Topic: Test Drive: 2010 VW Tiguan 2.0T Highline 4Motion

[Autos_Editor]

VW has found its own little eddy in the congested pool of compact SUV/CUVs - a premium SUV at not-quite-premium prices, says reviewer Peter Bleakney. "Nimble handling…and a general playful disposition are the hallmarks of VW's compact ute," he says.

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[Benhaze]

The Tiguan is a very nice little CUV but its pricing is just plain silly. A turbocharged 2.0L engine, regardless as nice as it is, is no special engine; Hyundai offers one on a sporty low-$20K vehicle and of course VW uses the same engine for many vehicles priced under $30k .

If I'm not mistaken, VW packaged the xenon lights as an option of the Highline when it was standard last year. To make things worse, it dropped the projector headlamps and reverse to conventional halogen lamps on the rest of the Tiguan line.

For the consumers who are renting instead of buying or who are financing over a long term, they might as well add a few more thousands of $$$ and get a real premium SUV such as the GLK350 per example. They will easily get them back at the time of resale or trade-in and in some instances get much better customer service.

[John MacDonald]

Me and my wife are purchasing our next vehicle in the next month or so and during the summer we tried out a lot of vehicles.  I'm a car guy and she's a SUV/CUV gal.  So there were a lot of vehicles to choose from.  We decided to test drive this vehicle when doing the other VW's that I was interested in (Passat CC and GTI), and compare it to other SUV/CUV's that we've tried.  The SUV/CUV that we compared this vehicle to include the Toyota Rav4 V6 and Venza V6, Mitsubishi Outlander V6, used 2007 Acura RDX, and the Hyundai Santa Fe (2009/2010 both with biggest V6).  I was very impressed with how well the VW handled but that was to be expected as it was clearly the smallest of the SUV/CUV that we test drove.  The engine was really good, but not as good as in the other VW vehicles that I tried it in (CC,GTI).  The storage area seemed very small compared to the other vehicles that we tried and the back seat, while adaquate, was one of the smallest of the bunch.  The one thing that we absolutely loved in the VW is the pano sun roof.  Wow was that a nice option and by far the best I've seen in any vehicle.  I wondered why they don't have more like this in other vehicles.  In the end our favourite was the Hyundai Santa Fe 2010 V6.  It wasn't the quickest, or best handling, or best looking exterior, but it was the best overall vehicle.  The engine was very good (especially when compared to the 2009 3.3L V6 in the old Santa Fe) but the best engine was in the Toyota Rav4, which felt like a rocket ship compared to some SUV's.  I would say the 2010 Santa Fe would be tied with the Toyota Venza for second in the engine category.  The interior in the Santa Fe was head and shoulders over the majority of the competition and our favourite of the bunch.  It was tied for quitest interior at highway speeds with the Toyota Venza.  Loved the amount of space in the vehicle and the rear seats reclined the furthest for a comfy place to be on a long road trip.  When the price was factored in with 0% financing for 5 years it was a no brainer.  As for the cars that we tried I didn't fall in love with any of them enough to call one my own so I figured I would just make my wife happy.

[Shnak]

Yep, Santa Fe is an awesome deal at 0%/60mo these days. Great purchase!

Man, it must now be the 4th or 5th Santa Fe that we hear about being purchased recently! Hyundai will overtake Subaru and BMW as the most popular brand on this forum within months! 

[johngenx]

Me and my wife are purchasing our next vehicle in the next month or so and during the summer we tried out a lot of vehicles.  I'm a car guy and she's a SUV/CUV gal.  So there were a lot of vehicles to choose from.  We decided to test drive this vehicle when doing the other VW's that I was interested in (Passat CC and GTI), and compare it to other SUV/CUV's that we've tried.  The SUV/CUV that we compared this vehicle to include the Toyota Rav4 V6 and Venza V6, Mitsubishi Outlander V6, used 2007 Acura RDX, and the Hyundai Santa Fe (2009/2010 both with biggest V6).  I was very impressed with how well the VW handled but that was to be expected as it was clearly the smallest of the SUV/CUV that we test drove.  The engine was really good, but not as good as in the other VW vehicles that I tried it in (CC,GTI).  The storage area seemed very small compared to the other vehicles that we tried and the back seat, while adaquate, was one of the smallest of the bunch.  The one thing that we absolutely loved in the VW is the pano sun roof.  Wow was that a nice option and by far the best I've seen in any vehicle.  I wondered why they don't have more like this in other vehicles.  In the end our favourite was the Hyundai Santa Fe 2010 V6.  It wasn't the quickest, or best handling, or best looking exterior, but it was the best overall vehicle.  The engine was very good (especially when compared to the 2009 3.3L V6 in the old Santa Fe) but the best engine was in the Toyota Rav4, which felt like a rocket ship compared to some SUV's.  I would say the 2010 Santa Fe would be tied with the Toyota Venza for second in the engine category.  The interior in the Santa Fe was head and shoulders over the majority of the competition and our favourite of the bunch.  It was tied for quitest interior at highway speeds with the Toyota Venza.  Loved the amount of space in the vehicle and the rear seats reclined the furthest for a comfy place to be on a long road trip.  When the price was factored in with 0% financing for 5 years it was a no brainer.  As for the cars that we tried I didn't fall in love with any of them enough to call one my own so I figured I would just make my wife happy.

