We Drove The 2025 VW Tiguan And It’s Not What You Expect, But It’s What You Need

Volkswagen’s new Tiguan is finally here, and while it’s easy to get distracted by the I.D. Buzz (the cool, quirky electric minivan getting all the headlines), let’s not forget that this compact SUV is actually carrying the brand. Despite VW’s hints about a new generation, the previous Tiguan somehow managed to increase its sales last year.

We’re not talking about just a few basis points either. It was up 23.8 percent year over year. And, let’s be clear, this is Volkswagen’s best-seller, both globally and in North America. In the USA, the Tiguan outsold all of VW’s other non-SUV cars, like the Jetta and Golf, combined.

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That’s a good indication that customers like this SUV, and if that’s true, they’ll love this new one. This launch isn’t like most. Just about every detail one might want to know about the Tiguan is already out there.

We know it starts at $29,495, with the top trim costing $39,755. That doesn’t include a $1,425 charge for delivery and destination. That said, it’s a solid pricing strategy and just one of the latest details we’ve learned about this car.

QUICK FACTS

We know it has more power (more on that later), is more spacious, and is no longer available with three rows. The big focus of this launch and our testing was finding out what this car is really like in person. How does it feel to sit in? What are the materials like? Is it better or worse without the third row? How does it drive? Does that extra power make a real difference? These are the questions we wanted to answer.

To accomplish that, I sat on an airplane for 10 hours over the course of 37, just to drive this new VW money maker for a few hours in Bozeman, Montana. It was worth it, and not just because of the stunning location and dinosaur-rich history of the area.

Styling

The Tiguan is bigger than ever before, but it hasn’t grown as much between generations two and three as it did between one and two. The biggest difference comes from Volkswagen shortening the front and rear overhangs.

As a result of this change and the removal of the third row, the Tiguan is more spacious inside than ever before. This gives the exterior more presence in person. It now feels more like a small Atlas Sport than ever, and in fact, it might just put the Atlas Sport out of business if it’s not careful.

The proportions are solid. The front is higher than before, and the face is bolder. Large horizontal grille intake slats bookend a diamond-patterned center section. Honestly, it’s attractive, sporty, and helps this whole car stand out a little.

On top of that, those who select the highest trim also get illuminated badges and light bars. In some cases, those feel more gimmicky, but here, they blend quite nicely in my view. Speaking of lights, every Tiguan comes with adaptive LED headlights, which is another big plus in this segment.

Powertrain

Volkswagen says it has heard customers complain that the Tiguan is too slow. To remedy this, it attacked the issue from multiple directions at once. First, it revamped the EA888 four-cylinder from the previous generation.

Now, with new internal components including an updated turbo, camshaft, and fuel injection system, it makes 201 hp (150 kW). That’s a small increase of 17 hp (13 kW), and typically, that wouldn’t be enough for most drivers to really feel, but in this case, it comes through more clearly.

That likely comes down to two main factors. First, the Tiguan weighs up to 170 lbs (77 kg) less than the previous generation. Better power-to-weight ratios mean better driving dynamics everywhere, from acceleration to passing power to braking and even handling.

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Notably, it makes the same 221 lb-ft (299 Nm) of torque that it did before, but only when equipped with AWD. Front-driven versions actually make less torque, 207 lb-ft (280 Nm). Still, initial throttle engagement feels better than ever. How can that be? The second main factor: throttle mapping.

Essentially, drivers get more throttle with less pedal action than before. That results in quicker turbo spool-up and more power without having to push harder on the go pedal. It’s a welcome remedy for an issue we experienced on previous Tiguan test drives. VW also pointed out to us that the lower torque figure from the FWD version is due to different gearboxes and gearing. Performance is unchanged, it says, because the FWD version is lighter.

A Cabin That Gaps Rivals

If the Tiguan runs away from its competitors anywhere it’s in the cabin. We had a chance to get up close and personal with the SE and SEL R-Line, and both were impressive. The fit and finish were above average, the switchgear mostly impressed (more on that shortly), and the cabin was seriously spacious.

