Big on curve appeal

In a world of boxy small SUVS, the voluptuous new Volkswagen Taigo certainly stands out. It faces stiff competition, though...

Ford Puma 1.0 Ecoboost mHEV 125 ST-Line

List price £24,605

Target Price £23,561 Our current favourite small SUV serves up a great blend of practicality and driving fun

NEW

Volkswagen Taigo 1.0 TSI 95 Life

List price £23,155

Target Price £22,700

Sleek sister to the T-Cross and T-Roc certainly looks the part, but does it have the substance to back up its style?

Small SUVs are hot property right now, and with their chunky presence and assured practicality, it’s easy to see why they’re such a huge hit with buyers. Generally speaking, though, there’s not a lot of difference between them in terms of shape; the majority of them follow a rather boxy and functional blueprint.

The coupé-styled Volkswagen Taigo, however, seeks to set your heart aflutter with its eye-catching tapered roofline. It’s on a mission to stand out from the crowd, like that kid who turns up to school flaunting a backwards baseball cap in a class full of flat-top haircuts.

Perhaps reassuringly, though, things aren’t so radical underneath. In fact, the Taigo is based on the same underpinnings as the similar-sized T-Cross and sits below the bigger and more expensive T-Roc in the German brand’s line-up. We’re testing it here in entry-level Life trim with the most affordable engine.