New Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace faces tough competition in thriving SUV market
VOLKSWAGEN have announced a new Allspace edition of, the second-generation Tiguan unveiled in 2016, at the Detroit Motor Show 2017.
It’s been a tough year for VW’s reputation as they are still battling with the repercussions of the diesel-gate scandal.
Despite this, cars such as the Golf still remain popular in the UK but the image of the company has been somewhat tarnished.
VW are now trying to stake their claim in the ever-growing SUV/crossover market, with the new Tiguan Allspace.
The Allspace will go toe-to-toe with the Seat Ateca and Skoda Kodiaq, both celebrated cars from the past year.
It also puts itself up against the Nissan Qashqai, the most-popular SUV in the country.
So why would you opt for the new Tiguan variant?
For one, it’s pretty practical. In the back you get a pair of occasional seats and a roomier interior and boot.
An additional 22cm has been added to Volkswagen’s MQB platform which increases rear leg-room and adds 115 litres to the boot capacity.
The Allspace shares most of the same styling as the Tiguan with only a few minor tweaks to the grilles, bonnet and chrome bars across the body.
Three petrol engines and three diesel options will be on offer, most of which are carried over from the current Tiguan range, the least powerful of these will be a 1.4 petrol engine.
Petrol power choices are a 150bhp 1.4 and a 2.0-litre unit, producing either 180bhp or 220bhp.
The 2.0-litre diesel engines offer up 150bhp, 190bhp and 240bhp.
All engine configurations will be available as front or all-wheel drive versions.
Inside the cabin the styling, trim and design is much the same as it is on the smaller Tiguan.
Five adults can fit comfortably inside the car but the back two seats don’t offer much in the way of legroom, making the seats more suited to carrying children.
Driver safety systems such as lane assist and city emergency braking are available as is an upgraded infotainment system.
AppConnect, another optional feature will allow you to use Apple CarPlay, Mirrorlink and Android Auto to allow smartphone connectivity.
A nice all-round package from Volkswagen but in such a competitive market, the price, which has not yet been announced, will need to be reasonable so the Allspace doesn’t price itself out of the market.
It remains unclear how much the ramifications of the emissions scandal will have on the German car manufacturer but in some capacity, it will pile on the pressure.