Did you know that the the Tiguan is currently Volkwagen’s best-selling nameplate? Did you really? I don’t think I realized it until one of Volkswagen’s nice PR folks told me while standing in front of a big slide that also told me, but, you know, through my eyes. And, strangely, I think I can understand why: the Tiguan is a bit like the result of averaging out VW’s offerings. Say you were a magic colossal being of astounding power, and you took VW’s product lineup from the past decade or so, picked out the outliers (ID.Buzz, Beetle, Eos, and so on), then blended everything together into a thick, viscous paste, then drank that paste down, I suspect that you would then find yourself magically pooping out something like the Tiguan. It’s a lot like an encapsulation of most of modern VW into one compact-ish SUV package, and, generally, I think that’s an appealing thing.
I mean, especially for something pooped out by a magic colossal being of astounding power.
Now, I’m a Tiguan owner myself: I have a first-gen Tiguan, a 2010, and one that, I’ll be honest, has caused me an extraordinary amount of ass-pain. For all the money I’ve had to pour into this thing, you’d think I’d hate Tiguans forever. But, somehow, I don’t. I don’t even hate the one I have, which is baffling. But the truth is that somehow VW builds and designs these SUVs in such a way that they end up being strangely, if quietly, appealing machines. My Tiguan, for all its faults, remains a pretty nice car to be in. It’s a pleasant car to drive and live with. And the latest Tiguan, the third generation of the car, seems to be that as well: pleasant to drive, seems pleasant to live with, maybe not particularly exciting or groundbreaking, but that’s not what it’s supposed to be. I think the most important thing about this new Tiguan is that it’s evidence that VW has been listening to customers and people, at least a little bit.
They Listened
Mostly what I mean by that is that VW has heard the chorus of bitching about their move away from physical controls to screen-based and flat, touch-based controls and has quite rightly decided to reverse course. This new Tiguan, I’m happy to say, has lots of physical, tactile controls again, the centerpiece of which seems to be this large knob located on the center console that incorporates a round display and is used primarily for audio system volume, though it also lets you select one of many “Driving Experience” modes:
Aside from the obvious ambient lighting changes (which are nicely done, I’m not going to fecate upon a well-executed bit of ambient lighting) I didn’t notice much difference among these different modes, but then again, I only had a couple hours in the car driving at VW’s launch event in Bozeman, Montana, so I can’t really say I had a chance to, you know, explore these things.
As far as the knob itself goes, though, it’s quite nice and pleasingly textured, and the volume setting has a nice arcing white line visual of the volume level in the display on the knob. It’s amazing how much one appreciates something as basic as a freaking volume knob when its been denied to you for so long. It’s like how a starving person greets a slice of bread with a Kraft single plopped upon it – at that moment, it’s the best thing ever. I’m not saying this knob is like that – with the slick integrated display and pleasing tactile qualities, this is much more like a well-crafted Ruben.
More importantly, VW finally got rid of their maddening front/rear toggle-based power window controls that I’ve bitched about before, replacing them with a far more rational full set of four switches, as nature intended. All of the interior controls are better, and that’s much appreciated. HVAC controls are still touch-based, which I’m not thrilled about, but it’s not so bad and avoids the worst offenses of this genre, because at least the vents can still be physically controlled.
The interior, like almost all Tiguan interiors have been, is quite nice. All the materials feel very good, including something VW calls CloudTex, which is like their version of Alcantara, but without the cruel and rampant slaughter of the beautiful wild alcantars, which, as you know, are mercilessly hunted for their hides as they gallop down the Northern Galifracian steppes, gunned down by hunters on modified jetskis, who then harvest their hides for Alcantara and their rich, purple-hued meat for processing into McRibs.
Oh another nice thing: the wireless charger has a clip to hold your phone in place, so it actually stays in position to actually get charged:
You can’t look at it when it’s in there, of course, but you’re not supposed to do that anyway, and besides, you can get what you need on the center display because the Tig has CarPlay and/or Android Auto.
That big screen also makes the 360° fauxverhead (like that? I just made it up) camera view a treat, too.
That spattering of techno-confetti on the passenger’s side of the dash isn’t a display, but rather a set pattern of glowing dots. These dots can change color via the various Driving Experience modes, but, more importantly, I found that they also flash amber when the hazard lights are active:
It’s fantastic! Finally, the passenger can really feel involved in the whole hazard light experience!