[Dan]

The VW base price is $37,775 wow thats way over priced considering the Acura RDX base price is $$39,990 I would most definitely go for the RDX. It has better looks in my opinion, better materials on the inside and its quality and reliability is way above the VW. I sat in the VW when it first came out and i too thought it was way too small in terms of passenger and cargo space, i actually think you may have a bit more room in the GTI. Im a 6' tall guy and when i tried out the back seats i noticed that the back of my legs and even my ass was rubbing against the wheel well when i got in and out of the vehicle.....whats a bigger and heavier person going to do especially in the winter months with all the slush and salt....lol.....The other part that was not mentioned in this article was the sound system which i found to be very cheap sounding and i even heard many car journalists say it was cheap sounding in fact one went as far as to say that it sounds like two tin cans on a string. I used to have 2 other VW before and the sound system was my favorite part about them but not on the Tiguan and the dash looks ugly in my opinion...so even at $37,775 base price is way too much.....nice try VW but you fail on this one.

[Eric Green]

And just recall this over-priced little thing's "playful disposition" when, out of warranty, you get the pleasure of meeting yet-again with your "service advisor" at the VW dealership...

[Shnak]

The Tiguan Highline is $37k... The Tiguan's base price is actually $27k, but that is only FWD. Towards the bottom of the range, the Tiguan is great value IMO, but if you absolutely want 4Motion (and you should in this type of vehicle IMO), it jumps to $34k if I recall correctly. At mid-30's, the Tiguan isn't that great of a deal anymore. As others have said, the GLK350 isn't that far off from the Tiguan Highline in terms of pricing, and offers a much more substantial vehicle I think.

VW needs to put the TDI in the Tiguan. If they can manage to offer a version with TDI, 4Motion and DSG for like $32k, they'd have a home run I think. Oh, and a 10% increase in size wouldn't hurt!

[Dan]

There is still no reason why the 2WD starts around $27k and the top of the line fully loaded with all the bells and whistles comes in at almost $45k that is way too big of a range i mean come on we are talking nearly 20K thats ridiculous....are they trying to steal sales away from the Audi Q5??? I dont see the reasoning behind such a huge variance.

[Spheric]

You can look at it both ways. One is to compare the Tiguan with mainstream players and or luxury models and you can say it is over-priced (vs Rav-4, Santa Fe etc) or lacks features (vs Mercedes Benz / BMW etc).

The other perspective is to view this vehicle as a 'Premium' model that sits above mainstream models but below luxury aspirational models. One cannot really compare a turbo model with 6 cyl models in terms of what the former offers in GTI-esque driving experience etc.

VW and positioning of models (and therefore positioning) may appear 'out of whack' with rest of the market, but if you look closely they are differentiating based on features offered. It might be mistake on VW's part, but that's the way it is. It's a bit like when people compare the Passat with Camry/Accords - it's not really an apples to apples comparison (and I test drove all three), but people will still complain anyway.

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Love the Tiguan. I'm a big guy and by far it provides the roomiest feeling, most comfortable front seating position of any compact utility from a luxury or non-luxury brand. It does have one of - if not the - smallest cargo areas, but since I typically don't cart around much that's not a primary concern. The space/comfort, quality, features, and drive are the big draws.

There is tremendous pricing pressure in the market these days from players like Hyundai/Kia which does make buyers question the value of vehicles like this. Over $40 gets to be a bit much - a Comfortline makes more sense, and the jump in price from '09 to '10 didn't help, but do think it's a solid purchase overall depending what you're looking for. For me, no other vehicle in segment checks off as many boxes as Tiguan and I know I'd be happy with it long term. Even moreso if a TDI 4MOTION manual existed.

[lebowski]

I shopped this car last summer and liked it a lot, but there were 2 issues that kept me away: no manual or even DSG available with 4motion, and i found the pricing was too high for what it was. For the same money as a 4motion highline, i could have bought a used BMW X3, a superior car in most respects.

[Spheric]

I shopped this car last summer and liked it a lot, but there were 2 issues that kept me away: no manual or even DSG available with 4motion,

They did you a favour by offering no DSG....

Stick to manual or conventional automatics for now.

[Shnak]

There is still no reason why the 2WD starts around $27k and the top of the line fully loaded with all the bells and whistles comes in at almost $45k that is way too big of a range i mean come on we are talking nearly 20K thats ridiculous....are they trying to steal sales away from the Audi Q5??? I dont see the reasoning behind such a huge variance.

But that's always the case... top-end of vehicles usually is between 1.5X to twice their base price. BMW 3-Series starts at $35k, tops up at $52k + options. Volvo S40 starts at $29k, tops up at $47k + options. The M-B GLK350 starts at $43k, tops up at $61k with all options checked off. The Q5 starts at $43k, can easily reach into the 60's with options & packages.

