Live from the 2024 Paris Motor Show

Why on earth change the line of a car when it lengthens? This is the question we ask ourselves when looking at this new Volkswagen Tayron, which is none other than the XXL version of the Tiguan. At Peugeot, when the 3008 became 5008, we barely touched the design of the little brother. Same fight at Nissan with its Qashqai when it transforms into X-Trail, or at Renault when the enlarged Austral becomes Espace.

But at Volkswagen, we chose to be different. When it came time to renew the Tiguan, which appeared at the beginning of the year, its big brother was logically programmed. But not only, and unlike the previous one which was called Tiguan All Space using the same stylistic elements, the new one sports (a little) separate lines, but it also changes its name. However, both the short and extended versions come from the same Wolfsburg lines, which caused a few sleepless nights for the engineers responsible for producing the two SUVs in parallel.

A Tiguan Allspace that doesn’t say its name

But let’s look at these famous differences supposed to mark the move upmarket of this large family version of the Tiguan with its 7 seats. Above all, they mark an affirmation of the lines that we can judge to be a little classic on the Tiguan, a little too similar to the Golf 8. Here, and despite the ultra-family vocation, the style becomes more virilized and wants to be adventurous with a hood more flattened. The grille is also redesigned and the headlights are more elongated and of course, are equipped with HD IQ.Light matrix beam projectors, the house specialty.

These differences in lines between the “small” Tiguan, 4.53m all the same, and the large Tayron, and its additional 20 cm, are there to mark the occasion and explain to the neighbor who bought the VW compact SUV that We don’t drive the same car. As long as the neighbor in question doesn’t get on board. Because inside, nothing changes. We find the familiar dashboard of the Tiguan, and in particular this gigantic 15-inch screen (on the high finishes) which transforms the cabin into a home cinema. Although it is obviously easy to read, it still disrupts vision.

A different exterior, but a similar interior

On the other hand, the choice of placing the automatic gearbox controls (DSG 6 or 7 mandatory across the entire range) near the steering wheel is judicious. It frees up space on the central console where a clever dial slides in which allows you to modify the volume of the audio system, or to change the driving mode, or even to change the lighting ambiance by shaking the dial if the We are a Macumba subscriber.

If this front part is a copy and paste of the Tiguan, the rear of the passenger compartment is not the same, thanks to the wheelbase of almost 2.80m of the machine. Rear passengers benefit from it with royal legroom. Even if you move the 40/60 sliding bench seat as far forward as possible, large people will fit there, even if they don’t feel comfortable there.

A bench that is better to move forward as far as possible to take advantage of the third row and its two seats, which are rather comfortable, even if the legroom is not great. But they still allow you to keep, once unfolded, 345 liters of trunk space, which is as much as a city car. When the folding seats are folded, or if you only have a five-seater version, the trunk is gigantic, with 885 l. And by folding down the second row seats, you literally have a football field, with more than 2,000 liters.

However, not everyone will benefit from these 7 seats and the XXL trunk. Not those who have chosen the PHEV versions in any case. Because the battery being found in place of the tank, the latter has migrated under the trunk, which prevents the third row folding seats from being accommodated there. In addition, those punished will only benefit from 705 liters of trunk space. Too bad for large families who want to benefit from the 204 or 272 hp of these plug-in hybrid versions, and their 100 km of all-electric range. They will have to fall back on the two other engines available, namely the unbeatable 2 l TDI of 150 hp or the gasoline e-TSI also of 150 hp.

A dear family

This engine appears in the entry-level model which is today whose price we know is established at 49,900 euros. For the 172 hp PHEV version in R-Line finish (the most expensive), it will cost 68,600 euros. It’s a lot, certainly, but at this price, barely higher than that of the classic Tiguan in entry price, the third row seats are included. And then, when you are the head of a large family, you don’t count.

“Find practical information about the show”

The Caradisiac moment: a smaller stand, but full of new products

Regulars of trade shows will find the Volkswagen stand perhaps smaller than usual, but visitors will not be disappointed, because there are many new products, whether thermal (restyled Golf) or even electric (ID Buzz or ID .3 GTX). A must-have, as always.