Volkswagen Tiguan 125 TSI 2009 Review

What we liked
>> Exceptional composure, offroad and on
>> Willing and refined engine
>> Comfortable and sporty

Overall rating: 3.5/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 3.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 3.0/5.0
Safety: 4.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 3.5/5.0
X-factor: 4.0/5.0

OVERVIEW
Volkswagen is about to get serious contesting the compact SUV segment. Up until now, its Tiguan model has been limited by diesel-only specification and constrained supply from the factory.

What's different now is that the importer is bringing in petrol-engined variants to complement the diesels and -- in a typical 'ill-wind' scenario -- the global financial crisis frees up a larger Tiguan allocation for the Australian market.

The Tiguan is the darling of the compact SUV set at the present. It's sophisticated in ways that lots of its obvious competitors aren't and it easily straddles the line that delineates the modern small-car segment and compact SUVs.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
Volkswagen has priced the turbodiesel models already on sale at $35,990 for the six-speed manual or $38,290 for the variant with the optional six-speed automatic transmission.

From $2000 below the manual diesel Tiguan, the petrol variant fitted with the 125kW engine and manual transmission is new entry-level model, priced at $33,990. An automatic variant (six-speed) is priced at $36,290.

At $42,990, the new 147kW petrol variant now tops the range and is only available with the six-speed automatic transmission.

The 125kW petrol variants are trimmed to the same level as the 103kW (diesel) Tiguan and are equipped with an 'Auto Hold' function, electronic parking brake, remote central locking, traction control, electronic differential lock, black roof rails, 16-inch alloy wheels with 215/65 R16 tyres, air conditioning, MP3-compatible CD audio system with steering-wheel-mounted controls, leather-bound steering wheel, leather-trimmed gearshift knob, electric heating for mirrors, electrically-adjustable mirrors, electric windows, trip computer, cloth-trimmed seats and front-and-rear 12V auxiliary power outlets.

What does the extra $9000 get you in the 147kW variant? As standard, it's fitted with chrome trim around the windows, chrome roof rails, privacy glass for the rear, front fog lights, tyre-pressure monitor, dual-zone climate control, auto-on/off headlights, MP3-compatible six-disc CD audio system with touch screen, electro-chromatic mirror, reverse parking sensors with optical display for reversing camera, under-seat trays in the front, sports seats with alcantara appliqués, rain-sensing wipers and 17-inch alloys with 235/55 R17 tyres.

Volkswagen has compiled a comprehensive list of options for the Tiguan, including Park Assist -- a system that reverse-parks the car, steering it into a spot between two parallel-parked vehicles. This option costs $1390 to the price of the base-grade Tiguan or $890 for the 147kW variant. The latter variant is already fitted with a reversing camera and Park Distance Control sensors as standard, reducing the cost of the option in the upmarket model.

MECHANICAL
In addition to the 103kW diesel engine introduced with the Tiguan earlier this year, the compact SUV range is now expanded with a choice of two turbo petrol engines, both four-cylinder units displacing 2.0 litres. The lower-cost engine develops 125kW of power and the premium engine develops 147kW.

Both engines also employ direct-injection fuel induction and produce the same peak torque, 280Nm. For the 147kW engine, the torque arrives at 1700rpm and remains flat up to 5000rpm, whereas peak torque falls off at 4200rpm for the 125kW powerplant.

The petrol engines are Euro IV-compliant and achieve combined-cycle fuel consumption figures of 9.1L/100km (125kW manual) or 10.1L/100km (125kW auto and 147kW auto), in accordance with ADR81/01. CO2 emissions are 218g/km for the 125kW manual and 240g/km for the two automatic variants.

Transversely mounted, the Tiguan's engine drives through the transmission to a constant four-wheel-drive system which relays torque to the MacPherson strut front end and the multi-link IRS system.

The Tiguan boasts an electrically-assisted rack and pinion steering system, which is an integral part of the optional Park Assist feature. Despite its compact dimensions, the Tiguan requires a clear turning circle of 12m.

Ventilated disc brakes at the front and solid discs at the rear are regulated and monitored by a plethora of electronic safety measures, such as ABS/EBD, brake assist, traction control and stability control.

PACKAGING
The Tiguan is a vehicle that focuses very narrowly on passenger comfort -- with luggage space a very distant second. That's fine, if you don't need to carry a massive quantity of paraphernalia with you.

