SPY PICS: Next-gen Volkswagen Tiguan spotted

The third-generation Volkswagen Tiguan has just been spotted testing in the Austrian alps devoid of any camouflage, giving us our first proper look at the all-new German mid-size SUV.

Anticipated to launch in 2024 or 2025, the all-new Tiguan looks noticeably bigger than the current model and debuts a completely new design language combining elements of the Volkswagen ID.4, Volkswagen Golf GTI and bigger Volkswagen Touareg.

Save for the GTI-inspired full-width grille, the prototype could easily be described as the love-child of an ID.4 and Touareg, an example of which can be seen shadowing the test vehicle in some of these spy shots.

That grille is easily the new Tiguan’s most distinguishing feature, spanning almost the entire width of the front fascia and bookended at either end by a pair of big vertical air-dams.

A secondary intake integrated into the front lip is also clearly visible.

Interestingly, this particular prototype is rolling on old-fashion steel wheels covered over by clip-on plastic hub caps, which suggests this is either a base model – going by the small wheel sizes – or the car is still in the early stages of its road-testing development phase.

The rear-end design is decidedly more familiar than the front, but still features an all-new tail-light signature, a chunky rear bumper and literally stuck-on exhaust exits.

It’s largely needless to say the interior will more than likely get a complete overhaul as well, with our money being on an internal combustion-relevant version of the ID.4’s cabin set-up.

Sources out of Europe have speculated the new Tiguan range will be awash with varying levels of electrification, from mild-hybrid all the way through to a full battery-electric powertrain, as suggested by its much sleeker and therefore more aerodynamic overall aesthetic.

The vehicle’s underpinnings are expected to be taken care of by an evolution of the German car-maker’s existing MQB architecture, meaning Volkswagen is likely to mimic other manufacturers in selling bespoke EVs alongside battery-electric versions of existing models, a la Kia EV6 and Kia Niro.