Volkswagen Tiguan unmasked

By Jack Carfrae

First Official Pictures

29 June 2007 02:47

Volkswagen Tiguan. We’ve seen this before, haven’t we?

We have indeed. The Tiguan was first shown as a concept at the Los Angeles show in November, and it’s now primed and ready for production. CAR Online first spotted VW’s baby SUV, coated in black disguise, hot weather testing back in August. Volkswagen also released ‘official’ spy pictures of the car earlier this month, in an attempt to ward off usual spy snappers. The Tiguan will be revealed at the Frankfurt motor show in September and will arrive in UK showrooms next February, with prices kicking off around £19,000.

VW will take on the burgeoning small SUV market with the Tiguan, so it will be facing up the Freelander, BMW X3 and the Honda CR-V – pretty stiff competition. The Tiguan’s selling point, Volkswagen claims, is its vast array of technology. Despite being based on the Golf, VW reckons it will be a pretty sharp off-road tool, with its familiar 4MOTION all-wheel-drive system, chunkier wheels and tyres and beefed-up suspension complete with an aluminium sub-frame up front and a multi-link rear axle. And naturally, there will be plenty of driving aids such as hill-climb assist, EDS adaptation which electronically locks the diff at the sign of a slip and, for when all else fails, an compass. Power will initially be provided by either a 2.0-litre, 138bhp TDI unit, or a 1.4-litre, 148bhp TSI petrol engine. The diesel is likely to be the bigger seller, and will be joined by a more powerful 168bhp TDI engine later in the year, along with two more 2.0-litre petrol engines, developing 170bhp and 200bhp.

By Jack Carfrae