2025 Volkswagen Tiguan First Drive: Better Than Ever Before?

The new 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan is almost here, seeking to wedge its way into competition against hot-selling small crossovers like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V. As the outgoing Tiguan was distinguished by its sharp design and useless third-row seat, the 2025 Tiguan aims to continue delivering a style statement while leveling up to the core competencies expected from a modern compact SUV.

The Tiguan that will be sold in the United States is known as the Tayron in overseas markets; those overseas markets get an entirely different Tiguan that’s closer in size to the Taos sold in North America. We just took a quick drive in the Tayron, which provided a sense for what to expect from the upcoming 2025 Tiguan.

Aesthetic Impression

On approaching the Tayron/Tiguan, we were struck that this thing isn’t small—final dimensions for the North American–spec model are not yet available, but how large the vehicle is makes us wonder if the time has come for it to graduate from the compact SUV category up to midsize.

While the old Tiguan’s design was defined by lines, the new look is comparatively curvaceous. Bodywork above the rugged boxy wheel arches has softer edges and sculpting. The huge front grille and faux mesh panel on the rear bumper imply sportiness. There’s an upward slant at the lower window line, contrasted by trim above that falls to create a fin graphic on the D-pillar. Small, shaped elements inside the trendy full-width taillight add visual intrigue.

Inside, the new Tiguan shows off available trim and tech that advance an upscale impression. Real wood, contrast-stitched leather, and backlit panels look premium in a vehicle segment often defined by pragmatism. The digital gauge display and large infotainment touchscreen are joined by a cool, tiny, reconfigurable knob screen on the center console. Despite the digital focus, Volkswagen is thankfully also going less techy by reverting to genuine physical buttons from its maligned touch-sensitive controls on the steering wheel. Also, the driver’s door armrest has discrete switches for all four windows, not the silly two-switch solution attempted in the ID4. Check out our full 2025 Tiguan Interior Review for more insights.

Although the European-spec Tayron has a third-row seat, it’s good that the North American Tiguan will lose that as it’s too small to be useful. Instead, every Tiguan sold in the United States will be a five-seat SUV, with ample space in both rows. Size up to an Atlas or ID Buzz if true Volkswagen three-row functionality is what you need.

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Driving the New Tiguan (Sideways)

Volkswagen recently invited us to its ice driving facility in Sweden to assess its 4Motion all-wheel-drive system in a variety of combustion-powered and all-electric vehicles. Here, we tried the new Tiguan (in Tayron guise). Even though our drive was focused on skating the SUV across a frozen lake, it nevertheless provided a sense for what to expect once the Tiguan hits the road stateside.

Every Tiguan will be powered by a familiar engine: a 2.0-liter turbocharged I-4, though it now produces 201 hp, an increase from 184, and likely 221 lb-ft, as in the outgoing model. This newfound power was appreciated if not immediately tangible; rather, the engine’s good low-end and midrange torque delivery amply propels the Tiguan.

The transmission is again an eight-speed automatic, but it's a different unit than what was used previously. The available 4Motion AWD system was put to the test in these icy conditions. This Tiguan’s studded tires were key to digging into the slick surface, yet how 4Motion actively redistributed engine output between the front and rear axles based on slip, throttle input, and steering angle seems more than sufficient to provide confident traction in loose conditions—yes, the new Tiguan will drift if you try hard enough.

Don’t take this to mean that the new Tiguan is an especially fun-to-drive SUV. How light and lifeless its steering is won’t thrill enthusiasts, but drivers seeking an easygoing and uncomplicated experience won’t have any issue with how the Tiguan steers and handles.

The engineering priority seems to be for comfort rather than sportiness. Cracks and bumps in the ice replicated common road imperfections, and the Tiguan rode smoothly over those. Its soft suspension allowed each wheel to rise and fall to soak up impacts. As a result, there is some body roll as the Tiguan corners. This plush feel was appreciated during our relatively slow drive, but we’ll need to wait to take the Tiguan up to highway speeds to make determinations about overall comfort and body control.

Again, driving on ice results in dynamic responses that would be totally different on dry pavement, but the 2025 Tiguan’s brake feel relates to the SUV’s chill demeanor. There’s a direct and progressive increase in stopping power, letting the brakes avoid feeling grabby at the top but appropriately strong when pressing the pedal hard.

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More to Learn

One thing that stood out to us is that, regardless of if the new Tiguan skews more toward excitement or relaxation, Volkswagen seems intent on letting drivers choose. Beyond common modes like Comfort, Normal, and Sport, Volkswagen’s latest Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) system allows for a more customized selection of vehicle responses—as in-depth as having a Sport mode for the adaptive cruise control, a facet that can be set against, say, Comfort mode for the powertrain.

This might all be a bit of a gimmick; it’s not like the Tiguan’s driving manners are so transformed by different DCC adjustments, as if many drivers will make those adjustments in the first place. Regardless, the new Tiguan’s baseline manners are competent enough that we want to assess it more thoroughly under conditions more like our everyday driving routine, rather than getting sideways a few miles south of the Arctic Circle.

From what we experienced in the Tayron, the 2025 Tiguan will pack design, features, and technology that could get North American drivers to put it back into consideration with the segment’s bestselling SUVs—we'll find out more when we drive the 2025 Tiguan on our home continent, soon.