File this one under ‘What’s Not To Like?’ Volkswagen has replaced the Tiguan SE with the Tiguan Match, shaved £450 off the price while adding £700 worth of extra equipment.
Touch screen sat nav and 17in alloys are just the start.
The Tiguan Match’s petrol engines kick off with the 158bhp 1.4-litre TSI unit, available as either a front-wheel drive platform or with 4MOTION all-wheel drive.
Should you require a little more zip, try the 178bhp 2.0-litre TSI, sold exclusively with drive going to all four corners. If you’d prefer the torque of a diesel, there’s the 2.0TDI four pot in either 138 or 175bhp forms, the former offered with either front or all-wheel drive.
All but the 1.4-litre cars and the front-wheel drive 2.0 TDI 138 are offered with the option of a DSG twin-clutch sequential transmission.
Whether you choose a Tiguan or a Golf probably comes down to how much you value the presence of all-wheel drive. Should you find yourself in a position where traction is at a premium, you’ll be glad of the Haldex all-wheel-drive system and a whole suite of electronic trickery to make the most of that traction advantage.
Ground clearance isn’t too bad but don’t try to get the Tiguan into places where a Freelander might just crawl through. You’ll be requiring a rope.
If you want a compact SUV and quite like the image of the Volkswagen Tiguan, this Match version is going to be a welcome addition to the range. It would be churlish to grumble at what Volkswagen’s done with this car, improving the value proposition by more than £1,000 when the price decrease and equipment additions are taken into consideration.
It should be enough to boost sales by a few units but it’s not going to change the fortunes of the Tiguan markedly, a car that hasn’t really connected with British buyers in quite the way Volkswagen hoped.
As time has passed, the Tiguan has been gradually polished and preened into something very competitive.
Yes, it can still look anonymous if you choose the wrong colour and with Match prices starting at over £23,000, you can buy bigger and cheaper SUVs elsewhere but if you’ve got the money and have previously ignored the Tiguan, this might well be the time to give it a second chance.