BMW 8 Series vs Volkswagen Tiguan

What's the difference?

The right lane on Aussie freeways is occasionally referred to as the ‘fast lane’, which is laughable because the highest legal speed in the entire country is 130km/h (81mph). And that’s only on a few stretches in the Top End. Other than that, 110km/h (68mph) is all you’re getting.

Sure, a 'buck thirty' isn’t hanging around, but the subject of this review is a 460kW (625hp) four-door missile, capable of accelerating from 0-100 km/h in 3.2 seconds, and on to a maximum velocity somewhat in excess of our legal limit. 

Fact is, the BMW M8 Competition Gran Coupe is born and bred in Germany, where the autobahn’s left lane is serious territory, with open speed sections, and the car itself the only thing holding you back. In this case, to no less than 305km/h (190mph)!

Which begs the question, isn’t steering this machine onto an Aussie highway like cracking a walnut with a twin-turbo, V8-powered sledgehammer?

Well, yes, But by that logic a whole bunch of high-end, ultra high-performance cars would instantly become surplus to requirements here. Yet they continue to sell, in healthy numbers.  

So, there’s got to be more to it. Time to investigate.

The third-generation Volkswagen Tiguan is likely to be the most important new vehicle Volkswagen launches in 2025.

The popular mid-sizer has proven to have impressive staying power for the brand, with the outgoing version still impressing buyers despite being nearly a decade old. 

What does this ground-up new version change? Does it have what it takes to maintain the nameplate’s reputation in one of Australia’s most hotly contested market segments? And what are some surprises this time around?

We went to its local launch to find out.