Volkswagen Tiguan has finally landed on our shores. The crossover is available in two trims, with one engine and gearbox option. The Tiguan becomes the flagship offering from the German carmaker in India, and is positioned against the likes of BMW X1 and Mercedes-Benz GLA. Here are a few highlights of the new Volkswagen Tiguan.
Platform
The Tiguan is the first SUV from the Volkswagen stable which is based on the versatile MQB platform to make its way to our shores. The MQB stands for stands for Modularer Querbaukasten, translating from German to ‘Modular Transversal Toolkit’ or ‘Modular Transverse Matrix’. The platform is a modular construction architecture developed by Volkswagen for its transverse, front-engine, front-wheel drive (optional four-wheel drive) vehicles. It currently underpins a plethora of vehicles ranging from superminis to SUVs. In India, the upcoming Skoda Kodiaq, Audi Q2 and Volkswagen Passat will share the same MQB underpinnings. The German auto giant’s Aurangabad facility is equipped to churn out the MQB vehicles, where the new Tiguan is assembled as well.
Features
The Tiguan is stocked with several features all of which come as a standard – which is to be expected given its price range. The dashboard sports an eight-inch infotainment system with smartphone connectivity and USB/AUX, there is a total of eight speakers, four reading lights, 12V supply at the front, rear and in the luggage compartment. Apart from that, you get a black Vienna leather upholstery, steering mounted controls, heated seats, panoramic sunroof (in Highline), electrically operated tailgate with an adjustable opening angle, rain sensing wipers and a lot more creature comfort for a crossover SUV. There are a plethora of driving aids like hill ascent, hill hold, reverse parking camera, and TPMS to name a few.
All-wheel Drive
The Tiguan is powered by a 2.0-litre TDI only unit producing a healthy 142bhp of power and 340Nm of torque. This engine comes mated to only one transmission option, which is a seven seven-speed DSG. However, the trick up the Tiguan’s sleeve is that the power is sent to all four wheels via Volkswagen’s 4MOTION all-wheel-drive system. It’s the only car amongst its adversaries to boast of an all-wheel drive system. Although the four driving modes – Normal, Snow, Off-road and Off-road Individual –do help, of course, the low ground clearance could restrict the off-roading credentials of the crossover. The 4MOTION system comes combined with dynamic control systems such as electronic stabilisation program (ESP), traction control (ASR), engine drag torque control (EDTC) and electronic differential lock (EDL).
Safety
Two of the most interesting highlights of the new Tiguan are the safety features in the bonnet and tyres. The bonnet comes with an Active Hood which has a pedestrian safety feature. In a case of a front collision with a pedestrian, the bumper sensor will signal the rear Active Hood and it will rise a few inches, thus absorbing the impact of the pedestrian' fall and protecting the pedestrian from smashing over onto the windshield and the wipers.
The other highlight is the self-sealing tyres available on the Highline trim. The self-sealing tyres, as the name implies, seal themselves in a case of puncture or damage to tyre with a sealant present in the inner walls of the tyre. The technology seals 80 per cent of all punctures and therefore reduces the risk of flat tyres and evades the tiresome process of changing tyres in case of a puncture.
