Five reasons to (not) buy a Volkswagen Taigo
Why should you buy a Volkswagen Taigo?
1. Looks
The Volkswagen Taigo is basically a T-Cross, but with a coupé-like roofline. The crossover has a sportier appearance and thus distinguishes itself from its somewhat boring (but very practical) brother. Especially in the R-line version and with this green paint, the Taigo is certainly not a wallflower.
2. Drive
Our test car has the 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine with 110 hp. It is mated to the automatic seven-speed DSG. A pleasant combination for daily use. Although the R-line version with sporty accents does suggest that, you do not have to expect a stripe tractor. Still, the car is smooth enough and the engine sounds nice. In addition, the drive is very economical. Without having had too much focus on economical driving, the Taigo easily gets 1 to 16.
3. Driving characteristics
The Taigo is on the same platform as the Polo. Yet the Taigo drives considerably more mature. This is partly because the Taigo is slightly longer, wider and higher than the Polo. As a result, it offers not only more space inside, but also better handling. This is especially noticeable on the highway and when cornering.
4. Trunk space
For the segment, you have a sea of space in the trunk in the Taigo, 440 liters to be precise. The floor is adjustable in height and the rear seat can be laid flat if you need even more space. At first you think that the sloping roofline will be a limited factor when filling the trunk, but in practice this is not so bad.
5. Digital cockpit
There is no lack of electronic luxury in this Taigo. Of course, our test car is equipped with the necessary options – including seat heating, panoramic roof and R-line package – but the ‘Digital Cockpit’ is standard and you get even the least luxurious Taigo. You can personalize the 20.3-inch display in front of you to your own taste via the controls on the steering wheel. From an overview with all your driving statistics to a minimalist layout for more peace of mind. Very pleasant.
Bonus reason: The seats are remarkably good! Especially in the back seat you sit more in the sofa than on top of it.
Why shouldn’t you buy Taigo?
1. Quite expensive
The Taigo as we drove it costs, apart from 300 euros, 40,000 euros. A whole lot of money for a compact crossover. As you have read before, this specific car has a lot of options, but the entry-level car is also easily 5,000 euros more expensive than the comparable Renault Captur and even 6,000 euros more expensive than the Seat Arona . It is also the same price as the T-Cross .
2. Another coupe crossover
This is both a reason to buy the Taigo or not: the Taigo is one of the many coupé crossovers. Here at the editors, too, opinions are divided about this body shape. Anyway, it’s a body style that’s quickly gaining popularity, so we’ll have to make peace with it.
3. Feels a bit cheap sometimes
Despite the Taigo’s premium price, not everything feels equally premium. From the door handles and the metallic sound when the doors slam shut to some plastics in the interior. You expect just a little more from a Volkswagen.
4. Rear entry
A disadvantage of a sloping roofline: the entry in the back. Although the head and legroom in the back is more than sufficient, the tall fellow man must first try to squeeze in.
5. Everything is touch
From setting up the navigation to operating the climate control, everything is done through touch input. We’re not a fan of that. Over time, the entire dashboard is covered with fingerprints and while setting the air conditioning, your eyes are off the road. So not ideal.
Bonus reason: The on/off button of the infotaiment has a logo that is never in the middle. The OCD’ers don’t like this.