New Volkswagen Tiguan revealed at Frankfurt motor show

Volkswagen Tiguan

More practical and efficient Tiguan will go on sale in the UK towards the end of this year, with a plug-in hybrid version on the way

VW is claiming much-improved interior space and fuel efficiency gains of up to 25% with its latest Tiguan SUV, which has been unveiled on the eve of the Frankfurt show.

The new model is 60mm longer, 30mm wider and 33mm lower than its predecessor - and its wheelbase is up by 77mm, to 2681mm. VW claims rear-seat kneeroom is up by 29mm, thanks to a redesigned split-fold rear seat that offers up 180mm of longitudinal adjustment. The boot capacity is up, too - by 145 litres to 615 litres with the rear seats in place or 1655 litres with them folded down.

The core of the Tiguan’s engine line-up will be EU6-compliant diesel engines. There’s a 114bhp 1.6 and a trio of 2.0-litre units offering 148bhp, 178bhp and 217bhp. Certain markets will get a variety of 1.4-litre and 2.0-litre turbocharged petrols too, but the UK is unlikely to see more than a couple of these at most.

The lower-powered engines get front-wheel drive, while the more potent units have a four-wheel-drive system offering four driving modes. Gearbox choices include a standard six-speed manual and an optional six- or seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.

All four-wheel drive variants now have 200mm of ground clearance - an additional 11mm over the front-drive models. There’s also an optional Off-Road package that brings a reworked front bumper to increase the approach angle from 18.3 degrees to 25.6 degrees. Depending on the engine, the towing capacity extends to 2500kg.   

VW also previewed a Tiguan GTE plug-in petrol-electric hybrid at Frankfurt. It uses the same basic powertrain as the recently introduced Passat GTE, mixing a 154bhp 1.4-litre petrol engine with an electric motor for a combined output of 215bhp. It has a range of 575 miles.

Together, they provide the most economical of the new Tiguan models with combined consumption of 149mpg and CO2 emissions of 42g/km - and it can also travel for more than 30 miles in pure electric mode.

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