Volkswagen Tiguan
BBC TopGear India|July 2017

₹ 28.93 – 32.44 lakh (ex-Mumbai) We say: Fabulous Family crossover spoilt by pricing

Sriram Narayanan
Volkswagen Tiguan

After being in the ‘coming soon’ category in India for nearly a decade, Volkswagen has finally brought the third-gen Tiguan SUV here. Better late than never and all that. Right away, let’s deal with the elephant in the room. The price. We did think VW could’ve lopped off a couple of lakhs. Turns out, rather surprisingly, we are right. Apart from the 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-charged engine that’s made from the ground-up in VW’s Chakan plant, the rest of the Tiguan is put together with imported components. VW can easily up localisation and down prices to properly competitive levels. Besides, there are two caveats you may not read in any drive/review. One, VW hopes the onset of GST will bring prices down further. Two, if the response to the Tiguan is decent, VW will consider localising it. We sniff a vicious cycle with point two here, which we will get to later.

For now, the Tiguan headlines. Five seats, full-time all-wheel-drive, 2.0-litre, four-cylinder, 141bhp diesel engine, seven-speed dual clutch automatic, six airbags, hill-hold and hill-descent are standard across both variants. We certainly appreciate VW not indulging in a front-wheel-drive, petrol, manual  version with barely any features to claim a low starting price. Between the cheaper Comfort line and flagship Highline, the two major omissions in the cheaper Tiguan is a reversing camera and self sealing tyres. The company claims that unless the tyre has torn or is ripped apart, routine incursions like nails, pebbles, glass panes won’t need repairs or a tyre change. Does it really work? The only way to tell you is by using it long term.

This story is from the July 2017 edition of BBC TopGear India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the July 2017 edition of BBC TopGear India.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM BBC TOPGEAR INDIAView All
Does It Fly?
BBC TopGear India

Does It Fly?

2024 TVS APACHE RR 310 ₹2.75 Lakh - ₹2.97 Lakh (ex-showroom)

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
Is It A Scooter? Is It A Bike? No! It Is The BMW CE 02
BBC TopGear India

Is It A Scooter? Is It A Bike? No! It Is The BMW CE 02

It is rare when you come across a moment where a company brings out a vehicle into the market without knowing who exactly they want to sell it to.

time-read
4 mins  |
October 2024
Aston Martin Valkyrie
BBC TopGear India

Aston Martin Valkyrie

The Aston Martin Valkyrie still looks like nothing else on four wheels. Probably because it isn’t.

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
ONE-MAN BAND
BBC TopGear India

ONE-MAN BAND

We are a cynical bunch of people as we try our best to narrow down our vision and focus on the things that are lacking.

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
CRISIS AVERTED! THE EXISTENTIAL KIND
BBC TopGear India

CRISIS AVERTED! THE EXISTENTIAL KIND

Finally, the Yezdi Adventure won’t be suffering from an existential crisis anymore.

time-read
3 mins  |
October 2024
ROYAL ENFIELD HIMALAYAN
BBC TopGear India

ROYAL ENFIELD HIMALAYAN

ALTHOUGH IT IS A PERENNIAL ORDEAL FOR ANY MOTORCYCLIST to feel sad while parting ways with a motorcycle, it became even sadder for me this time around.

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
TVS APACHE RTR 310
BBC TopGear India

TVS APACHE RTR 310

THE FIRST THING I WANT TO SAY IS - “IT IS A MENACE ON WHEELS”.

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
ACE OF BASE
BBC TopGear India

ACE OF BASE

What happens when you take Porsche's old school entry level model and give it a very not entry level upgrade? This is a 914 as you've never seen it before

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
MOMS KNOW BEST
BBC TopGear India

MOMS KNOW BEST

Volvo's XC90 was the stereotypical Soccer Mom car. So how will the all-electric EX90 be received among the soccer pitches of Orange County?

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
THE THEORYOF EVOLUTION
BBC TopGear India

THE THEORYOF EVOLUTION

Ridged bladder seats, an inflating steering wheel and an AI track day coach... has Lotus hit on the supercar’s future, or gone mad’?

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024