That’s one of the big benefits of losing that third row. Rather than compromise on space in the trunk and third row, axing it means more space for the second row and for cargo. I, a six-foot-six person, could sit behind my driver’s seat position without any concern about leg room.

Cargo space seems like another big win, though VW didn’t have capacity figures at the time of this writing. It’s big enough for a pre-inflated donut spare to sit beneath the load deck, so that tells you something all by itself.

The base S version is almost entirely devoid of cheap piano black plastics. Sure, it’s still full of cheap materials, but they won’t attract fingerprints the same way. On the flip side, it also sports several thoughtful touches like high-quality cloth upholstery, faux metal trim, and contrast stitching in some places.

The rest of the lineup follows suit with faux leather introduced on the SE, along with 10-color ambient lighting and a power-adjustable driver’s seat. A panoramic sunroof becomes available for $1,200.  The SE R-Line Black adds that feature as standard and then tacks on a black headliner, a sport steering wheel, and brushed stainless steel pedals.

At the top of the lineup, for now, the SEL R-Line gets tri-zone climate control, a sound-insulated windshield, a heated steering wheel, leather upholstery, heated, cooled, and massaging front seats, three-position memory seating for both front seats, and heated outboard rear seats. That’s a lot of high-end content for a cool $39,755. Here’s the kicker. We haven’t even talked about technology, so let’s do that now.

Tech Talk

Every Tiguan save for the SEL R-Line comes standard with a 12.9-inch infotainment system and a 10.25-inch digital gauge cluster. That in and of itself is impressive given that the competition in this field typically offers far less, even if you pay more. The system isn’t as rough as it’s been in the past, either. Sure, the archaic touch-sensitive volume and climate control sliders are still as infuriating as ever, but beyond that, VW has done a lot to improve things.

The screen itself is bright and easy to read. The menu layouts are mostly intuitive, and we bet most customers will feel right at home after a few days of practice finding their way around. VW allows customers to customize the screen to a great extent as well. That’s the kind of thing that can help an owner feel more like this car is an extension of themselves, and we’re here for it.

VW also offers a larger 15-inch infotainment system, which is positively massive in this segment and functions similarly to that of the smaller one.

That all having been said, the digital gauge cluster requires some trial and error to get right. Controlling it through the steering wheel buttons isn’t as instinctive as it is in other cars. Nevertheless, we love that users can put things like the navigation map into the gauge cluster, and they’ll likely feel confident in using the system after a little practice.

The Tiguan stands out when it comes to safety tech, too. It now comes standard with 10 airbags, exit warning when a car or cyclist is coming up behind the vehicle, park distance control, and automatic high beams. The automaker’s IQ.Drive suite is standard, too. It includes active blind-spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, and pedestrian monitoring, which now includes cyclists.

Drive Impressions

Throughout my time with the Tiguan, I kept asking, Where’s the catch? This isn’t a canyon carver, but VW customers don’t care about that. They want comfort and a predictable experience. That’s the Tiguan.

The steering is straightforward, slightly numb on center, with good progression through turns. The body rolls under hard cornering but remains flat otherwise. The pedals are responsive, especially the throttle. The brakes are smooth and easy to apply in a deft manner.

Visibility is good in all directions. The seating is comfortable and supportive. The suspension provides predictable ride control, though at times a bit more vibration from the road surface enters the cabin than one might expect. As mentioned, throttle response is very good.

The eight speed automatic gearbox is unobtrusive to the point that you sort of forget it’s even there. While a lack of substantial horsepower no doubt played a part, the Tiguan had no trouble maintaining grip under full throttle from a dead stop in wet conditions.

Speaking of that, the old Tiguan accomplished its 0-60 run in somewhere around 8.5 seconds. Had we been gifted with clear weather, we’d have tested this one, but alas, rain cut our fun short. That said, it doesn’t feel all that much quicker when put to this kind of heavy-footed test. Performance comes on better initially, but it’s not enough to keep this SUV galloping confidently for very long. That said, merging onto highways or overtaking others will be a drama-free affair.

