- suv 105,492
- Houston, TX
- 5 years
- autoshopper.com
2009 volkswagen tiguan review this car review is specific to this model, not the actual vehicle for sale. New crossover is sporty and upscale. introductionthe 2009 volkswagen tiguan is an all-new compact suv that vw is releasing at the right time. It's more powerful than the engines offered in most compact suvs. Those who want to shift their own gears can choose the six-speed manual transmission, an odd and sporty offering for the class. The available six-speed automatic transmission is more mainstream and it has a manual shiftgate that adds a sporty character. with either transmission, the tiguan has ready power for everyday needs and worry-free passing. Handling is sharp for a crossover suv, with manageable lean in turns, communicative but not overly quick steering, and good brake pedal feel. The ride is also quite good. Small bumps are barely noticed, but the tiguan can react harshly to sharp bumps, especially with the available 18-inch wheels. like other volkswagens, the tiguan exists somewhere between standard line and luxury. Inside, it has a lot of soft-touch materials and the general feel is of quality. A navigation system with a hard-drive radio and rearview camera is offered, and the top-line sel has an attractive leather interior. the controls are clear and easy to use, and there are lots of little nooks for small items storage. Getting in and out is easy, and road and engine noise are kept to a minimum. Fully back, the rear seats have lots of room, but cargo room suffers. It is sporty for the class, with a fine engine and a smooth ride. The interior is a pleasant place to be, and, like all suvs, it can haul cargo. S is available only with front-wheel-drive, while se and sel come with front-drive or all-wheel-drive called 4motion. The s comes standard with a six-speed manual transmission and a six-speed automatic is optional 1200). The automatic is standard on se and sel models. tiguan s 23,200) comes with cloth upholstery, air conditioning, eight-way manually adjustable front seats with lumbar adjustment, fold-flat front passenger seat, cruise control, am/fm/cd stereo with eight speakers, auxiliary audio input jack, 60/40 split folding rear seat, and p215/65r16 tires on alloy wheels. Options for the s include rear side airbags 350), a trailer hitch 320), and p235/55r17 tires 400). the tiguan se 26,925) and se 4motion 28,875) add heated front seats, heated washer nozzles, leather-wrapped steering wheel with audio controls, leather-wrapped shift knob, six-disc cd changer, sirius satellite radio, eight-way partial power driver's seat, trip computer, fog lights, roof rack, and p235/55r17 tires. Options for the se include rear side airbags 350), trailer hitch 320), p235/50r18 tires on alloy wheels 400), a panorama sunroof 1300), and a navigation system 1950) with a 30-gigabyte hard drive and a rearview camera. tiguan sel 30,990) and sel 4motion 32,940) get leather upholstery, a premium 300-watt dynaudio sound system, 12-way power adjustable driver's seat, memory for the driver's seat and exterior mirrors, dual-zone automatic climate control, rain-sensing windshield wipers, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, adjustable ambient lighting, automatic bi-xenon headlights, and p235/50r18 tires. Options are similar as those for the se. standard safety features include dual front airbags, front side airbags, curtain side airbags, active front head restraints, tire-pressure monitor, anti-lock brakes with electronic brakeforce distribution and brake assist, traction control, and electronic stability control. Optional safety features include rear side airbags and a rearview camera. walkaroundunlike other vw vehicles, the tiguan is not named after a type of wind or a nomadic tribe. Instead, the name tiguan is a composite of tiger and iguana, and it was chosen as the winning entry in a naming contest. The tiguan looks nothing like a tiger or an iguana. We're not sure what a cross between a tiger and an iguana would look like, though we're pretty sure it would not be an attractive creature. Nevertheless, the tiguan is a good-looking vehicle. built on a platform that combines elements of the jetta/rabbit and passat, the tiguan is shorter than the jetta by almost five inches and shorter than the passat by 13. 6 inches, though it is almost 10 inches longer than the rabbit. The tiguan's 102. 4-inch wheelbase is 0. 9 inch longer than that of the jetta/rabbit and 4. 3 inches shorter than that of the passat. All this adds up to fairly efficient compact suv packaging, though as we'll see, the tiguan doesn't have the cargo room of most vehicles in its class. up front, the tiguan features another take on volkswagen's corporate face, with a trapezoidal grille whose shape is reflected in a lower air intake. Fog lights flank the intake on se and sel models. The look is reminiscent of the jetta and passat, just raised a bit higher off the ground. the shape of the grille flows into the hood and those lines flow directly into the a-pillars. Along the sides, the tiguan has black plastic wheel arches and rocker panels, as well as flared and squared off wheel cutouts with a character line connecting the two. Chrome trim around the side windows on se and sel models adds a look of quality. Compared to the visually aggressive concept vehicle that was shown at the 2006 los angeles auto show, the production model has much smaller wheels, ranging in size from 16 to 18 inches from the factory (though 19-inch wheels can be purchased as accessories at the dealership). The effect is a less imposing vehicle than the concept, but an attractive one nonetheless. (this is often the case with concept cars.) the tiguan's best angle may be from the rear. On the road, it looks like a beefed up gti, and that's not a bad thing. The taillights are split between the rear fenders and rear hatch, and the vw logo is featured prominently at in the center of the hatch. Unlike the gti/rabbit, however, the vw logo does not act as the handle for opening the hatch. Instead, that is located lower in the license plate frame. Unfortunately, the tiguan does not have separate opening hatch glass to ease loading groceries. the large panoramic sunroof has a 13 square foot opening (about three times the size of an average sunroof), and includes a power retractable shade to let the air in but keep the sun out. interiorlike other volkswagens, the tiguan exists somewhere between standard line and luxury. That is most evident inside, where the tiguan has more soft-touch solid materials than most compact suv competitors. The dash is padded, and the remainder of the materials are solid and well assembled. The only competitors with comparable interior materials come from acura and bmw, and they cost quite a bit more. once inside, the driver is presented with a hooded instrument panel that features a large speedometer and an equally large tachometer flanking small fuel and water temperature gauges, as well as a digital vehicle information center readout. The instrument panel is black, as are the gauges, which are set off by silver raised surrounds, white numbers, and red needles. The gauges are always easy to read and are quite attractive. the center stack features the radio set high. The radio and vents are surrounded by silver plastic material that looks so nice that we had to touch it to be sure it wasn't metal. the optional navigation system takes the place of the radio and it incorporates the radio controls. It's an attractive unit and it comes standard with a 30-gigabyte hard drive, 20 gigs of which are devoted to music storage. Music can be loaded via an sd card slot, a usb interface or straight from cds. The navigation system also has a 6. 5-inch touch screen, and dvds can be played on the screen when the transmission is in park. three easy-to-use climate control knobs are located below the radio. Below that is a small cubby. A larger, very useful cubby sits at the juncture of the center stack and center console. A shallow open tray is found at the top of the dash. There are two cup holders behind the shifter. And the center console has a useful storage bin. We'd prefer an in-dash changer. it's easy to get in the tiguan, and the driver also has plenty of room. Head room is impressive and the seat moves back far enough to allow big guys to fit. While the seats don't have very many controls, the tilt/telescoping steering wheel and general seat geometry allow for a natural driving position. Climate Control✔ AM/FM✔ Anti-lock Brakes✔ Tachometer✔ Cruise Control✔ CD Changer✔ Navigation System✔ Sunroof/Moonroof✔ Air Conditioning✔ Alloy Wheels
Houston, TXHouston, TX 5 years at autoshopper.com