Volkswagen Tiguan vs Tesla Cybertruck

What's the difference?

The new Tiguan is as confident as ever in its identity, even in such a crowded mid-size SUV space where there are so many models worthy of your attention.

No matter which version you choose, this is still the mid-size SUV for a driving enthusiast who doesn’t quite have premium dollars to spend.

While it may not quite expand its appeal as much as the brand hopes precluding a hybrid variant, those who are choosing this as their family hauler for the right reasons won’t be disappointed.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.

Weird, wild, unnecessary, arguably horrific to look at, or at least challenging, too fast, too silly, the Cybertruck is many things, but all of the bad things are obvious from a distance while you only realise just how impressive, clever and intense it is once you take it for a drive.

The drive-by-wire steering alone is a revolutionary bit of tech that will surely bleed into the wider world. 

Overall I thought I would hate it, but I walked away, head still shaking, with grudging respect approaching admiration for the Tesla Cybertruck.

The new Tiguan is a bit of a mind-bender. Its new design seems to make it feel smaller than the outgoing vehicle, despite it being both slightly wider and longer.

This, I have decided, is because the design creates a visual effect, where the upper curvier parts seem to shrink it down, and the additional length makes it seem narrower than the more boxy visage of the previous model. Also, it’s 20mm shorter than the previous design, which we’re told combines with the new bodywork to make for a 15 per cent drag reduction.

Either way, it’s nice not to see a mid-size SUV not continually engage in an arms race to get bigger and bigger. Volkswagen will also introduce the dedicated seven-seat Tayron later in 2025. It’s a half-size up and replaces the outgoing Tiguan Allspace, and this time it features a much more distinct design from its Tiguan sibling.

The third-generation Tiguan not only embraces a more curvy design aesthetic than its predecessor, but it also features many more contemporary design elements. The headlights and curvy accents over the wheelarches feel like they more closely associate this SUV with the new ID.4 and ID.5 EVs, while the light bar across the front on some grades combines with the new light bar across the rear to give it a trendy silhouette. It tops things off with the ‘Tiguan’ letterwork on the tailgate, and, as usual, a sporty spoiler fitting giving the rear hatch a bit of depth.

As usual, VW’s array of gloss-black, chrome or plastic garnishes on the outside, depending on grade, offer a subtle and tasteful finish to the exterior appearance.

The inside is revolution rather than evolution, now heavily screen-centri, and featuring an array of lighting features like many of its rivals.

The screens look the part and have fast and mostly straightforward-to-navigate software, while the seat designs are a real highlight, being both aesthetically pleasing and nice to the touch in all grades.

The ambient lighting features add a sense of presence to the cabin, and unlike the outgoing car, the new one feels a bit more driver-centric thanks to the design of the dash and screens effectively pointing their way down the road from the driver’s point of view.

It does away with the sparse feeling of the previous car, elevating things a notch with an increase of nice materials throughout.

While some may find the abundance of gloss-black finishes a bit harder to maintain, it’s hard not to feel like this new Tiguan is a major generational jump from the previous one. Mission accomplished, VW.

Is there anything interesting about a Narwhal, or a rhinoceros? It’s hard to know whether to give the Tesla Cybertruck 10 out of 10 for how interesting its design is, or zero for how offensive it is, but it would certainly get a solid 20 out of 10 for uniqueness.

Sure, in pictures it looks pretty out there, but when you stand before it in all its shiny steel it makes you laugh out loud, to the point where it has taken your breath away.

And then you start to notice all the fingerprints on it. Every time you - or any of its many admirers - touches it, you get nasty, oily stains and keeping it clean would make looking after a car painted in a matte finish look as easy as sleeping. 

So, stainless steel as a choice for constructing a car? Perhaps there’s a reason no one else has ever followed the DeLorean’s lead here, but there’s no denying it grabs your eye, and provides a certain solidity to the whole structure.

Much like a Frank Gehry building, you’re either going to love the Cybertruck and think it a work of modern art, or dismiss it as a childish man’s fantasy made real (essentially that was the design brief for this vehicle, “make Elon a toy”, and it has nailed that brief), but either way you’ll definitely have strong feelings about it.

A car, or even a pick-up truck, with no round surfaces, nor subtlety of any kind, can’t really be described as beautiful in any way. But interesting? Definitely. 

Like the previous model, VW hasn’t forgotten its pragmatic touches for the interior, despite its increase in complexity and appointments.

