Take a popular affordable European SUV and make it more spacious and more flexible. Does that also make it more desirable?
In Australia, the Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace is currently more popular with consumers than its cheaper, smaller and less-practical five-seat Volkswagen Tiguan mid-size SUV sibling.
Yet when it comes to eyeballs on reviews, the bigger and more spacious Tiguan Allspace doesn’t rate.
We’re going to redress that unusual imbalance by running through the reasons why the Tiguan Allspace deserves more attention. We’ll also give you a couple of reasons why it may not be ideal for all people’s needs.
We will give you five arguments in favour and two against, because the Tiguan Allspace range is predominantly a 5+2 (the third row of two seats are kid-sized, not adult-sized).
Let’s get started.
The Tiguan Allspace is the most affordable European seven-seater in Australia
The Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace range starts with the Allspace 110TSI Life from $48,197 drive-away. This makes the Tiguan Allspace the most affordable European SUV with seven seats. It also makes it decent value against popular Japanese seven-seat rivals like the Honda CR-V VTi 7 ($40,900 drive-away) and the Mitsubishi Outlander LS ($44,060 drive-away).
Now, even though we say the Tiguan Allspace is ‘European’, it is actually built in Mexico. But then, we call the Honda CR-V ‘Japanese’, yet it is built in many countries including the USA, Canada, China, India, Malaysia and Japan. Australian Honda CR-Vs come from Thailand.
| Key details | 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace 162TSI |
| Price | $60,190 plus on-road costs |
| Colour of test car | Atlantic Blue |
| Options | Sound and Vision pack – $2600 – Head-up display – 360-degree camera – Harman Kardon sound system Metallic paint – $900 |
| Price as tested | $63,690 plus on-road costs |
| Drive-away price | $68,602 |
| Rivals | Honda CR-V | Mitsubishi Outlander |
The Tiguan Allspace received some welcome upgrades in 2022
Compared to the outgoing base Tiguan Allspace Comfortline, the new Life range opener gains a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, LED headlights, LED tail-lights, digital radio (now offered across the Volkswagen range for 2022), wireless phone charging, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
When compared to an equivalent five-seat Tiguan, the Allspace Life gains wireless phone charging and a torch in the boot – with the Elegance and R-Line adding ventilated front seats and heated outboard second-row seats over equivalent five-seaters.
The Tiguan Allspace is the Goldilocks of Volkswagen’s SUV range
The Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace is smaller than the Volkswagen Touareg large SUV and larger than the ‘standard’ Tiguan SUV, making it the Goldilocks mid-point of Volkswagen’s SUV range.
Measuring 4734mm long, the Tiguan Allspace is nearly 220mm longer than a five-seat ‘normal-wheelbase’ Tiguan, with a 110mm longer wheelbase and an extra 110mm behind the rear wheels allowing for the inclusion of a third row of seats.
Boot space is rated at 230L with all seats in place, 700L with the third row folded (compared to 615L behind the first two rows in the Tiguan), and 1775L with the second row folded (compared to 1665L in the five-seat model).
So, in short, there’s more room inside for life’s toys, tools and accoutrements compared to a standard Tiguan.
| 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace 162TSI | |
| Seats | Seven |
| Boot volume | 230L to third row 700L to second row 1775L to first row |
| Length | 4734mm |
| Width | 1839mm |
| Height | 1688mm |
| Wheelbase | 2791mm |
There is a Tiguan Allspace for a broad range of Aussie budgets
As we said earlier, the Tiguan Allspace range kicks off at $48,197 drive-away for the 110TSI Life, which is front-wheel drive and powered by a 110kW/250Nm, 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine.
The 132TSI Life sits $4725 above that at $52,922 and has a more powerful 132kW/320Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine driving all four wheels. Equipment levels are the same for both ‘Life’ variants.
Step up another $8820 to the 162TSI Elegance at $61,742 drive-away and you get a more powerful 162kW/350Nm 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, again driving all four wheels. The ‘Elegance’ trim level also gets a raft of additional equipment such as larger alloy wheels, matrix LED headlights, adaptive suspension, a larger multimedia touchscreen, heated seats and rear privacy glass.
The flagship of the Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace range is the ‘R-Line’ trim level ($65,102), which increases the alloy wheel size to 20 inches, adds premium LED tail-lights, leather upholstery, stainless steel pedals and numerous other ‘R-Line styling embellishments.
Both Elegance and R-Line trim levels are available with a 147kW/400Nm turbo diesel engine for $1500 more than their petrol equivalents.
There’s also now a Tiguan Allspace ‘Adventure’ specification ($54,990 drive-away), which deletes the third row of seats and focuses instead on being a lifestyle vehicle for active people. But since it doesn’t have seven seats, we’re not going to focus on it here. If you’d like to read more about the Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace Adventure, you can do so here.
Now, while none at Drive would suggest that a $65K car is ‘inexpensive’ or affordable, we also don’t think the Tiguan Allspace’s starting price in the mid-$40,000s makes it expensive.
There is space for humans and more
Storage throughout the Tiguan Allspace’s cabin is impressive. The door bins in the front and middle rows are particularly huge, while the passenger-side glovebox boasts a cooling function to keep snacks chilled in summer, and two drop-down bins in the ceiling are a secret stow-away spot for extra bits and pieces.
In the grades without the 10-speaker sound system, there’s even a large hidden compartment at the top of the dash. It’s a clever use of space, plus I couldn’t help but think all the secret spots are fun for kids playing hide and seek with Mum and Dad’s odds and ends.
| 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace 162TSI | |
| ANCAP rating | Five stars (tested 2016) |
| Safety report | Link to ANCAP report |
Five plus two does not equal seven
These types of vehicles all claim to have seven seats, and they do indeed have seven seatbelts, but calling them ‘seven-seaters’ is overly generous. The third row in all ‘seven-seat’ mid-size SUVs is nowhere near as spacious as the second row, and accessing the third row requires a level of dexterity that diminishes with age.
That’s why they’re often referred to as 5+2 seaters, with the additional two seats classed as ‘occasional seats’. This means they’re okay to use on occasion, but you wouldn’t want to fill them every trip or shoehorn adults back there.
Still, it’s good to have the option of two additional seats, and when they’re not in use they fold flat into the floor to provide a generous cargo space.
| At a glance | 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace 162TSI |
| Warranty | Five years, unlimited km |
| Service intervals | 12 months or 15,000km |
| Servicing costs | $1650 (3 years) $2950 (5 years) |
Some things cost extra
Even though the R-Line is the flagship of the Tiguan Allspace range, some nice-to-have features don’t come as part of the purchase price. For example, four of the five available colours cost an extra $900 (white is free).
If you want a panoramic sunroof, that’s another $2100.
A head-up display and 360-degree camera – which are standard on a $54,490 Mitsubishi Outlander Exceed Tourer – are part of a $2600 Sound & Vision pack on the $65K Tiguan Allspace R-Line that also brings a Harman Kardon sound system.
It’s also worth noting that, at the time of writing, Volkswagen has been forced to remove a few safety features due to a semiconductor supply shortage. We understand that tough decisions had to be made, but removing safety from a family car seems less than ideal. These features are expected to be back in production in 2023.
| Key details | 2022 Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace 162TSI |
| Engine | 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol |
| Power | 162kW @ 4300–6200rpm |
| Torque | 350Nm @ 1600–4200rpm |
| Drive type | All-wheel drive |
| Transmission | Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic |
| Power to weight ratio | 91kW/t |
| Weight (tare) | 1773kg |
| Spare tyre type | Space-saver |
| Tow rating | 2500kg braked 750kg unbraked |
| Turning circle | 11.9m |
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