2025 Volkswagen Tiguan SE Review -- Updated With More Power And Tech

Volkswagen introduced the third-generation VW Tiguan to the U.S. for 2025. It includes a re-tuned turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine with more power. An updated, lighter weight platform.

But, most importantly to the modern shopper, and unfortunate for car enthusiasts, plenty of new technology inside. I say unfortunately because any resources dedicated to screens and connectivity goes away from further powertrain and vehicle dynamics development. Maybe that’s moot for a compact crossover SUV, but should it be? 

Happily, the Tiguan drives fine with subtle hints of its relationship to the GTI. It also offers plenty of space for stuff and easily enough room for four adults. And, yes, the technology works well. Standard equipment includes a 10.3 inch digital instrument cluster and a 12.9-in center display, which connects to your smartphone, Apple or Android, wirelessly. You can option an even larger screen, if that suits you. The additional power brings to the total tally to 201 horsepower and 207 lb.-ft of torque. However, if you get an all-wheel-drive Tiguan you get 221 lb.-ft. I presume the limiting factor is the eight-speed automatic transaxle for the front-wheel-drive model.

This near the bottom, front-wheel-drive Tiguan sells for under $35k, including the designation charge. That puts it in the price range for a lot of folks. The Mazda CX-50 drives better. But the Tiguan offers tons of space and comfort. It’s a good choice if you have to carry around people or things, or both, all the time.

Views on Vehicles focuses on new car reviews and news, presented by Robin Warner, a perennial car nut. The reason for the channel's focus becomes crystal clear when you look at Robin's experience. He spent five years of his adult life as an engineer: four years in traction and stability control calibration, and little over a year in vehicle dynamics. He also spent 15 years of his adult life as an editor at various magazines, including stints at Car and Driver, Road & Track, and Autoweek.

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For those who would rather read words than watch video, a transcript, cleaned up by AI and edited by a staffer, is below.

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Transcript:

2025 Volkswagen Tiguan SE Review

This is a 2025 Volkswagen Tiguan SE, the third-generation compact crossover from the GTI-producing German brand. As a result, we get more power, an updated platform, new styling, and of course, new technology inside. My name is Robin Warner, and I'm going to show you around and inside this vehicle, as well as drive it on a variety of roads to show you how it feels.

There are four trims of the Volkswagen Tiguan. This SE is above the base S trim but beneath the SE R-Line Black and SEL R-Line trims. And with it being front, not all-wheel drive, that puts it toward the bottom of the Tiguans you can get. But that probably also makes it one of the most popular Tiguans you can get. This is Volkswagen's most popular model. So, how does the most recent version of its most popular model drive? Let's find out.

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The base price of a Volkswagen Tiguan S with front-wheel drive is $31,670. Going up to the SE raises that price to $34,470. My test car is a base SE with no options.

All right, with that, now is a good time for me to pull over and show you around, inside, and under the hood of this third-generation Tiguan.

Walkaround

Looking at the front of the Tiguan, right away you can see the Volkswagen design elements in it. It kind of looks like a tall GTI to me. It's a nice, clean look to be sure. We've got slimmer headlights than before, and they are actually quite large. You can see the element runs right through to the Volkswagen logo and then onto the other side.

Because this is an SE trim, the base and this trim get this matte black trapezoidal front grille here. Most of it is, in fact, blanked out. We have some openings toward the top, and the lower grille is largely open down low, but a lot of this is actually blanked out. The hood itself has a lot of interesting creases in it. We have one sharp angle that starts at the top of the quarter panel, converges into the hood, and we get this kind of hump on the side and another one on the passenger side to duplicate it.

Under the Hood: More Power

I want to show you what's under the hood. There lies our turbocharged 2-liter inline four-cylinder engine, transversely mounted, or side-to-side, like that. In the Tiguan, this 2-liter has plenty of space, and that means it has plenty of space to make 201 horsepower. Because this is a front-wheel-drive model, it produces 207 pound-feet of torque.

The center of the front axle is right around the base of the shielding here, right around the bracket for the battery. So, much of the engine is actually ahead of the front axle center line. That's not great for weight distribution. Windshield washer fluid is right here on the driver's side, really easy to get to.

