New VW Tiguan crossover bows in – with solar-panelled GTE hybrid

Updated: 14 September 2015

► World debut: VW Tiguan
► Regular SUV and GTE hybrid
► Now on MQB architecture

Volkswagen saved a proper world debut for the Frankfurt motor show: it slid the covers off a brace of Tiguan crossovers at the 2015 IAA.

As well as showing the regular SUV we also saw the Tiguan GTE, a plug-in hybrid with a near-600 mile range.

The new, second-generation VW Tiguan switches to Wolfsburg’s MQB architecture – the same oily bits as a Golf – and this brings a wealth of technology such as pedestrian detection, as well as more flexible proportions. The front overhang, for instance, is much shorter.

The latest 4motion all-wheel drive system now has a Land Rover-spec switch to let drivers toggle between on- and off-roading functions, as well as a mode for snow.

The VW Tiguan GTE in detail

The surprise of the show was the arrival of a Tiguan GTE plug-in hybrid, following in the footsteps of the Golf and Passat versions. It mates an 85kW electric motor with a 130bhp combustion engine for a 30-mile EV range. And Volkswagen claims, rather improbably, just 42g/km of CO2.

Check out the solar panel roof on the GTE: it should generate an average of 620 miles of carbon-neutral EV range a year.

Even in cloudier Britain, you’ll benefit from a 580-mile combined range.

By Tim Pollard

Group digital editorial director, car news magnet, crafter of words

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