon has been stopped for the European market.

Current-gen VW Arteon sedan (left) and its wagon counterpart , the Arteon Shooting Brake (right)

Hube, who is also in-charge of the Passat and Touareg, further confirmed that the final Arteon sedan produced for the Old Continent market was back in 2023, with said model produced at VW’s Emden plant in Germany. Interestingly, the VW man said the production of its wagon twin, the Arteon Shooting Brake, is still going on at VW’s Osnabrück plant.

Both the Arteon Shooting Brake (left) and the newly-launched Passat B9 wagon will be on sale in the European markets

While its less sporty brother, the new Passat B9, already made its European debut last year, VW insisted that the Arteon Shooting Brake will remain in production until 2026, although Hube said there won’t be another mid-cycle refresh for this sporty wagon.

The ID.7 saloon (left) now stood as the remaining saloon model on sale by VW in EU, with the upcoming ID.7 Tourer (right) will further expand VW's wagon lineup later this year 

As the new Passat now arrives in wagon-only body style, the Arteon sedan’s demise means that the only new saloon model sold by VW in its native market is the ID.7 EV saloon, with said model indirectly replacing the two discontinued ICE sedans. Sticking their guns to the estate game, VW has also announced that a wagon variant of the ID.7 is set to make its landfall later this year.

The Arteon sedan now joins a long-list of ICE models axed by VW in recent years as the marque prepares to push on with its electromobility adoption. More ICE-powered VW models are expected to meet the guillotine in years to come, including the newly-facelifted Golf Mk8.5, which is touted to be the last ICE-powered Golf model ever, as well as both the new Tiguan and Passat.

The fate of the Malaysian-spec, locally-assembled (CKD) Arteon saloon remains a mystery, for now...

With the Arteon sedan now axed in its native market, the fate of the Malaysian-spec Arteon, which is locally-assembled at Volkswagen Malaysia’s Pekan plant, remains to be seen. Considering that Volkswagen Passenger Cars Malaysia (VPCM) is quite adamant about going full electric (for now), perhaps this beloved midsize sedan will live on for at least a year or two, or until the arrival of its electric twin.