A car, even one aimed at performance, is about far more than simple acceleration or even passing power. The Tiguan is almost the antithesis of a performance vehicle. This SUV is squarely aimed at the practical crowd. Sure, VW might include lots of little design elements or nomenclature to seem sporty, but it’s all marketing fluff meant to sell to people who want to appear sporty but in truth don’t care about driving something that’s actually athletic.

Why No Paddle Shifters?

More to that point, the Tiguan isn’t available with paddle shifters because owners “complained about bumping into them, ”which was “annoying,” said one presenter at the media event. I tell you all of that to tell you this: if you want an everyday car that gets you from A to B in comfort, European style, and with decent fuel economy, this is a great choice.

Typically, when we journalists test a car, it struggles to hit its fuel economy estimates because we’re trying to find the limits of a car’s dynamic ability. Despite doing just that with the Tiguan at times, we managed to achieve 25.7 mpg across the day of driving.

That’s better than VW’s EPA estimate of 25 mpg in combined driving circumstances for the AWD SEL R-Line. In short, this new Tiguan has more power and gets better fuel economy than the old one (across all trims) while being better to drive, nicer to sit in, and more stylish.

Competition

The biggest competition for the Tiguan comes from cars that don’t directly target it but still manage to rival it. For example, the Honda CR-V isn’t as nice inside and lacks the cachet of a German brand. Nevertheless, at the higher end of its trim levels, it offers a hybrid powertrain with similar power figures, far better fuel economy, and a longer powertrain warranty, all that for nearly the same price. Buyers planning to keep their car beyond the warranty period will likely appreciate Honda’s excellent record for long-term reliability as well.

Mazda deserves some serious consideration here, too. The CX-5 and CX-50 are far sharper than the Tiguan from a driver’s perspective, even if they’re down on power on paper. They also come standard with AWD and a far more impressive 2,000-lb towing capacity.

Those who opt for the turbo version of the CX-50 can tow up to 3,500 pounds and get 256 horsepower to play with. No, they won’t be anywhere near as fuel efficient, but these SUVs are for those willing to sacrifice MPG for smiles per mile. The CX-5 is an especially good value, too, since it offers turbo power and a lot of glitzy interior accouterments for less than $39,000.

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It’s also worth noting that VW isn’t done with the Tiguan lineup. The Tiguan Turbo, which, in my mind, should’ve been called the Tiguan GTI, is coming later this year. While we don’t know pricing yet, we’re confident it’ll add a lot of the performance that the rest of the lineup is sorely lacking. That said, pricing will be a key factor there as it is here.

The automaker has already made clear that it’s largely the same car but with an improved engine. Will they want an additional $5,000 or closer to $10,000? The answer will determine the actual value of that proposition. If it’s the former, consider it the new crossover to beat in the segment.

All of that said, the Tiguan is a genuinely good competitor at most price points for now. The base models aren’t particularly special, but the tech included makes them a cut above the rest.

Final Thoughts

Pricing is what makes the Tiguan what it is, a genuinely competitive option in the segment. For less than $30,000 to start, buyers get a refined cabin, sharp styling, useful tech, and the European street cred that comes with a VW badge. It doesn’t pretend to be sporty, and that honesty is refreshing. It’s not trying to be everything to everyone. It’s just trying to be a comfortable, capable family hauler with just enough personality baked in.

Is it the most exciting SUV on the market? No. Is it the fastest? Also no. But it’s well-rounded, thoughtfully designed, and surprisingly premium-feeling for the price. And with improvements to power, tech, and interior space, this generation does more than just tread water—it makes a solid case for why the Tiguan continues to be VW’s bread and butter.

Also: 2026 VW Tiguan SEL R-Line Turbo Feels One Plaid Seat Away From Being A GTI

Whether or not the upcoming “Turbo” model injects some much-needed attitude remains to be seen, but until then, this new Tiguan does exactly what it needs to: carry the VW badge with quiet confidence and surprising competence. In a crowded field of compact SUVs, that’s enough to stand tall.

Credit: Stephen Rivers / Volkswagen