Volkswagen Tiguan - Tiguan Is The Right Vehicle At The Right Time   By Kelly Foss www.car-data.com The compact SUV or CUV class of vehicle is all the rage these days. Vehicle costs, especially fuel costs have become the dominant issue. A smaller, lighter vehicle with a smaller engine is the way to reduce fuel costs. That doesn’t mean that it can’t have a flexible interior and won’t be fun to drive however. The Volkswagen Tiguan is the right vehicle at the right time.

The PR people at VW introduced the Tiguan is a CUV (crossover utility vehicle…meaning its car based rather than truck based) version of their Rabbit GTI. The point they were trying to make is that the Tiguan has small CUV attributes; elevated seating position and flexible interior, plus sporty driving characteristics. It’s a fun and useful vehicle with great fuel economy.

The name Tiguan was derived by joining the words Tiger and Iguana…it’s a German thing. Regardless, the vehicle is very likeable. The styling is current and it’s a nice looking automobile. It has a substantial presence and the packaging is very good. The interior space in generous and roomy in both rows of seats and the rear cargo area holds tons of stuff. The 2nd row folds flat yielding 56 cu ft of hauling volume.

The interior styling is definitely upscale. The Tiguan is offered in an S, SE or SEL trim. Even the base S model is nicely appointed and tastefully styled. Luxury options include items such as navigation system with backup camera, leather seating, panorama sunroof, 4Motion all wheel drive, a 6 speed automatic transmission, a xenon headlight package with swivel headlamps and 12 way power front seats.

The Tiguan is easy to enter and exit. The seating position elevated providing an excellent view of the road. The direct and nicely weighted steering makes driving the vehicle a breeze. The Tiguan is powered by a 200 horsepower turbo charged 2.0 liter 4 cylinder engine connected to either a 6 speed manual or 6 speed automatic transmission. It has lots of power and I could coax almost 30 miles per gallon of fuel economy from it at a steady freeway speed with the automatic…very good.

My test model came with VW’s 4Motion automatic full time all wheel drive system. It you live in a place with winter weather or you’ll be off driving in the mud, it is useful. In our warm climate, it’s hard to justify the $2,000 additional cost and reduced fuel economy just to have it, especially considering that all models have a full stability and traction control capability as standard equipment. The Tiguan also comes with a full array of safety gear including up to 6 airbags plus a very strong body structure.

The Tiguan is solid feeling, good looking, quiet and fun to drive.