Oh, speaking hazard lights and blinkers in general, I was delighted to find out that the rear turn indicators on the new Tiguan are, in fact, amber:
Well, since I already brought this up, we may as well continue down this path:
Taillight And Other Lighting Design
Volkswagen has been doing some good work on lighting design lately; the new Tig has some striking-looking light units up front, with a trio of staggered lighting elements, all of which have some interesting illuminated and textured side panels that may function as a cornering light, but I’m not certain.
They look almost quilted, which is an interesting choice.
Also, VW is committed to illuminated logos front and rear, hoping, I imagine, to capture some of that Wolseley nostalgia that approximately 0.04% of Americans have. They’re fun, I like the illuminated VW badges. The taillights are well-designed, too with some bold graphics and a side-marker motif that mimics the staggered-rectangles look of the headlamps:
Okay, now that the important stuff is out of the way, let’s get to some details, like how it actually drives.
How It Drives
Oh, it’s fine. I mean, it drives how most of its customers want it to: predictably and safely, easily, undemanding, it’s all of that. It’s comfortable and while not especially engaging, it’s not really supposed to be. You can push it a bit, and it does handle in a more satisfying way, because VW does give a shit about that. It’s built on the same MQB Evo platform as the Golf and GTI, which is a pretty good base from which to start.
The amount of power the new Tiguan makes I think is interesting. It’s plenty, let’s get that out of the way – it accelerates well, and while I haven’t seen any 0-60 times, it felt brisk enough to me, a man who daily drives a 52 hp car. What I think is interesting is that the amount of power this new engine makes – it’s an updated version of VW’s 1984cc EA888 turbocharged inline-four, and this latest version first saw use in the China-market VW Teramont, which we get as the Atlas here – is 201 hp, just about the same as the very first generation of Tiguans, which also made about 200 hp. The second gen Tiguans, the outgoing ones, only made 184 hp, so this is a return back to where the Tig started, power-wise. Torque is unchanged from the last gen at 207 lb-ft (FWD) or 221 lb-ft (AWD).
Under that rubbery cover with the fake intake manifold molded into it is an interesting engine, a Miller-cycle engine, even. Miller-cycle engines are similar to Atkinson-cycle engines, but where the Atkinson-cycle avoids carbohydrates in favor of proteins – shit, wait, no, that’s the Atkins diet – I mean where the Atkinson-cycle holds the intake valve open longer, the Miller cycle does the same but adds a sort of two-stage compression stroke. Like Atkinson-cycle engines, Miller engines are more efficient at the expense of power, but Miller engines use turbochargers to compensate.
Here, I’ll let VW’s press release go on about the engine:
The engine, which is known as the EA888 evo5, is substantially changed from the powerplant in the outgoing Tiguan, with new charge cooling, turbocharger, injection system, and camshaft design among the revisions.
Even the basic reciprocating components have been optimized. The crankpin diameter has been increased from 1.88 in (47.8mm) to 1.97 in (50.0mm), while the connecting rods have been shortened from 5.67 in (144mm) to 5.51 in (140mm) to facilitate a thicker piston crown.
The turbocharger is all new, employing a variable geometry design that allows for higher boost ratios without causing high exhaust gas temperatures. Fuel injection pressure has been raised from 5076 to 7252 psi (350 to 500 bar), which necessitated relocating the drive for the mechanical fuel pump from the exhaust cam to the balancer shaft within the crankcase. A new forged fuel rail also helps accommodate the increased pressure.
The engine’s Miller cycle is more extreme in this engine, requiring a revised combustion chamber design and a new charge cooling system that incorporates an air-to-water heat exchanger. The evo5 also features an electronic intake cam adjuster, in place of the previous hydraulic unit, and a simplified cam system, which substitutes four separate cam pieces with eight adjusters for two pairs of cam pieces with double actuators.
So, they changed a lot, the result of which is that this 3,500-3,800 pound SUV gets 26 mpg city, 34 highway, and 29 combined (the last Tig got 24 city, 31 highway, and 27 combined) for the FWD one, and 4Motion AWD ones get 22 city, 30 highway, 22 combined MPG. That’s not bad for a non-hybrid combustion car.
A couple other nice things about the engine: there’s no stupid stick to hold up the hood, there’s real gas struts, which is nice and something I feel like I don’t see too often.
The catalytic converter is also well tucked up into the engine bay, which may be for thermal reasons but I suspect also to help make the thing harder to steal, which is nice.
Also, I like these beefy connectors on the brain box; those release clips also look refreshingly unlikely to snap off in your fingers.
Oh, also, look at these hood latches:
There’s two of these beefy boys! Why do they have such robust hood latches?
How’s It Look?