Headroom and legroom are both excellent for adults -- in front and rear. Boot space was no better than a typical small car and if you're anticipating X-TRAIL levels of luggage volume, forget it.

Having said that though, it is still sufficient to accommodate a week's worth of groceries for a family and would hold four or five medium-sized suitcases, if need be.

Add to that also, the 60/40 split-fold seat that folds almost flat with the pull of cloth tabs and you have considerably more overall carrying capacity, provided you don't need to use all the car's seating for passengers.

For the front-seat occupants, the layout of the centre fascia is reasonably attractive, with -- in the car driven -- some matt chrome decorative trim which is also present on the HVAC vents. Switchgear for the HVAC and audio systems is intuitively easy to use and clearly marked.

Two cupholders are located in the leading edge of the shelf in the reverse side of the rear centre armrest and there are two more between driver and front-seat passenger, as well as one each in the two front doors.
 

SAFETY
Volkswagen attributes the Tiguan's high score for adult crash safety, as recorded by Euro NCAP, to high-strength body construction and a host of features that are virtually pre-requisites for a five-star rating.

To this end, the Tiguan combines frontal and side-impact airbags for the front-seat occupants with side-curtain airbags for occupants of front and rear seats. The front seatbelts feature both pretensioners and force limiters, with the latter also fitted to the outboard rear seatbelts.

In addition to these items, the Tiguan was helped to achieve its five-star NCAP rating with seatbelt reminders for the front seats and three-point seatbelts for all five seating positions. As for other models imported from Europe, the Tiguan boasts hazard warning lights that operate during emergency braking.

On the active safety front, the Tiguan features ABS/EBD, brake assist, traction control and stability control.

COMPETITORS
Recently, the Carsales Network drove a Mazda CX-7 on a seven-day test (more here). This, to our minds, is the vehicle closest to the Tiguan in the compact SUV segment, although the Tiguan is likely to be a little more capable offroad. The CX-7 is more expensive, but also provides more power and torque from its 2.3-litre engine -- also turbocharged and direct-injected, like the Tiguan's engines.

Honda's CR-V is a little cheaper than the Tiguan, but while the Japanese SUV is capable enough on-road, it won't go as far offroad as the VW and doesn't match the Volkswagen's combination of torque and fuel economy, although the Honda draws level with the 125kW Tiguan for power.

It's a similar story with the Mitsubishi Outlander -- cheaper than the Tiguan, with a 2.4-litre naturally-aspirated engine that develops the same power but less torque than the 125kW variant of the Volkswagen. Fuel economy is comparable, although the Tiguan comes out ahead in the manual variant, but its epicyclic auto is no match for the Outlander's CVT in this respect.

The Renault Koleos is in there with a chance too and while the lower-specification models are more expensive than Tiguan, the Koleos Privilege 4x4 with 2.5-litre engine and CVT is exactly $1000 cheaper than the 147kW Tiguan. But leaving aside other considerations, the naturally-aspirated French car cannot compare with the turbo Tiguan for power, torque or fuel efficiency at that price.

Skoda's Scout is diesel only and is markedly different in character from the Tiguan. Where some will look at the Tiguan or drive it and arrive at the conclusion that it's like a BMW X5 writ small, the Scout is more like a Subaru Outback with a diesel. Where the Skoda does have a real advantage over the Tiguan is its packaging and interior spaciousness.

Other competitors in the compact SUV segment include the Kia Sportage, the Subaru Forester -- a bit softer on-road than the Tiguan -- and the Suzuki Grand Vitara, which is considerably cheaper and quite significantly more civilised since its recent update (more here), but lacks the turbo Tiguan's torque and the sixth gear in the manual variant.

Finally, there's the Toyota RAV4. Up against the Tiguan, you'd have to opt for the V6 RAV to match or exceed the output from the VW, which means considerably more expense.

The ride over ruts and washaways was impressively composed and it didn't end there. It was equally well controlled and compliant on bitumen as well. Tiguan's suspension set-up is a benchmark for others to follow.

We can't think of another compact SUV that combines ride and handling in the sort of balanced measure that the Tiguan manages.

