Anybody have anything to say about the Tiguan?

I've pretty much given up trying to find an affordable replacement for my old Passat wagon, so I've started looking at small SUVs and "crossovers" and will live with having to fold down the rear seats when I have to carry anything.

I like my Passat, but I don't know a thing about the Tiguan beyond what I can read online.

Anybody have anything good or bad to say about it? Build quality and reliability in particular?

Reply to
Bert
Loading thread data ...

Oh, never mind.

I finally took a look at the specs of the Jetta wagon and the cargo space is only 3 cu ft smaller than my Passat with the seats up, and is actually bigger with the seats down (probably because they actually fold flat).

Reply to
Bert

No diesel.

Lynn

Reply to
Lynn McGuire

If I might change the subject since I've recently discovered that the Tiguan has less cargo space than the Jetta wagon...

How do today's diesels cope with cold weather? We still get long stretches of below-zero F weather here, with at least one -20F day per winter.

Reply to
Bert

We used to throw in some unleaded (1 gal per 10). I don't know what they do nowadays.

Lynn

Reply to
Lynn McGuire

I know a few who still do that (but at 20 to 1) and there is also both diesel anti-gel and '911' treatment as well.

Reply to
PeterD

I took a Tiguan for a test drive. It's a nifty little car. Handles very well, you are nice and high up and get a very very good view of the surroundings, without needing a ladder to get in. Doesn't feel top heavy like some SUVs.

But.

It is not comfortable for a long drive. Your arms kind of flop around in empty space - there is no place to rest them. I would drive this for a runabout locally, but I wouldn't want to do a 100+ mile trip in it. Then I looked at the cargo space. What cargo space? There isn't any, in real world terms. 1.5 suitcases worth. Hell, my old 1980s Golf had more cargo space than that.

So I asked them what else they had in the yard that I could take a look at. They had a Passat Alltrack Diesel (this is a slightly elevated Passat with 4wd - saves my knees getting in and out of). Wow, luxury. This car is not only extremely comfortable with fully kitted out leather memory seats, it's a real driver's car - my wife agrees it is much more responsive than the two Volvo wagons we have sitting in the garage.

As for diesel in cold weather - well we don't get cold weather here in northern New Zealand, but back in Germany I used to put a proportion of unleaded petrol in to the tank, as some others pointed out.

Surprised that someone commented 'no Jetta diesel'. I am sure I saw one just the other day.

-P.

Reply to
Peter Huebner

We used to throw in some unleaded (1 gal per 10). I don't know what they do nowadays.

Lynn

Reply to
LG

I've been seeing gripes from VW diesel owners that US-mandated ultra low sulfur fuel is behind a rash of fuel pump failures. Some say that the fuel doesn't lubricate well enough.

Me, I stick with gasoline; diesel's just to hard to come by in my neighborhood.

Reply to
Bert

Maybe, maybe not. I've not read anything very conclusive. I'd be more inclined to believe that for a 2001 or earlier vehicle and I've asked a couple of bus mechanics and they were of the opinion "meh" too. Besides that there are plenty of easily available additives to combat that.

Seriously? In 1978 there were 3 places in a 30 mile radius here, now almost every station has it.

Reply to
WindsorFo

Seriously.

I live in a thoroughly developed part of the city, where the gas stations are either small or appendages to convenience stores. Since there was no call for diesel in the 1950s, there are no diesel pumps.

One station has a diesel pump that's apparently been out of order for the last two years.

Reply to
Bert

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.