2025 Volkswagen Tiguan review

Volkswagen says its all-new third generation Tiguan is more like a mini-Touareg: luxe, but more reasonably sized and priced.

2025 Volkswagon Tiguan in Green Elegance

The third-generation 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan has arrived in Australia, with a five-variant lineup boasting new engines, new designs inside and out, and a hefty feature set. The European mid-sizer is enhanced by a greater value-for-money equation too, but it’s not just an exercise in box-ticking, for the new Tiguan exudes a quasi-luxury aura not dissimilar to that of its bigger brother, the Touareg.

Interestingly, the upmarket shift doesn’t coincide with any great price movements - in fact, in the middle of the range the Tiguan actually costs less than before while delivering more. However if you were hoping for some kind of hybrid option, we have bad news…

How much does the Volkswagen Tiguan cost?

The new Tiguan family starts with the $44,990 (before on-road costs) Tiguan 110TSI Life, which is higher than what non-premium mid-size SUVs typically open at (think mid-$30K for the average Japanese or Korean rival like the Toyota RAV4 or Kia Sportage).

However, Volkswagen counters that by throwing a fair whack of equipment at the base model to re-balance the value-for-money equation. Think of it this way: the Australian entry model is kitted out more like a European mid-grade variant.

The next rung up the ladder is the Tiguan 110TSI Elegance, which adds more equipment and upmarket furnishings in exchange for $50,690. In the middle are two 150TSI variants in R-Line and Elegance trim, with the former priced at $55,990 and the latter at $60,690, while the range is capped off by the flagship Tiguan 195TSI R-Line at $70,490.

For the 110TSI Elegance and 150TSI R-Line, an optional Sound & Vision package is available that grafts in a head-up display, a larger infotainment screen, and Harman Kardon premium audio system for an extra $2700, while a panoramic glass sunroof ($2100) is available on all variants bar the 110TSI Life.

White is the only no-cost paint colour, with premium paint charges ranging from an extra $800 to $1100 depending on the particular hue.

What is the Volkswagen Tiguan like inside?

Volkswagen very consciously pursued a “Touareg lite” aesthetic for its new-gen Tiguan, and the result is one of the glitzier cabins in the segment. There are plenty of pleasant soft-touch surfaces, including carpeted door bins and cushioned faux-leather facings on the lower dash, centre console sides, and door cards — areas that are usually finished in hard plastic in rival products.

Like most modern cars, screens are dominant in this interior — both in front of the driver with an all-electronic digi-dash, and the slab-like infotainment screen in the centre. Volkswagen’s designers haven’t just leaned on big screens to make an interior that’s modern, however, and thoughtful touches abound throughout the new-generation Tiguan’s cabin.

Features like a huge centre console tray with removable and repositionable cupholder inserts which can conceivably swallow a whole handbag, or the dual wireless phone charging pad that’s hidden under a hinged lid that acts as another storage tray, or the integrated phone holsters on the front seat backs, or the coat hooks on the B-pillars, or the retractable drink holder in the rear armrest that can also hold a phone or small tablet at an optimal viewing angle. There’s a lot to like about this interior besides just its handsome design.

It feels spacious and comfortable, too. The base 110TSI Life and 150TSI R-Line have manually adjusted seats, but the Elegance grades and 195TSI flagship come with electrically adjustable, heated and cooled seats that can also administer a massage via pneumatics.

The rear seat backs are split 40/20/40 and the seat itself is mounted on a slider, allowing you to extend the boot space — which measures 652 litres with the seats up, or 1650 litres with them down — if your back seat passengers are willing to compromise on legroom. The cabin is also filled with light from the generous glasshouse, and is especially pleasant if you option in the panoramic sunroof.

What equipment does the Volkswagen Tiguan come with?

Volkswagen’s features-first strategy puts a lot of gear into each model, and while the base 110TSI Life might only have cloth upholstery and manually adjusted seats, it still comes standard with things like keyless entry and ignition, wireless Android Auto and Apple Carplay, tri-zone climate control, a power-operated tailgate, a self-parking function, power folding wing mirrors, ambient cabin lighting, 19-inch alloys, an integrated alarm system, dual wireless phone charging pads, built-in sat nav on a 12.9-inch infotainment screen, and a 360-degree parking camera view.

