New Volkswagen Tiguan Review

New Volkswagen Tiguan India Review, Price, Specs, Mileage, Image Gallery, Interior and Features

There’s a new choice in town for those who like their journeys on stilts. The new Volkswagen Tiguan, though, is very different for what it offers and is an instantly likeable vehicle, not by virtue of its intimidating looks and sheer size, but for the collective brilliance it offers as a motorcar. We drove on for more than 500km behind this smart new SUV’s wheel and came back mighty impressed. Read on…

Volkswagen Tiguan Engine And Performance

The Volkswagen Tiguan is propelled by a 2.0-litre TDI engine that is good for 143 PS at 4,000 rpm and 340 Nm of twist between 1,750 – 2,750 rotations. Power is channelled through a new 7-speed DSG system and then transferred to all four wheels via VW’s 4Motion tech, which intelligently distributes drive at the front and back according to the car’s demands.

There are four driving modes to pick from – Eco, Normal, Sport and Individual, where the Eco mode gets a coasting feature that decouples the gearbox from the engine when your foot comes off the gas pedal to save fuel. Surprisingly, the Tiguan is one of those rare cars where its fuel saving mode doesn’t make the car feel anaemic at all in the name of efficiency. Only upshifts are immediate and the gearbox kicks down a bit reluctantly.

Off the line, although insulation otherwise is great, there’s a mild chatter from the engine which is always audible inside the cabin. Peak power kicks in at about 1700 rpm, and from there on, the motor is always in a healthy and sprightly state until its very limits. Performance is always elegantly brisk rather than a punch in the face and although the Tiguan will attain triple digit speeds in a jiffy, effects of velocity are brilliantly camouflaged. It is one of those cars which surprises you if you happen to glance at the speedometer.

Where picking normal mode will see the gearbox going about its smooth, as if non-existent business quietly, Sports mode will squirt enough fuel to make the engine tick near its power band and summon that box to hold on to its ratios for as long as your right foot demands. There are pedals behind the wheel too, should you wish to take matters into your own hands, along with another ‘S’ mode at the lever. An individual mode allows you to play mix-n-match with the available options, where you can set the steering, drivetrain and even the aircon to behave as per your liking.

The new 2.0-litre TDI motor is frugal with its needs too. Backed by a 71-litre fuel tank, with some dense Bangalore traffic dealt with, and a smooth, mostly brisk 200 km drive on the highway, the Tiguan managed a figure of 14 kpl according to its onboard computer.

There’s a Think Blue trainer on the central display which tells you how efficient or otherwise your driving habits are

After spending a decent amount of time behind the Tiguan’s wheel, we noticed that there is this very petrol car like well-lubricated fluidity to the way the Tiguan propels forward. And this is proof of some brilliant engineering which ensures that momentum feels friction free and thoroughly refined.

Volkswagen Tiguan Ride And Handling

The Volkswagen Tiguan is a brilliant handling vehicle that displays wonderfully composed and solid behaviour in the way it drives. It rides fantastically flat for an SUV, minus any unwanted body movements, which goes a long way in keeping the occupants steady and cheerful throughout the ride. It stays put like a rock through straights and bends alike, allowing you to carry un-SUV speeds through flowing and tightening corners alike. The delightfully light at urban speeds steering picks up appreciable weight as speeds increase and has an almost non-existent deadzone. There isn’t much feedback, as isolation is the thing to achieve if you’re building premium these days. It will pilot the Tiguan with precision at all times though.

But then something has to give. So where the Tiguan is a brilliant handler, courtesy of a stiff, but well-damped suspension setup, things are on the firmer side. As a result, the ride is smooth and settled on well paved and slightly broken roads, but the Tiguan will thud through well-defined undulations, making its European roots very evident. We branched off the road and made the car climb on a little hillock, which it did without any fuss. Although the taut setup meant we always knew what the 55-profile tyres rolled over.

Brakes do their job really well and never leave you with a feeling that the car won’t shed enough speed or stop where you want it to. Behind the wheel, the Tiguan feels like a typical German sedan on the move, unless you realise that it’s smart looking bodyshell stands taller and you can take that refined on-road experience off the road too without ever having to worry much about traction or clearance. Makes the Tiguan a distinctly polished proposition among its competition that concentrates a lot of its energies either towards butch or some glitz on the hood.

Volkswagen Tiguan Interior And Features

The first thing that one notices once in the driver’s seat is the great view all round. A-pillars are thin and then there’s a quarter glass which helps with great all-round visibility. The cabin is wrapped in a mixture of man-made and natural Vienna leather with subtly glossy, and a few metallic inputs underlining the premium appeal. Almost all touch points reek of quality and minimal elegance.