I just don't see the problem with Tiguan's price going up as you add more and more content...

If anything, the pricing of the Tiguan makes sense compared to the Q5. There's a very minute overlap at the very top end of the Tiguan and the base of the Q5, then the A5 takes off from there. If someone is looking at a top-of-the-line $45k Tiguan, I'm sure they'll also take a look at the Q5 and compare content for content, which of the two they prefer.

What you don't want are vehicles with too big overlaps. All the GM in-breeding/re-branding, for example. That only confuses customers.

[tpl]

I shopped this car last summer and liked it a lot, but there were 2 issues that kept me away: no manual or even DSG available with 4motion,

They did you a favour by offering no DSG....

Stick to manual or conventional automatics for now.

Why do you say that?   I suspect that the manual and slushbox will both go the way of the Dodo for smallish vehicles over the next few years.

[quadzilla]

For the same money as a 4motion highline, i could have bought a used BMW X3, a superior car in most respects.

Best argument so far,  I should have bought a used Porsche 911 instead of my GTi, what was I thinking. 

Even though I'm not a CUV shopper I actually like the Tiguan and think it offers something in between the two fields (Honda/Toyota - BMW/Mercedes).

Now I just wish they would put that drive train into the Golf over here. Give me either the 4-motion with a 2.0T or TDi please.

[Spheric]

I shopped this car last summer and liked it a lot, but there were 2 issues that kept me away: no manual or even DSG available with 4motion,

They did you a favour by offering no DSG....

Stick to manual or conventional automatics for now.

Why do you say that?   I suspect that the manual and slushbox will both go the way of the Dodo for smallish vehicles over the next few years.

From a reliability perspective the technology is still in it's infancy and a cursory read of VW owner issues on the VWVortex forums is not entirely happy reading. Here's a link to a NYTimes article on a recent recall:

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/21/vw-dsg-transmission-problem-leads-to-recall/

On a recent test drive, I found it hesitatant and almost clunky at low speeds. If I was a NASCAR driver I would appreciate the lightning fast clutch shifts, but for a grocery trip to Loblaws I think I'll pass.

[Mozeby]

Love the Tiguan. I'm a big guy and by far it provides the roomiest feeling, most comfortable front seating position of any compact utility from a luxury or non-luxury brand. It does have one of - if not the - smallest cargo areas, but since I typically don't cart around much that's not a primary concern. The space/comfort, quality, features, and drive are the big draws.

There is tremendous pricing pressure in the market these days from players like Hyundai/Kia which does make buyers question the value of vehicles like this. Over $40 gets to be a bit much - a Comfortline makes more sense, and the jump in price from '09 to '10 didn't help, but do think it's a solid purchase overall depending what you're looking for. For me, no other vehicle in segment checks off as many boxes as Tiguan and I know I'd be happy with it long term. Even moreso if a TDI 4MOTION manual existed.

My brother in law who is 6'6" sat in a GMC Terrain at the T.O autoshow and surprisingly was comfortable.  And even more surprising is that I (6'2) was able to sit behind him without hitting my knees against his seat (after I moved the rear seat back a bit).  My biggest complaint of the Tiguan is that it just looks like a girls SUV.  It looks tiny (like a Kia Sportage) and it's expensive.  It may drive better than many other CUVs but what about function?  It has a small interior and small cargo area. If you have kids, this thing is useless.  For the money, there are more useful CUVs to pick from.

[Mozeby]

I shopped this car last summer and liked it a lot, but there were 2 issues that kept me away: no manual or even DSG available with 4motion, and i found the pricing was too high for what it was. For the same money as a 4motion highline, i could have bought a used BMW X3, a superior car in most respects.

My inlaws have an X3 and it is an absolute penalty box on wheels.  If it were a 3 series I would get tired of the constant bumps and firmness, but for a CUV, come on.  They've been criticized for the ride ever since it came out.  And the interior is nothing special either.  Very plain and cold.  Top Gear magazine even called it the worst BMW.

[lebowski]

For the same money as a 4motion highline, i could have bought a used BMW X3, a superior car in most respects.

Best argument so far,  I should have bought a used Porsche 911 instead of my GTi, what was I thinking. 

That’s cute. In your haste to sling your boring sarcasm, you missed my point.

For sure, the GTI is a great car, as is the 911, and they’re obviously apples to oranges. I was looking for a smaller, sporty AWD suv/wagon, and the X3 and Tiguan are similar to each other in this regard. As it happens, I did a ton of research on the x3, and the pre-2007 models I was shopping had been known for solid long-term reliability, especially, with the manual transmission that I was seeking out.

The X3 was also the only other german-engineered SUV that offered sporty handling and a manual transmission, at a semi-affordable price. Given the earlier x3`s reliability and VW's own dubious long-term reliability record,  I would have been much more inclined to own the X3.

But to go back and prove at least part of your point: yeah, as a fanatical, sometimes illogical car freak, I do believe a used Porsche 911 is the absolute best car you can buy, for any occasion