Spy shots of the 2022 Volkswagen Arteon Shooting Break.

Mercedes-Benz's lineup of Shooting Brake models proves that style sometimes trumps practicality. For example, cars like the CLA Shooting Brake and the former CLS Shooting Brake have four doors and a wide-opening hatch, but their steeply drooping roof line results in less cargo capacity than a conventional station wagon.

And now Volkswagen is about to challenge this segment with the introduction of the Arteon-based Shooting Brake model. Shooting Brake is the traditional name for a coupe with a rear hatch, and the German automaker has lately been happy to call anything with a curved roof a coupe, so it was happy to give it the Shooting Brake designation.

A prototype of the new Arteon Shooting Brake has been spotted. It appears to have a slightly longer wheelbase than the Arteon sedan, and is heavily camouflaged to hide the true rear pillar design.

With the exception of the new rear end, the Arteon Shooting Brake should match the sedan it sells. This means that a four-cylinder engine drives the front wheels as standard, with all four wheels as an option. The Arteon's only transmission is an eight-speed automatic.

The Arteon Shooting Brake will debut in late 2020 or early 2021. A high-performance R version should appear around the same time and based on the Arteon sedan.

VW sees a market for the Shooting Brake in several markets, but sales in the U.S. are questionable. After all, we're talking about a niche body style for an already niche product. You can blame it on trends, you can blame it on perception, but as most automakers will tell you, Americans don't like station wagons, no matter what you call them."