As a bonus, the Tiguan throws in steering which -- at the risk of sounding twee -- is delightful. Even with electric assistance, it provides plenty of feedback and sharp (but not too sharp) response. By the standards of compact SUVs, the Tiguan's steering is almost exceptionally good. It's yet another dynamic benchmark for makers of other compact SUVs to follow.

On dirt, the Tiguan handles and holds the road less like an SUV, more like a well equipped rally car. There's little body roll in corners and the suspension isolates noise and crashing from the cabin very well. At one point, the Tiguan understeered on loose marble-like gravel, but just that one occasion. In the main, the Volkswagen was neutral, with a willingness to flick into predictable oversteer under brakes -- and the stability control quickly nipped that in the bud anyway, with finesse.

Unlike some cars, the Tiguan's on-road cornering didn't vary greatly from its offroad demeanour. There was a surprisingly high level of grip on bitumen with a neutral stance entering corners. With power off and/or a slight dab of the brakes, the line would tighten, but there was appreciably little change in course with power applied and the steering provided a consistent level of weight across a broad range of speeds.

The engine in the Tiguan tested was the lower-output 125kW direct-injected and turbocharged TSI engine, coupled to the six-speed automatic transmission. It was immediately apparent that this is a very willing engine with a pretty broad bundle of torque from 2000rpm through to redline. While it's a purposeful engine with a note to match, it's by no means coarse or thrashy -- far from it.

Overall, it provides a satisfying level of performance -- and it's not even the higher-tuned 147kW engine. Fuel consumption during the drive program was 10.8L/100km, which is reasonable for a turbocharged SUV (even if it is a compact one) that's been driven moderately hard on dirt sections with some open-road work as well.

The automatic transmission was responsive but smooth and seems to provide a good spread of ratios (six of them) -- enough to cover most circumstances. A sequential-shift facility proved a useful feature during the offroad part of the drive program, effecting downchanges by pulling the lever back in the shift quadrant and upshifts by pushing the lever forward.

The driving position was comfortable and there was more than adequate adjustment in the well contoured and supportive seat and the steering column to place the driver in a proper ergonomic relationship to the pedals, instruments and controls. As a very minor criticism, the electronic parking brake switch was mounted just a little low.

Our co-driver for the program recognised the instrument binnacle and switchgear as shared with the Jetta, but what aint broke don't need no fixin'. Instrument legibility was up to Volkswagen's usual high standard.

We sampled the optional Park Assist feature that Volkswagen is introducing to the Tiguan range with the petrol variants. It worked very much like the system in the upgraded A and B-Class Mercedes-Benz ranges, but you might say it's a little more sophisticated still. Its operating parameters are broadly the same: an ultrasonics-based system combined with a reversing camera displaying through the satnav LCD in the centre fascia and computer control of the electrically-assisted steering.

The system will pick a space between two parallel-parked cars, provided it is at least 1.4 metres longer than the Tiguan (70cm latitude front and another 70cm at the rear). According to Volkswagen, the system will not pick a spot if the vehicle is travelling at a speed above 35km/h and should the driver allow the vehicle to reverse at a speed above 7km/h, the system will shut down. The driver is required to apply braking pressure, but the system takes care of the steering, with the driver able to watch via the reversing camera display. If the driver touches the wheel, the system will cancel the parking procedure, but the system won't self-cancel if -- for example -- a child runs behind the Tiguan as it's reversing.

This is why Volkswagen cautions that the driver must pay attention at all times during the process. The reversing camera display also provides graphics on screen to illustrate the point at which the driver should bring the car to a halt and additional graphics outline the vehicle's course, according to the amount of lock applied to the steering wheel. Complementing this is the acoustic guidance from the Park Distance Control sensors. Tiguans equipped with this option can be identified by additional (lateral) ultrasonic sensors in the front bumper covers, just ahead of the wheelarches.

It's really hard to fault the Tiguan. It's a genuinely practical vehicle that will nearly excel in any role. It's certainly not the sort of vehicle that would intimidate drivers by its vast bulk (because it isn't vast or bulky), but it provides excellent accommodation for a small family and the kids will not outgrow it for years. It will carry a reasonable load if the rear seating is folded flat and it drives like a typical but refined small car rather than an SUV.

In fact, that might be the Tiguan's biggest stumbling block, it doesn't ride as high and provide the 'command position' that some have come to love about SUVs. Is that a flaw? Depends on your point of view of course, but we would say 'no'.