Finding a driving position was easy for me at 182cm tall, with both a healthy adjustment range for the seats and steering wheel. The digital instrument cluster remains one of the best on the market in terms of usability and customisation, while the multi-function steering wheel commits to buttons rather than the widely-disliked haptic feedback panels, which have appeared on various other VW models.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t entirely extend to switchgear for key functions, with the climate control exclusively controlled via touch sliders, a touchscreen menu or the Tiguan’s new voice control suite, none of which are as intuitive as just having a physical dial for temperature and fan speed and buttons for recirculate, auto and on-off.

However, the Tiguan does have a central dial on the console, which can cycle through volume control, drive modes or ambient lighting modes when pressed. A welcome addition.

Moving the shift stalk to the steering column, like the ID.4 and ID.5, has also allowed additional space for the centre console area, which is now quite versatile. It includes a variable-height armrest console box with either dividers or a dual-bottle-holder fitting, which can be interchanged between the two areas, while the dual-charging bays up front have a rubberised cover, which can be pulled down as to not waste the storage space. This has the additional feature of making the cooling system for the wireless charging phones more effective.

There are two large bottle holders and pockets in each door, which have a carpeted finish to reduce vibration, and there’s also a passenger glovebox.

The rear seat offers a healthy amount of space behind my own driving position. I had leagues of knee room and a healthy amount of airspace above me, however the presence of a tall raise for the transmission tunnel eats into the amount of room a centre passenger would have for their feet.

The comfortable seats continue and are on rails if you need to increase the amount of room in the boot, or simply want a more aggressive recline. When it comes to storage, there are bottle holders in each door, a drop-down armrest with dual bottle holders, dual USB-C outlets on the back of the console, as well as dual air vents with a touch control panel for the independent third climate zone. The only thing it seems to be missing is built-in window shades, which are offered on some Skodas and the now-discontinued Passat (RIP).

The boot helpfully features a powered tailgate on all grades, and measures in at 652 litres with the second row up, or 1650L with the seats down. Numbers can be deceptive, but it does seem large for the class, and there’s a space-saver spare wheel under the floor.

While the front and rear seats feel plenty spacious, that odd peaked baseball cap roof is a bit challenging in terms of headroom, and I smashed my noggin into it a few times trying to reach into the back seat for more Oreos and Mountain Dew. 

You can pop up the bench seat in the back to create even more space for storage, or to provide a flat floor to sleep on.

You can also lie an American sized pizza box on the vast swathe of dash between you and the wildly angled windscreen, there’s plenty more storage on the floor between you and the passenger and then more storage bins at your hip, as well. A wireless phone charger sits twinned with the spot where you park your Tesla card key.

It’s a practical, semi-rugged feeling space, but with the usual kind of Tesla less is more feeling, except when it comes to the screen, which is stupidly large and requires far too much input when you’re driving to be safe. And there’s still no speedometer where you need one, in front of your eyes, and no head-up display, despite Tesla’s love of other jet-fighter tech, like drive-by-wire steering.

How does one define value when it comes to the vehicular equivalent of a cockroach, one that seems capable of surviving the apocalypse with it indestructible (but possibly slightly rusty in appearance) stainless-steel exterior, HEPA filters (will protect you from pollution, pollen and “industrial fallout”) and (almost, kind of) bowling-ball proof super-strong windows (it can allegedly survive the impact of a baseball at 112km/h - handy if someone is trying to kill you with a baseball)?

And what price can you put on the kind of attention driving a Cybertruck gets you? Perhaps only a Bugatti or a Pagani could match the level of wide-eyed, slack-jawed excitement you see from other people when you drive this thing around. 

Then there’s the fact that it accelerates like an actual rocket, is allegedly so cosseted in the cabin that it’s “as quiet as outer space” (this is a comparison test I am up for, if Elon’s Space X would like to arrange it), and can tow “an average African elephant”, or 4,990kg, and has a 1134kg capacity in that vast rear tray, covered by a standard, automatic tonneau cover that’s so tough you can stand on it.

In that rear tray you’ll find a bottle opener, and some storage tubs with drainage holes to keep your beer cold or your fish frozen. You could sleep in there, on the composite bed, which is tough you don’t need a liner, but why would you when you can sleep in the truck - the dash is so large you could comfortably lie under the windscreen to sun yourself - using 'Sleep Mode', which runs the air con all night from its giant battery to keep it at your set temperature.

Speaking of your battery, you can also charge things with it using the integrated power outlets, and that includes the ability to charge another Tesla, or to re-zap your Tesla Powerwall at home and run your house during a blackout. Or the Apocalypse.