The driver’s seat is electrically adjustable where two favourite positions can be preset and saved. The co-passenger has to make adjustments through some levers though. Seats are comfortable, offer great support and add up to that fatigue free driving experience the Tiguan offers as a package.

The premium flat bottom steering wheel can be adjusted for reach, height and gets buttons to toggle between information on the MID, cruise control, the infotainment system, and telephony. A classy instrument console sits behind with analogue readings for the fuel gauge and temperature, and a speedometer and rev counter nestled inside an elliptical, chrome lined housings which flank a crisp looking MID screen.

The infotainment system is Android Auto, Apple Carplay compliant, displays various vehicle parameters, and also serves as a monitor for the feed from those rear parking cameras. We were pleasantly surprised by the sound from that system, which filled the cabin with studio quality music, even when we purposely set the equaliser to a flat setting and played rubbish quality MP3s from our phone.

A 3-zone climate control allows for individual temperatures to be set for the front two occupants, while the ones at the rear too can set the temperature to an agreeable setting. The Tiguan gets a special AC filter which does a stellar job of keeping outside rubbish where it belongs and helps maintain air quality inside the cabin. Surprisingly, both front chairs get heating function, which does make the right places warm when needed. But for our conditions, a ventilating or cooling function would’ve been nicer.

Rear seats offer a good amount of space all round, are comfortable, get a collapsible armrest and front backrest mounted tray tables on the Highline variant. The rear seat’s backrest can be tumbled down in a 60:40 split by the pulling a string, which is how you may also adjust the recline angle as per your liking. The bench can even slide forward to allow that one last suitcase to be squeezed inside the boot.

Now here’s the thing. The co-passenger seat on our car wouldn’t recline all the way back. But as we figured, it could tumble all the way forward, where the rear passenger could slide his bench closer, put up his/her feet and relax to the panoramic views through the transparent roof or simply take a nap without being next to the driver.

The Tiguan’s cabin also gets white ambient LED lighting which can be adjusted for brightness. All in all, we love the premium subtlety to things inside the Volkswagen Tiguan’s cabin, which fits well with the overall elegance of the car. Vary Naaice, Aye Layke, Grate Sucksass!

Volkswagen Tiguan Design And Styling

The Tiguan is a handsome SUV that is a refreshing departure from oversized, intimidating vehicles it will compete with. It’s appearance talks in a visually classy language, those who talk less and listen more will appreciate. It looks aggressive too in its own right, what with those sharp horizontal lines, a well-defined fascia and those mean looking all LED headlights.

It looks every bit a premium European product sideways, with a strong crease cutting through its shoulder line, almost creating a groove beneath. Those pretty looking alloys fill the chunky arches well, where some black cladding highlights the outdoorsy nature of the Tiguan.

Capped by a roof mounted spoiler, a raked rear windscreen drops down into a clean tailgate. What makes things look striking though is that F-patterned illumination for the LED taillights. Oh, and with the key in your pockets, you may simply move your foot under the gate to swivel it open and push a button to bring it back down. Neat.

Volkswagen Tiguan Details And Features Explained Through Images

Glovebox will cool your drink and your Compact disc too 

Central armrest offers decent storage and the lid can rest at various heights wherever your elbow rests comfortably

Huge panoramic sunroof opens halfway. Gets a sun visor too and everything requires a single touch to operate

Frameless mirror dims automatically. But not as much as we would’ve liked

All Led illumination on both variants up front

Only the Highline variant gets LEDs at the rear though

The Tiguan gets an Electronic parking brake and a start/stop button too

Cabin illumination is all LED

Red on white looks classy and so does the analogue temp gauge

Sound system sounds fantastic

The Tiguan gets a tyre pressure monitoring system too

That’s the maximum recline angle of the front passenger seat

Hankook tyres come with an alignment indicator

A not so Vanilla Sky

Volkswagen Tiguan Buying Advice

Most premium SUVs spend almost all of their lives on the black stuff. Only occasionally getting their feet dirty when their owners feel somewhat adventurous. Sure, there are hardcore enthusiasts too, but then if you don’t really fit into that scheme of things, the Volkswagen Tiguan is a fantastic SUV which is also a great car to travel long distances, fatigue-free and efficiently. Its relatively compact proportions also make it easily manoeuvrable within the town and the Tiguan is a quality product that will last, feels every bit premium, looks savvy, drives well and will make you feel great about your purchase.

Volkswagen Tiguan Prices

Tiguan Comfortline: INR 27.98 lakh

Tiguan Highline: INR 31.38 lakh

Volkswagen Tiguan Technical Specifications

Engine Type 2.0 L TDI Diesel
Power 141 Bhp
Torque 320 Nm
Transmission (Gearbox) 7 speed DSG Automatic
Mileage (ARAI)
17.06 Kmpl

Volkswagen Tiguan Image Gallery

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