The new Tiguan’s look fits in with the overall new Volkswagen design language, which is quite clean and unfussy, but with a bold, grimace-like grille up front, and, in the case of the Tiguan, a duplicate faux one at the rear:
The rear grille as a graphic element I don’t mind, but you know what I’d rather see there than a fake grille pattern? Rubber. Black rubber. Black rubber that could take a solid whack into a utility pole and not leave the car with $2,000 worth of damage. That’s what should be there.
Speaking of fake grilles, if you’re wondering, these seem to be the parts of the front grille that are actually used for air intake:
I mean, I understand why the designers would want more visual grille area, I just think the differential between perceived air intake demand and reality is interesting.
The Tiguan is pretty handsome, unoffensive and sleek. The hoodline has been raised a good bit and the overall beltline, which does take away some of the interior airiness of the earlier Tiguan generations. The wheels are pretty striking, though.
Oh! But one thing I’m not crazy about for the wheels is this:
VW is still using these ridiculous plastic caps over the actual wheel lug nuts, and I’m as annoyed by these as I was the ones on my own Tiguan that I wrote about a couple years ago. I don’t get the point of them. VW has to include that little bent-wire tool to extract them, and they just get in the way or, worse, trap moisture around the bolt, leading to rust. They’re silly, and I don’t know why they’re still a thing.
That’s a pretty minor quibble, though; overall, it’s a handsome machine.
The color selection does at least include some color, and VW does take pains to point out the heritage of one color, at least in name:
That’s not really the same green as the one on the old Thing, but at least it’s a modern car you can get in green, so that’s something to celebrate.
How Big Is The Cargo Area?
That big.
You know, big enough to, say, hold two beer kegs, three BeBoxes, a bean bag chair, and a mid-sized dog, like an Australian Shepherd.
Pricing and Thoughts And Oh Yeah The Seat Massager Is Pretty Good
The 2025 VW Tiguan starts at under $30 grand, which feels pretty reasonable in these dark times. Here’s the full price breakdown by trim level:
Even the lower-spec ones had that “premium” feeling that I know is all the rage with the 25-85 year-old kids these days, even if I don’t entirely get the appeal myself. But maybe I don’t really believe I deserve such nice things due to some lingering self-esteem issues; all you well-adjusted people should know that the new Tiguan I think will feel worthy of your considerable value.
Oh, and that picture does show that we ended up in a bit of mud, and even the 4Motion one we drove had an awful lot of wheelspin, but I blame that on the tires, mostly. I would like to apologize to VW about how muddy we got the pedals, though:
Yikes. Sorry about that.
Overall, I think the new Tiguan is worthy of all those things that made the Tiguan an appealing car from the start. It feels like a taller, bigger Golf still, and I think that’s actual praise. The interior is a well-designed, comfortable space for five people and their stuff, it drives well, and looks pretty good. It’s perhaps not the most exciting thing on the road, but this isn’t really for people who need the most exciting thing on the road.
Assuming that modern-day VW mechanicals are finally free of my 2010s-era gremlins, this seems like a fine compact SUV. And, yes, that seat massager does feel awful nice.
All photos: Author
I don’t have the hatred that others do for the plastic lug covers. If they slow a thief by 60 seconds I’m all for it. I’ve never seen rust issues behind them and they’re trival to take off if you have a $3.00 pick from harbor freight, or if you use the factory tool. I’ve done seasonal wheel changes on a Touareg for 9 years and the time to take the caps off twice/year has taken maybe 10 minutes of my life.
This is a big step down from the 2016 Touareg TDI, which was the last time Volkswagen was listening to me. I’ll take the amber turn signals though; no doubt that was from the focus group that Volkwagen invited me to.
All rear turn signals should be amber. Any company that provides red ones, probably makes rubbish. Especially companies that make them amber for eurozone and red for USA. Thats how you know they are punkin you
Illuminated badges are for wankers. So much else off with this car, it s a hard pass.
I like the wheel design, but are those the real tires? Low profile tires look ridiculous on this vehicle, at least based on the photos here. Maybe better in person?
And I know we all (rightly) complain about the lack of color choice in new vehicles, but holy cow, this set of color options is particularly depressing.