Walkaround Continued

Looking at the Tiguan in profile gives you a better sense of how big this box is. This is a compact crossover, but it is definitely a large compact crossover. This is also painted in the standard Pyrite Silver Metallic paint, and I think it looks lovely. This is a touch on the busy side as far as design goes, but I think Volkswagen generally executed well. Like I said, this is pretty big for a compact. I'll put the dimensions up on the screen for you to see and let you know that I have a lot more information in the description.

The base wheel for a Tiguan S is a 17-inch wheel. You can option that up to 18s, but the SE gets 19-inch wheels. I think it's a nice design. Also, because this is a front-wheel-drive Tiguan, we have a smaller front brake. I believe it's a 12-inch rotor. I'll put the all-wheel-drive rotor size up on the screen. Also, this is a mainstream crossover SUV; the wheels and tires in back are the same size as the ones in front.

Looking at the rear of the Tiguan, one thing that stands out right away is we get these full-width taillights running right across, and they start a good 16 inches into the side of the vehicle. Then we have this gloss black on top of it. Because this is an SE trim, we do not have an illuminated Volkswagen emblem. Getting the illuminated logo is only on the SEL R-Line Tiguan trim. Because it's big on the outside, it is big on the inside as well.

Cargo Space

SE and higher trims do get this power liftgate, which is nice and convenient. We get a nice big space, a nice wide space, and a nice flat floor once you get it over the entry right here. Underneath the floor, we have a space saver spare. We also have a 12-volt power port right here.

Volkswagen actually didn't offer the amount of cubic feet that the cargo space gets, but I imagine it's at least as much as the outgoing Tiguan, which is 25 cubic feet. If you need more than that amount of space, it is super easy to do: pull a couple of levers right there, give a little bit of encouragement, and you have what I would say is at least 60 cubic feet of space, which is what the previous generation offered.

I think it's ample space for my bike, but let's find out. It's actually a little bit narrower than I would have guessed, but plenty of length. Slides right in. Okay, let's check out interior space.

Second Row Comfort and Features

SE and higher trims do get remote start. Courtesy of being a fairly large compact, we have a healthy amount of space here. We also have this multi-tone of grays and blacks in the interior. It's not the most exciting thing to look at, but I think functionally it works really well, and frankly, I appreciate that it's not all black.

I am 5' 11" or 181 cm tall, and I have the front seats set to be comfortable for me up front. You can see that I have several inches of knee room right here. This is plenty comfortable. I also have a nice and high seat bottom, so plenty of thigh support. Put that together, I have much less than a 90-degree bend in my knees. I also have plenty of headroom as well. This is ample. Part of the reason it's ample is because there is no moonroof or panoramic moonroof or anything there, and that suits me just fine. We have a couple of USB Type-C ports right here and a nice little mini tray right there. We also have a center armrest with cup holders. All right, let's go to the front.

Front Seat Comfort and Features

We have the usual controls on the door, as well as another liftgate button right there and a little control panel for lights to the left of the steering wheel. Because this is an SE trim, we have a power driver's front seat. That includes lumbar support, which is always appreciated. The steering does adjust manually, tilt, and telescope.

Oh, that's right. We remote started it. Push-button start is down here. Okay, now the engine is running officially. By the way, the seat upholstery in the SE trim Tiguan is what's called Leatherette.

Standard equipment on the 2025 Tiguan is a 10.25-inch Digital Cockpit (digital instrument cluster) and a 12.9-inch center display. That includes wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto. It also includes a voice assistant.

Tap the button right here. "Volkswagen, set the climate control to 72 degrees."

The system responds: "All right, I'm setting the temperature to 72.0 degrees."

If you go with the top-of-the-line SEL R-Line trim, you get a 15-inch screen. More standard equipment includes the dual-zone climate control system and the heated front seats. Beneath that, we get a couple of easy-to-use and access cup holders. A nice little tray right here. Below that, I already showed you the engine start-stop button. Here is our nice little animated volume and power button for the audio system, and to the right of that, your electric park brake. Beneath that, we have a couple more USB Type-C ports right here. This is a nice spring-loaded tray for your wireless smartphone with a 15-watt wireless smartphone charger right there. Behind that, we have lower center storage right here.

Looking up, it's pretty straightforward. We have lights and, if you order it, roadside assistance. Being the second from the base trim, it's a little bit more straightforward in here, but critically, it's spacious and comfortable. Let's see if that's true while we're on the road as well. So, let's get back to the road.