The 110TSI Elegance adds to that with leather upholstery, power-adjustable heated and cooled front seats, a massage function for the front seats, a heated steering wheel, chrome roof rails, privacy glass, and thicker acoustic door glass. In the 150TSI Elegance, the same feature set is bulked up with a bigger 15-inch infotainment display, a head-up display, Matrix LED headlamps, a Harman Kardon 700W audio system, adaptive dampers, and a more powerful engine with all-wheel drive.

R-Line grades have a sportier fit-out, with more deeply bolstered front seats and R-Line exterior and interior elements, as well as variable-rate progressive steering. At the top of the tree, the 195TSI R-Line takes all of the above and adds its own unique 20-inch alloys (all other models roll on 19-inchers), as well as the most potent engine of the lineup.

Volkswagen says that handling and dynamics have always been the Tiguan’s greatest point of difference to the rest of the medium SUV pack, and they’re not wrong.

— Open Road

1/7

How safe is the Volkswagen Tiguan?

The 2025 Tiguan has yet to be locally tested by ANCAP, but has earned a full five stars in Euro NCAP testing (albeit in diesel form, which we don’t get).

Standard safety equipment includes nine airbags as well as expected active driver aids like AEB and stability control, but the new-generation model brings a bevy of new safety features. Features like cyclist monitoring, front cross traffic assist, side traffic assist, rear traffic alert, road sign monitoring, passenger exit warning and park assist plus.

What powers the Volkswagen Tiguan?

Three engines are available for now: the 110TSI’s 110kW/250Nm 1.4 litre turbo petrol inline four, the 150TSI’s 150kW/320Nm 2.0-litre turbo petrol inline four, and the 195TSI’s 195kW/400Nm 2.0-litre turbo petrol inline four, which is pinched from VW’s Golf GTI.

All engines are connected to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, which features a new wet clutch design for improved low-speed driveability. The 110TSI is exclusively a front-wheel drive powertrain, while the 150TSI and 195TSI are AWD-only.

What is the Volkswagen Tiguan like to drive?

Volkswagen says that handling and dynamics have always been the Tiguan’s greatest point of difference to the rest of the medium SUV pack, and they’re not wrong. Even in the base 110TSI, there’s an obvious edge to the Tiguan’s on-road behaviour that not only makes it an enjoyable machine to steer, but also one that gives confidence when roads get windy and the tarmac gets bumpy.

That dynamism just gets better the further up the powertrain tree you go. The 150TSI is an all-paw delight, ably applying its power and torque on surfaces that have the less-powerful 110TSI’s front wheels scrabbling for traction, while the 195TSI verge on hot-hatch levels of agility and pace, its grippy Continental tyres gifting it a tenacious hold despite its 1.75-tonne mass. Those DCC Pro adjustable dampers, standard fit on the 150s and 195, also work some magic, steamrolling mid-corner lumps that would ordinarily upset a hefty SUV travelling at Golf GTI speeds.

Yet around town, it’s civilised. Improvements in the transmission department definitely smooth off the rough edges of the previous-generation’s dual clutch auto in all variants (though there can be some hesitance on gentle throttle uptake in start-stop or low-speed creep conditions), and it’s an easy car to pilot through dense traffic thanks to excellent outward vision.

Open Road’s take on the Volkswagen Tiguan

Like previous generations of Tiguans, the third-gen isn’t one for bargain hunters. Its appeal to keen drivers remains intact, however this time around there’s a serious layer of polish to everything else — from cabin materials, to the feature set, to the in-car electronics, it all looks and feels very premium.

The only major turn-off? There’s nothing electrified in the Tiguan line-up, and Volkswagen says a local business case for the Tiguan PHEV that’s available overseas has yet to present itself. Instead, the company says eco-conscious customers may want to look at the Tiguan’s all-electric cousin, the ID.4.

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