With the current Tiguan blowing seven candles off its birthday cake this year, Volkswagen continues preparing its successor. The third generation has been spied testing multiple times, in all sorts of environments, and our previous encounter with it dates back to before the Winter Holidays.
Nevertheless, the mid-size crossover from the Wolfsburg brand is back in a new set of scoops, and the prototype looks identical to the one spied a few weeks ago. The placement of the camouflage on the front and rear ends, meant to make it look like its predecessor, is the same, and so are the wheels.
The tester was spotted in Scandinavia, doing its thing in the cold, and it already looks like a winner. Don’t expect anything drastic in terms of styling, as the automaker does not want to mess around with a winning recipe. The same goes for the cabin too, where it will get a new tablet-style infotainment system in the middle of the dashboard, previous scoops have revealed, which will be used to control most functions, including the HVAC system, and seat heating and ventilation on higher grades.
Like before, it will feature front- and all-wheel drive transmission options, as well as a mix of gasoline engines, some of which will be partially electrified. A plug-in hybrid, or maybe two of them, should be part of the powertrain family, and don’t act too surprised if you see at least one diesel in Europe, as oil burners are still quite popular with new car buyers over there. One thing that you should definitely not look forward to is a zero-emission variant, as Volkswagen does not intend to launch one, because it would cannibalize the ID lineup. Those who want a VW-badged battery-electric crossover will have to settle for the ID.4.
When it finally makes its way to the United States, chances are the all-new Tiguan will be a 2024 model. With all the novelties, including the design inside and out, additional technology features, and probably more active and passive safety gear, it should become a bit pricier compared to its predecessor. The current Tiguan comes in the S, SE, SE R-Line Black, and SEL R-Line specifications in our market, and they are accompanied by MSRPs of $26,950, $30,580, $33,310, and $37,680 respectively.
The latter is also the most equipped variant, sporting stuff such as the leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, premium audio with subwoofer, 20-inch alloys with all-season tires, a light bar integrated into the grille, and an electrically-operated tailgate. Even the base model gets heated front seats, an 8-inch digital cockpit, LED headlights with dusk-sensing function, LED taillights, keyless entry with push-button start, second-row air vents, three rows of seats, and a plethora of safety systems.