Drive Review – Powertrain

Let's dig into the powertrain and talk about where we get 201 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. This is the EA888 Evo 5 engine from Volkswagen. To get 201 horsepower, which is up 17 from the outgoing Tiguan, they actually did a fair amount. This engine has a new charge cooler, a new turbocharger, a new injection system, and different camshafts. All that actually seems like a lot for an additional 17 horsepower. We used to have 184 horsepower.

It runs a pretty high, for a turbo engine, 11-to-1 compression ratio, except that it runs on the Miller cycle, which is basically the forced induction version of the Atkinson cycle. This has the full expansion ratio but doesn't close the intake valves until it already starts compressing a little bit. That is a little bit more efficient but not quite as good for specific outputs for power. We do have up to 24.7 PSI of boost, so that still brings in plenty of air to combust even though the intake valves closed late.

On the fuel side, the new injectors squirt at 500 bar, which is 7,252 PSI. That's a lot. I have to say, I've been reviewing so many hybrids and more and more EVs that it's actually nice to have some good old-fashioned engine tech to talk about, some new engine technology, some new engine stats.

It is a little odd to me that Volkswagen limits the torque output for the front-wheel-drive versions of this Tiguan. I don't fully understand that. If you go with the all-wheel-drive or 4Motion Tiguan, you get 221 pound-feet of torque, not 207. On the plus side, regardless of the torque output, the engine happily runs on regular gasoline. Going with 4Motion will cost an additional $1,500 on all the trims except for the SEL R-Line, because it comes standard there. Regardless of drivetrain, you get an 8-speed automatic transmission to do the shifting work.

Overall, I think it's a good engine. If I floor the accelerator, it's about average time for a kickdown, but I get good pull right away, even at the lower revs. The engine gives a nice linear burst of power. If I want things to speed up a little bit, I can put the transmission into S instead of D. Floor the accelerator again. Kickdown feels about the same, but the shifts do feel just the tiniest touch faster. I feel like we revved the engine gave us just another 100 RPM before we shifted. It's a nice powertrain, a nice engine. It proves plenty capable of motivating this thing along. It's actually quicker than I expected, to be honest. That's despite having 14 fewer pound-feet of torque than the 4Motion version.

Drive Review – Fuel Economy

Considering all of those stats, we get pretty decent fuel economy: 25 MPG in the city, 32 MPG on the highway, 28 combined. If you get the base Tiguan S with front-wheel drive, those numbers do improve. I'll put them up on the screen for you to check out. If you get the 4Motion version of the Tiguan, you take a fuel economy hit for that. I'll put those numbers up on the screen. Still, overall, pretty solid.

Of course, fuel economy is very important, but not as much fun as accelerating. Of course, I had to test that. Let me show you right now.

Drive Review – Acceleration Test

Time for an acceleration test. Let's see what this front-wheel-drive Tiguan can do using all 201 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque. I do have traction control off, and I have the transmission in S, not D, hoping for slightly faster shifts. Let's see what we get.

(Coming to a complete stop.)

Bit of brake torque. About 2,400 RPM off brake stop. Yep. Little bit of wheel slip. Pretty quick shift. 6,000 RPM. 6,000 RPM again. Good, quick shifts. Yeah. Healthy pull. That's not bad at all. Yeah, that's actually pretty darn good. This is front-wheel drive, four-cylinder power, but a turbocharged 2-liter four-cylinder, pretty big by modern standards, and a pretty fast-shifting 8-speed automatic. Put all that together, and you still get very healthy acceleration from this 2025 Tiguan SE.

Drive Review – Ride/Comfort

Let's dig into the chassis. This is an updated MQB Evo platform, and Volkswagen says they managed to pull 170 pounds out of the platform. Less weight is good for everything. The Tiguan is still not a lightweight. I'll put the curb weight up on the screen for you to see right now, but the power-to-weight ratio is slightly better than 18 to 1 as a result of more power and that curb weight. For a mainstream compact crossover, that's pretty darn good. You saw in the acceleration test, acceleration is healthy.

