The all-new Volkswagen Tiguan is expected in Namibian showrooms early next year, after having gone on sale in neighbouring South Africa at the beginning of this month. The third-generation Tiguan looks set to build on the success of Volkswagen‘s top-selling global SUV package, of which more than 7.4 million units have been sold since it was introduced in 2007.
Regionally, the Tiguan has been in the market for over a decade and sold over 41 000 units since its local launch in 2009.
The all-new Tiguan redefines SUV aesthetics with a confident and modern design. It is available in five derivatives and in South Africa ranges in price from about N$650 000 to over N$830 000 for the top of the range.
The confident design is typically Tiguan and typically Volkswagen but still completely new. A distinctive feature is the higher, more powerful-looking front end with the integrated LED headlights. In between, a glass-covered horizontal bar with an integrated LED strip replaces the traditional radiator grille, adding emphasis to the unmistakable Tiguan design.
Athletic shoulder sections above the wheel housings dominate the silhouette. The wheels are up to 20 inches in size. A horizontal LED strip between the tail light clusters emphasises the width of the Tiguan’s new rear end.
Volkswagen has also completely redesigned the interior of the new Tiguan. With its high-quality materials and high finish standard, it breaks down conventional class boundaries. In addition, the components of the latest modular infotainment matrix (MIB4) are merged onboard to create a clearly designed and closely integrated cockpit landscape that is intuitive to operate. The modules include the new Digital Cockpit (digital instruments with anti-reflective coating in tablet landscape format), a large infotainment screen with a completely new menu structure and graphics (standard display: 12.9 inches, optionally (15 inches), a new optional head-up display and a new multifunction driving gear shift with an integrated OLED display.
The new ergoActive Plus leather seats with pneumatic four-way lumbar adjustment and a pneumatic 10-chamber pressure massage function are a perfect match for the high-quality character of this SUV. These leather seats are optional on the Life derivative but come standard on the R-Line derivative.
The new Tiguan comes standard with Park Assist Plus, which is a system that is already familiar from other Volkswagen models: it allows assisted driving into or out of parallel or bay parking. The Volkswagen models take over control of acceleration, braking and steering for this purpose.
The new Tiguan is initially being offered with the 1.4 TSI 110kW engine mated to a 7-speed DSG transmission. The engine develops maximum torque of 250 Nm available between 1500 and 3500 rpm. This engine sprints from 0 to 100 km/h in 9.2 seconds and has a top speed of 207 km/h.