I don’t get it. Are cars so bad right now that we have to pretend this looks good? Exterior styling is often subjective, but calling this even handsome is a step too far, especially in the rear. Concerning the interior, to use an analogy, it’s like they took two miles and gave back one. We’re still at a net loss. Yes, they walked back the nonsensical window controls and gave us a knob. But it is still one knob to rule them all. There is no dedicated tuning knob. The temperature controls are still essentially integrated into the touch screen. I’d argue that both exterior and interior-wise, this vehicle is fundamentally worse than a 2018 Tiguan. Concerning the powertrain and MPG, all the Japanese competitors have hybrids that are within reach for almost all potential customers, especially when you factor in the gas savings of getting a vehicle which gets 10+ mpg better. If I were shopping for a vehicle in this segment, I’d test drive this, then walk over to any Japanese dealership and never look back. I’m afraid VW needs to do better if they want a real slice of the Rav4 pie.
…and the Rav4 is not as good as the CRV, Forester and some now say Equinox.
I haven’t driven any of the current gen mid-size crossovers so I can’t speak to that point. I will say, however, I am still extremely skeptical of any Subaru powertrain. Also, the Forester is unfortunately one of the few cars which, in my opinion, looks worse that this Tiguan.
After what you wrote about your Tiguan, I was surprised you were invited to this event.
I rented a previous gen Tiguan in Utah in 2018 and it was a pleasant enough drive and I was impressed with its 30+ mpg efficiency over the period of a week. I’m not wild about the styling on this one. And it’s a moot point because I will never buy another VWAG product after they did me wrong on a warranty issue with my ’01 TDI.
I thought the TDI owners got tons of free $.
High pressure injection pump went toes up at 60K miles. They put in a rebuilt one and it let go at 101K miles (1,000 miles past the 10 year/100K powertrain warranty) and refused to do anything about it. I got it fixed and put another 65K miles on it before selling it a friend. I liked the way it drove. I just didn’t like the way VWAG cheaped out on a repair and then shafted me.
They were listening, but addressed the complaints in the most half-assed way possible. Great, the unconscionably bad window controls are gone. They couldn’t not do that without getting raked over the coals. A multi-function volume knob though? Why? And gray with a slight tinge of something else does not qualify as a “color” in my book. If I were them I would not have done a side-by-side comparison with a real color because it just emphasizes how close to gray the new one actually is.
I guess the first step of getting out of a hole you dug yourself is to stop digging, which is pretty much what this refresh feels like to me.
No climate knobs present. They haven’t been listening too much.
Exterior isn’t gray. check!
Interior isn’t all black. check!
Wheels aren’t all black. check!
nice.
but …. that rear end ….. looks like some sort of cartoon face grimace. : (
They should have kept the Habanero Orange color for this model, it would go pretty well with the black wheels, trim and grilles. I’d get one, all I do is drive back and forth to work and cart a dog around…. I say that then always look for the top spec of anything I buy when I could make due with a crap can.
I am confused why anyone would buy this over the more reliable and efficient japanese hybrids. I had a mk5 passat wagon that I loved (v6 5spd) despite the maintenance bills, but for boring transportation give me reliable and efficient.
You can just say its shit.
I’m glad they’re still offering a FWD version of this. Too many of the other brands have made AWD the only version available in their SUVs. I don’t need AWD where I live and would rather not have to live with the additional expenses AWD thrust upon the owner.
But good lord, the color choices. Or should I say lack of color choices?
So, basically, the Tiguan is fine.
Do you love it? “It’s fine.”
Would you recommend it? “Sure, it’s fine.”
Would you care if it were totaled by rogue garbage truck at midnight? “Nah, it’s fine.”
And there you have it.
How’s It Look?
“Handsome” was not the first description that popped into mind. “Like a refrigerator box” did.
They may have gone back to four window switches, but the capacitive HVAC controls and screen-based seat heat/ventilation controls are still there. And I don’t think I like the idea of drive modes sharing a knob with volume, but I’d have to get hands on that to confirm.
I’m also annoyed we don’t get this in a PHEV, but that’s a separate issue.
That pricing seems fair, though. This will continue to be their top seller, I assume.
This is resounding…. meh. It’s ugly. It’s design is not inspired. Dash is nice but I don’t think it will age well. It’s fuel economy is hot garbage considering the technology they employed to get there. An F150 can almost tickle those mpg’s. My 2022 Bronco Sport is in the same ballpark for power and returns 28 mpg everyday.
Fauxverhead is another stroke of genius from the house of JT. Also The Volkswagen Tig is a much better sounding name than Tiguan, which we all know is the Iguana’s uncle.
All in all I appreciate this exists and it seems well made, competent and useful for a fair price. The outer looks are just insanely dull, by gobe.
It’s the uncle? I thought Tiguan was short for Tiny Iguana and was the newborn version… So many conversations make far more sense now!