The Verdict: VW Tiguan SE

There's quite a lot to like about Volkswagen's Golf-sized 4x4, the Tiguan, and for me at least, that starts with the name. It's a cross between the words tiger and an iguana, which conjures up an appealing combination of feline agility and a lizard-like ability to slither across rocks in hot, inhospitable terrain. Of course, nobody's actually going to use a Tiguan in such conditions, but it's nice to think it might be able to handle them if it were put to the test.

The Tiguan's name may suggest a hybrid creature, yet there's no Toyota-style hybrid drive-train under its bonnet, just a two-litre diesel engine. But this turns out to be the second thing to like about the Tiguan. Until now, Volkswagen's four-cylinder diesels have been rough old lumps, even if they did provide a lot of shove. With the Tiguan's diesel, VW has adopted the common-rail set-up pioneered about 10 years ago by Fiat and Mercedes; the result is an engine that is vastly smoother than before.

The Tiguan's third plus is its exterior. It's not that it's strikingly handsome, just that it provides a bit more visual interest than the average VW. In fact, I can see quite a lot of buyers abandoning VW's similarly sized, but very dull-looking Touran people-carrier for the Tiguan for this reason alone, even if they don't need its off-road abilities.

The Tiguan's on-road performance is pretty good too, although it has a notably poor turning circle; incidentally, while we're on the subject of the Tiguan's steering, one option fitted to our test car that worked very well was Park Assist, which takes over the steering of the car for parallel parking manoeuvres.

Volkswagen reckons the Tiguan competes with established SUVs such as the Land Rover Freelander, Nissan X-Trail, and Toyota RAV-4 but I think it really belongs with the Nissan Qashqai and the Ford Kuga in a new emerging group of comparatively inoffensive curvily-contoured small soft-roaders – and that may be a good place to be if the backlash against larger 4x4s gathers strength.

VW Tiguan SE 2.0 TDI 4motion

Price £21,795

Engine 2.0 litre diesel

Top speed 115 mph Acceleration 0-60 mph in 10.5 seconds

Average fuel consumption 40.9 mpg

CO2 emissions 182g/km

Also worth considering? Ford Kuga, Nissan Qashqai, Renault Koleos

Adrian, 34, international marketing manager, and Arthur, 3, Carrol, Chorlton-Cum-Hardy, Manchester

Usual cars: BMW 525d, Saab 9-3 Sports Wagon

Besides the colour, it's not a bad looking SUV, but to my mind more of an Allroad Golf than a mini Touareg. Clearly a well-built, comfortable motor, but I struggled to work out its market segment. Its spec and styling are obviously aimed at the discerning female driver, but which female driver? The 5-star NCAP rating suggested the thoughtful; its great automatic-parking function suggesting the lazy, or incompetent. Then it hit me – my gorgeous wife, with a three-year-old boy and one on the way! Perfect. Arriving home, I asked her views on this pretty SUV ... Without registering any enthusiasm for all the gadgets I'd described, she opened the boot and asked where the pram would go? A fair point, it's tiny.

Chris Wareing, 29, research fellow, Saddleworth, Greater Manchester

Usual cars: MG TF

My first impression of the Tiguan is that it is a better looking, more sensibly sized version of its bigger brother, the Touareg. Inside the layout is clear, the all-round visibility excellent and the seats comfortable, though I'd prefer more lumbar support. The performance and handling are more akin to a road car than a 4x4, as are the emissions and economy (for the lesser powered models, at least). This 2.0 TDi example had plenty of grunt for pulling itself over the moorland hills and overtaking during the test. This gave plenty of time to fully test the electronic parking brake system, which although effective would take some getting used to. I found the reversing camera with VW's intelligent vehicle direction overlay particularly useful. Overall, it feels like a much more capable car than the other competitor I have driven in this market, the Nissan Qashqai. Would I consider buying one? Yes.

Robert Smith, 33, project manager, Northwich, Cheshire

Usual Car: Golf GTI

The Tiguan looks more dynamic than its rivals and the cabin trim quality and fit is up to usual VW standards. The large boot space is obviously a selling point for its target market, although the interior boot handles face inward which makes closing it more awkward than the previous design. In town the large turning circle may be an issue but manoeuvring feels like that of a much lighter car and visibility is good. The handbrake switch quickly became intuitive and the parallel park assist coped very well and is a great feature for this type of car. The six-speed gearbox was smooth and there was power available in every gear and torque all the way through the range. On country lanes the Tiguan handling belies its weight with little body roll and the suspension gives good feedback.

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