New engines boost VW Passat, Tayron and Tiguan towcar appeal
VW’s estate and large SUV models now available with four-wheel drive and punchy new petrol engines...
The Volkswagen Passat is our reigning towcar of the year, but its appeal is being widened further with the introduction of a four-wheel drive version with a turbocharged petrol engine – and it’s an update being applied to the Tayron and Tiguan SUVs, too.
The Passat will come with a powerful 261bhp 2.0-litre petrol engine – the same unit that’s found in the Golf GTI hot hatchback, while the Tiguan and Tayron are available with 201 and 261bhp versions of the same engine.
That means a healthy 200kg increase in towing capacity for the Passat and Tiguan, while the Tayron’s remains unchanged.
Four-wheel drive, dubbed 4MOTION, is offered as standard with each engine, and works by automatically sending power to the rear wheels in the event that you might need more grip, or with higher load requirements. When you’re pootling around the city, though, only the front wheels are powered – making it kinder on your fuel bills.
If you find yourself needing a bit more traction on slippy roads, the four-wheel-drive mode can also be engaged manually.
There’s also the option of an extra Trailer driving mode, which detects an attached trailer and distributes power to the front and rear wheels accordingly.
With the most powerful version of the new engine, the Tiguan has more power than a Seat Ateca, if not quite as much as the more expensive Cupra Ateca. When it comes to the Passat, it’s more brutish than a Citroën C5 X and a 181bhp BMW 3 Series Touring, although you can upgrade to range-topping options for more straight-line speed on the latter.
The brawnier 261bhp option is available exclusively with range-topping R-Line trim, which gets you sportier styling and adaptive suspension across all models, though we found it does push the price pretty high.
Speaking of price, the 201bhp Tiguan will start at £40,135, with the larger Tayron starting at £42,300. With the larger 261bhp engine, they’ll be priced from £48,320 and £49,800 respectively. The Passat pushes that up to £52,480.
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