Used Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace long-term test: report 2

The car Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace Match 2.0 TDI 4Motion Run by John Bradshaw, senior photographer

Why it’s here To see how much more practicality and kit buying used gives you for your money, and to see if a traditional diesel engine can still make sense today. 

Needs to Be practical in all weather conditions, cut the mustard as a photographer’s workhorse, prove comfortable and economical on a mixture of journeys.

Mileage 1850 List price (2020) £30,704 Target Price £33,355 Price as tested £36,845 Value Now £26,800 Test economy 38.4mpg Official economy 40.4mpg

19 February – The height of comfort

It’s been a while since I ran an SUV, and it’s reminding me just what a joy it is to have a raised driving position. It’s as much a boon for seeing over traffic on congested city roads as it is for peering over hedgerows in the country. However, there’s no such thing as a free lunch and that extra height poses certain challenges; notably how to prevent such a lofty edifice from swaying around in corners like a palm tree in a storm without making sacrifices elsewhere. With my Tiguan Allspace, I reckon Volkswagen has cracked it.

You see, SUVs typically keep their bulky bodies under control by having stiff suspension, which tends to bring a firm ride. But while it’s fair to say that my previous Skoda Superb Estate – a much lower car by comparison – rode noticeably more smoothly than the Tiguan, the Tiguan is very comfortable indeed for an SUV, yet stays nicely upright in corners. While I can distinctly feel the shocks of imperfections as I pass over them, they’re never jarring or uncomfortable.

In the same sense that the ride reminds me that I’m in an SUV, there are occasions when the engine reminds me that it’s powered by diesel. Much of the time its fuel preference is irrelevant – the engine becomes a mysterious, hushed provider of momentum. Only at a standstill, though, and when putting my foot down to leap into a gap in the traffic, does that inevitable diesel clatter materialize. Again, it’s far from disturbing; just noticeably present. I do miss the plug-in hybrid Superb’s near silence at town speeds, though.

One area in which the Tiguan has already proven markedly superior to the Superb, though, is in its infotainment, and especially the sat-nav side of things. While the Superb's only recognised the initial letters and numbers of a postcode, the Tiguan’s will take the full seven digits. It’s so much better having sat-nav that’ll take you door-to-door rather than to merely the general vicinity of your destination.

A quick word on economy; it’s dipped a little of late while I’ve been making more short journeys than long ones. Still, I don’t rate 38.4mpg as at all bad for a big diesel SUV when it’s cooped up in the city.

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