Tiger and Iguana a tasteful combination - The Volkswagen Tiguan (combination of tiger and iguana) ushers in a new era of the compact SUV (which by all means isn’t a new concept) in a manner not unlike the dynamite-comes-in small-packages cliché. Not only does the Tiguan boast a world-first in engine technology, but the overall package is quite competent – for those who seek a bit of adventure as well as class when the environment so requires.

The Tiguan’s design works well to flaunt the all the right qualities of the vehicle. I say that because although its lines are similar to the larger Touareg, it creates the right kind of impression needed for the target audience – not large at all, but not cramped in the least. The trim levels offer further choice for owners to exude his-her lifestyle choices - where the Trend & Fun has styling more suited for conservative urban driving, the Sport & Style will appeal to enthusiast drivers for its larger wheels, features and somewhat better dynamics, while the Track & Field makes no secrets about what its main intent is. With a 28-degree approach angle, compass in the instrument cluster and black roof – there is no mistaking the Track & Field’s suitability for “soft-road” use.

The Tiguan also offers a surprising amount of spec for the price and the cheapest variant now (the base 1,4 TSI 4x2 will only be available later this year, possibly January 2009 for R 247 500) boasts 4motion all-wheel drive, six airbags, ESP, trailer stabilization integrated into the ESP, Isofix child seat mounts, electronic parking brake with Auto-Hold function, Climatronic air-conditioning, five stars in EuroNCAP for safety, a multitude of storage compartments and lets not forget the revolutionary 1,4-litre TSI engine (I’ll get to that in a moment) for the asking price of R 265 500 – something I think will contribute to the Tiguan being very competitive in its segment.

During my time with the Tiguan, I sampled both engines currently available on our market – the 1,4 TSI and 2,0 TDI. Another unit – the 2,0 TSI – will be available in the latter half of the year. The 2,0-litre turbodiesel Tiguan was equipped with a six-speed tiptronic transmission and in the tradition of modern diesel engines – the high torque output of 320 N.m proved entertaining. The only area I could fault with this particular combination is that I think the tiptronic is a tad slow on response when shifting manually and that the maximum power of 103 kW could be, say, another 30 kW or so to remedy what I think is a slight lack of power from an engine of this size.

But the real reason you’re reading this concerns the capabilities of the new 1,4-litre Turbo Stratified Injection engine doesn’t it? Admittedly, when I learned that the Tiguan weighs 1 665 kg, I wasn’t too optimistic about the performance of this car – even though I now had a six-speed manual gearbox at my disposal. But after seeing the Tiguan ad on the telly recently, I can attest to the unusual, yet satisfying manner of the worlds first engine to combine turbocharging, supercharging and direct fuel injection. Yes, it does produce “just” 110 kW at 5 800 r/min and 240 N.m of torque from 1 750 to 4 000 r/min, but considering that the Tiguan is capable of sprinting from zero to 100 km/h in less than 11 seconds, a top speed in the region of 200 km/h and remains low on fuel consumption, I regard the 1,4 TSI a marvel for what it is.

All the vehicles retain the same ground clearance of 200 mm, but the Sport & Style does offer a dynamic sport suspension that stiffens up the ride to reduce body roll – something most appreciated when driving enthusiastically. Speaking of more daring excursions of the blacktop, the front seats do offer the amount of support you can expect from more-sports oriented vehicles and rear passengers have generous legroom, though I think the raised position of the rear bench (creating an arena-seating sensation) does compromise headroom to a certain extent. Overall, the Tiguan is an impressive package that looks set to cause a real stir among the “soft-roader” fraternity.

A full road test on the Volkswagen Tiguan appears in the June issue of CAR Magazine, on sale May 19th.

View part 1 of our Volkswagen Tiguan special report video.

View part 2 of our Volkswagen Tiguan special report video.

Get all the information you need on the Volkswagen Tiguan in our New Car Gallery.

Original article from Car