Volkswagen Tiguan review

The Volkswagen Tiguan costs more than an equivalent Seat Ateca or Skoda Karoq, but less than similarly equipped BMW X1 or Volvo XC40. It’s a similar story with PCP deals, although Volkswagen often has low interest rates or deposit contributions to make the monthly cost a little easier to swallow. Have a look at our New Car Buying pages to see what’s currently available.

Official fuel economy and CO2 emissions are above the Peugeot 3008 and Karoq, but compare favourably to the Range Rover Evoque and XC40. We haven’t economy-tested the updated version of our favourite 1.5 TSI 150 engine, but its predecessor managed a respectable 44.2mpg in our real-world True MPG test; that’s more than an equivalent Nissan Qashqai or 3008. 

However, although we have yet to receive official WLTP figures, the eHybrid is most likely to be the one to go for if you're looking for the lowest company car tax bills.

Use our True MPG calculator and see what your car really does to the gallon

There’s a simple four-tier range, kicking off with the entry-level Tiguan. This gets 17in wheels, manual air-con and a few other essentials, although we’d upgrade to Life. On top of the kit we’ve already mentioned like sat-nav and parking sensors, this comes with 18in wheels, adaptive cruise control and climate control with separate zones for each front passenger and those in the rear and more. The price jump isn’t too bad, so it’s our pick.

Elegance is worth considering if you like a few extra luxuries, although you’ll pay a pretty penny for the upgrade. The wheels grow to 19in plus you get a heated steering wheel, electric tailgate, keyless entry, panoramic sunroof and semi-autonomous driving.

R-Line trades a few of Elegance’s luxuries for sportier styling and big 20in wheels, so we’d avoid this. Finally there’s the performance flagship Tiguan R at the top of the tree.

See how we'd spec the Tiguan

The regular Tiguan came 10th out of the 18 models included in the Family SUV category of our 2020 What Car? Reliability Survey, outperforming Volkswagen as a brand, which finished in 20th out of 31 manufacturers.

Volkswagen's standard warranty runs for three years or 60,000 miles.

The Tiguan scored a full five five stars when it was tested for safety by Euro NCAP in 2016. A more in-depth look at the results shows the Tiguan is rated higher for keeping adults out of harm than either the BMW X1 and Seat Ateca, but that the Audi Q3 is better at protecting children sitting in the rear.

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