The latecomers to the 4×4 ball have started to straggle in - Volkswagen’s Tiguan is finally with us, next week Ford will launch its Kuga SUV, while Renault’s Koleos follows in a few weeks’ time, says Peter Carroll.
They have probably all got their work cut out. Honda and Land Rover are firmly established at the top of the five-seater SUV tree with the CR-V and Freelander 2 respectively, while Toyota has quietly trousered a stack of cash over the past decade thanks to the success of its pioneering RAV4.
It was probably only to be expected that sober-minded VW would take its time before coming up with a rival for these vehicles - but now that the Tiguan has arrived it looks good enough to match any of them.
The Germans are not without experience of this type of car, of course, and the bigger Touareg has long been a quality product.
In fact, the Tiguan looks rather like a shrunken Touareg - and that’s meant as a compliment rather than an insult. The test car was finished in pearlescent black and, with its matching privacy windows, looked nice and sharp, yet without the gangsterish connotations of bigger SUVs.
The Tiguan is longer than its seven-seater MPV sister the Touran, which means it has plenty of room for five adults along with a decent-sized boot too, though the sill is on the high side.
There are no fancy MPV-style folding seat tricks but the rear seats split 60/40 and can them too. There are storage drawers under the front seats and little cubby holes for sunglasses and the other odds and ends.
The driving position is high and commanding, the seats are comfortable and visibility is good. You can specify VW’s excellent Park Assist system to help you to manouevre into tight parking slots.
It has an electronic switch instead of a ‘proper’ handbrake and this has an auto-hold feature which prevents the car creeping forwards in heavy traffic.
VW has kept the Tiguan range fairly straight forward though new derivatives are already on their way. At the moment the car comes with three levels of trim and there’s also an Escape model targeted at those wanting more off-road capability.
There are two 2.0 litre diesel power plants, one developing 140hp and a more powerful unit at 170hp. On the petrol front the 1.4 supercharged and turbocharged engine from the Golf GT makes it into the Tiguan range and, for reasons best known to VW, not one but two 2.0 petrol engines are apparently in the pipeline.
The test car came with the lower-rated of the diesel engines - and it should be fine for most people’s needs. It’s quick off the mark and only lacks a little grunt when overtaking.
The test car also came with an excellent six-speed tiptronic gearbox. In regular automatic mode the shifts are well judged. There’s a Sport setting too but it tends to makes the car sound thrashy.
For a high-sided car the Tiguan handles very nicely. It has a stiff body shell and also benefits from the latest generation 4MOTION four-wheel drive technology - though it does not get the electrically-controlled centre diff that’s in the Touareg and Phaeton.
In normal road conditions 90 per cent of the power is directed to the front wheels but in extreme cases up to 100 per cent can be transferred to the rear ones.
The Tiguan steers nicely and takes a twisty road in its stride, with roll kept to a minimum. Despite its boxy shape refinement is very good too. There is some engine intrusion but surprisingly little wind noise.
The trade off for the car’s capable handling is its firm ride, though this is offset to some degree by seats which seem softer than those of some VWs from the past.
The Tiguan also usefully boasts a towing capacity of up to 2,500kg , which is more than its rivals - even the Freelander 2 - can manage.
This SUV has been a long time coming but is a very impressive effort from VW. I guess it’s not when you arrive that’s important but the impression you make when you turn up…
By Peter Carroll
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