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Under the Hood
Regardless of trim level, there is only one engine available with the Tiguan: Volkswagen’s tried and true 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder. This is one of our favorite engines. With an even 200 horsepower and its 207 lb.-ft. of torque spread out over the majority of its rev range, it’s a smooth, peppy, free-revving powerplant that is utilized throughout much of VW’s lineup. However, there are two knocks against it. First, gas mileage is only so-so, its 18 mpg city and 25 mpg highway about the same as some of its more powerful V-6 competition, and notably worse than other less powerful four-cylinders. The second is that Volkswagen recommends premium fuel. Sure, you can use regular gas and lose some performance in the bargain, but with skyrocketing gas prices all over the country, premium fuel in a relatively inexpensive vehicle is a lot to ask.
Two transmission choices are available. The first is an honest-to-goodness manual. It’s been a while since we’ve seen one of these in a crossover, and since the Tiguan’s driving dynamics are pretty good, we like having this smooth shifting transmission here, although we wish it was available across the board and not just in the base S trim. The second is a six-speed automatic that’s standard everywhere else, and it will likely be the far more popular choice. With the Tiptronic manual gear selection, we found it was still fun in the twisty bits we drove, though not as fun as the stick.
Any crossover must have all-wheel drive as an option, and the Tiguan offers up front- or all-wheel drive in all but the base S model, which is front-drive only. Depending on the trim level, you get either 16-, 17-, or 18-inch wheels and tires. The 4Motion all-wheel drive system uses a Haldex center differential to apportion power to the front, rear, or all wheels as needed. We found it worked invisibly, but unfortunately it adds nearly 200 pounds to Tiguan’s curb weight.
The Tiguan rides on an independent suspension and uses four-wheel antilock disc brakes to stop. One interesting feature is a standard electronic parking brake; no pedal to push or big handle to pull, just a small lever on the dash. Stability control is also standard, as are front, side and curtain airbags, with side airbags optional for rear passengers.
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