We also have the most common suspension setup: struts up front and a multi-link setup in the rear. Volkswagen definitely leaned towards the ride side of the ride and handling spectrum. If I turn the wheel, I get a fair amount of body roll, but I also get a more responsive-than-I-expected chassis. This front end darts to the left when I turn left. When I do those sweeps, I got a lot more motion out of it than I expected. This is a fast steering rack and a responsive front end. For a mainstream crossover, that's pretty darn good.

There is still a healthy amount of body roll, and that's fine because when you're going over bumps and lumps in the road, it soaks all that up without any trouble and generally feels comfortable. It is firm enough that it never feels underdamped anywhere. You have pretty decent communication from the steering wheel. It's a little bit dead on center, otherwise, it feels pretty good.

Moreover, the seats are comfortable and provide good support. I quite like that I have adjustable lumbar support—a nice and healthy amount of it. The quietness of the cabin is better than I expected for a mainstream crossover. That is a nice high mark for this Tiguan.

Finally, you can tow with this Tiguan, but not that much. Volkswagen says the front-wheel-drive version of the Tiguan can tow 1,500 pounds. The all-wheel-drive version can tow a little bit more. I think it's 1,800 pounds, but I'll put the official number up on the screen. Everything I said is true on roads like this and on the interstate. Plus, we have a fair amount of driving aids. I tested it there as well.

Drive Review – Highway Test/Safety

Time for a quick stint on the interstate, and I have the on-ramp to myself.

(Quick acceleration)

Yeah. Lots of steer. Considering the type of vehicle, it has a reasonable amount of body roll and good feel from the steering. Anyway, we are now on the interstate, and I have set the cruise control to 78 mph to go with traffic.

We have several driving aids on the Tiguan, called IQ.Drive. I'll put the list up on the screen for you to check out. We also have a nice assistance screen. It is three lanes worth of showing you what the Volkswagen sees on the interstate. Part of the driving aids includes Travel Assist, which includes lane keeping. We are going through a subtle curve right now, so I'll take my hands off the wheel.

Sure enough, it is tracking the center of the lane pretty darn well. That's very, very good. Let me show you what the Tiguan shows me. As you can see, we've got three lanes of traffic. Someone just pulled into our lane, and we're being passed in the left lane. There's no one in the right lane right now, but if there were, we would see it. So, all in all, a pretty nice system.

More fundamentally, I am pleasantly surprised. I expected that we'd get a little bit more road and wind noise. Road noise is about average, I would say, but wind noise is isolated a little bit better than I expected. So, cabin isolation is a little bit better than I expected. On top of that, the 8-speed automatic transmission keeps the turbocharged 2-liter at right around 2,200 to 2,250 RPM at 78 mph. So, that keeps it very much in the background. The tires aren't so bad either. Generally, this is a quiet, pleasant place to be. The seats are comfortable. They offer lumbar support on top of that, and the second row is actually quite spacious. Put all of that together, that makes this a pretty strong road-trip car candidate.

Drive Review – Conclusion

What do I think of this third-generation Volkswagen Tiguan? To start, I think it looks really nice. It looks like a mini Volkswagen Atlas, and I think the Volkswagen Atlas looks really nice—more specifically, I'd say an Atlas Cross Sport.

Secondly, this is a nice bit of technology inside. There are a good amount of USB Type-C ports, there are still some standard 12-volt power sources, and you have nice, high-functioning screens in here. The 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster works well, is lit nicely, and has a lot of functions. The base center display is nice and big, really easy to read, really easy to use, and offers a lot of information.

I was also nicely surprised with the cabin isolation. It's quieter in here than I expected. Considering the class of vehicle we're talking about, it's perfectly fine to drive as well.

But I think the biggest benefit of this Tiguan is the space inside. We get a nice, easy-to-use, healthy amount of cargo space behind the second row. An expansive space that easily swallowed my bike with the second row folded. I don't know the exact cubic feet, but it's a fair amount. I would guess it's a bit more than the outgoing model, which was a healthy 60 cubic feet. It's also a vehicle that can comfortably carry four adults. It has nice, high seat bottoms, plenty of legroom, plenty of headroom, and a nice amount of width as well for hips and shoulders and elbows, etc.

If you prioritize space over luxuries, and comfort for friends over the best fuel economy, the Tiguan makes a really strong case for itself.

I'm Robin Warner. Thank you very much for watching.