The new Tiguan is the next model after the Arteon and Touareg R that VW is offering as a plug-in hybrid for the first time. VW presented the current generation of plug-in hybrids in compact models last autumn with the Golf 8.
While the Golf 8 PHEV is being offered in two versions with 150 and 180 kW system power, the Tiguan eHybrid will only be offered with the more powerful 180 kW PHEV. The Tiguan eHybrid will hold a 1.4-litre petrol engine producing 115 kW and the electric motor 85 kW. The 13 kWh battery will provide a WLTP range of 50 kilometres.
The plug-in hybrid is only available with front-wheel drive, but not in the four-wheel-drive version. The PHEV is also only to be offered in the standard Tiguan, but not in the slightly longer all-wheel-drive version. In addition, VW speaks of an “authentic SUV with a large towing capacity” in the press release, but refers to the Tiguan with the two-litre diesel engine in the footnotes and makes no mention of the eHybrid’s towing capacity.
With the model update, some functions that VW had already introduced in other models will also be introduced. For example, the matrix LED light with 24 LEDs per headlamp, which is marketed by VW as IQ Light. Or the Travel Assist, which in future will be able to drive up to 210 km/h semi-autonomously.
The German carmaker has not yet revealed the prices for the revised Tiguan and the eHybrid. It still remains to be seen just when the PHEV will be available – in the footnote to the German press release, the Tiguan eHybrid is still referred to as a “near-series concept”. In Germany, VW dealers surveyed by the specialist website kfz-betrieb are also pointing to a serious situation: since the end of May, no more orders for the Tiguan have been possible, although the compact SUV was the best-selling model of the entire group with over 900,000 units last year.
Incidentally, the Wolfsburg-based carmaking giant is not yet focusing entirely on electrification: while a plug-in hybrid is the top model in the larger Touareg R series, VW intends to continue selling a Tiguan R in the future with a 235 kW petrol engine without any electric support.