Tesla has put a price on all this, of course, and in America it ranges from US$81,895 to US$101,985. Frankly, that seems like quite good value when you add it all up, or at least it would if the Cybertruck really could tow five tonnes further than the end of the street, and if range - surely something of an issue for an outdoorsy vehicle like this - really could be guaranteed at 547km.

If and when it gets to Australia, of course, its value will need to be reassessed on what is sure to be a much, much larger number.

There are three engine options in the Tiguan range, and it is notable none are even mild hybrids (MHEVs) in 2025.

The base engine present in 110TSI variants is even a carryover 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine, providing 110kW/250Nm to the front wheels. The big news for these base cars is the dry-clutch DCT has been swapped out for the better-performing wet-clutch version, which also has various improvements made to it for this iteration. Notably, VW has stripped-out the stop-start system with this engine and transmission combination. 

The brand says it opted not to use the more recent 1.5-litre MHEV version of this engine as it simply didn’t need it to meet Australia’s new emissions standards and it would have added a prohibitive amount to the cost of entry-level variants to justify its inclusion in the range.

Next up is the new 150TSI engine. It is a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder unit, which replaces both the 132TSI and 162TSI engines from the previous-generation model. It provides 150kW/320Nm and drives all four wheels via the same seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. This engine also reintroduces stop-start.

At the top of the range, solely available on the R-Line, is the 195TSI engine. VW says this offers buyers of the previous Tiguan R somewhere to go, but also an option for those who wanted more than the previous 162TSI R-Line offered. The 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged 195TSI engine is sourced from the Golf GTI and produces 195kW/400Nm, driving all four wheels via the same seven-speed dual-clutch. It reduces the 0-100km/h sprint time from 7.1 seconds to 5.9 seconds.

It is a shame in the current environment VW hasn’t chosen to make a splash with the 1.5-litre plug-in hybrid (PHEV) variant, which is available overseas. This Tiguan features a 25kWh battery paired to the 110kW engine to make for an estimated 100km electric-only driving range. It even features both 11kW AC charging and 50kW DC charging for convenient top-ups.

If you want it, tell your dealer. VW tells us they’re working on a business case for the PHEV in the background, but if you want electric driving for now, it’s pointing current customers to the ID.4 (from $59,990 before on-roads).

Yes, I’m giving it 10. Because how could you want for more than a torque figure of 13959Nm, and a Ferrari-humbling 630kW of power to boot?

The Cybertruck is the perfect example of Elon Musk’s approach to what we’ll call science, or Twitter, or X. If it can be done, just do it, don’t ask whether it’s a good idea, or batshit insane.

So because he could fit a vast 123kWh battery and two crazy powerful motors to this pick up monster, and that could provide enough grunt to send three tonnes of mass to 100km/h in 2.8 seconds, they did. 

Is it wise? Probably not. Is it wild and almost, somehow, strangely admirable? Yep.

Efficiency is remarkably even across the Tiguan range, with the new engines and updated transmission helping to make things reasonably straightforward.

The base 110TSI versions have an official/combined fuel consumption of 7.6L/100km, as do the 150TSI versions thar benefit from the stop/start system but have the added heft of all-wheel drive.

The top-of-the-range 195TSI R-Line, meanwhile, is said to consume 8.5L/100km. All versions require 95RON mid-shelf unleaded. And for those who care, the 110TSI and 150TSI produce 173g/km of CO2, while the 195TSI produces 194g/km.

Interestingly, the 110TSI variants have a 55-litre fuel tank, while the 150TSI and 195TSI have a 58-litre fuel tank.

Tesla claims a range of 547km between charges and that even when towing something of “reasonable size” (a smaller Tesla perhaps) it will still get 400km. I, for one, very much doubt that.

Tesla also claims you can recover up to 235km of range with just 15 minutes of Tesla Supercharging, while a charge from 10 to 80 per cent on that same Supercharger would take 44 minutes. On a 110V American plug it would take 110 hours, or 4.5 days, to fully charge from zero to 100 per cent.

The Tiguan range has some significant upgrades from behind the wheel this time around, but there are a handful of areas where I was surprised to find it didn’t quite live up to expectations.

Firstly, the seating position and driver-centric cabin design make the Tiguan feel like more of a driver’s car than ever before. The bucket-style seats and the high beltline combine to make the seating position feel like more of a hatchback than an SUV. Yet visibility out of the cabin is healthy thanks to large windows and mirrors.

As you set off, the Tiguan feels smoother through its drivetrain than its predecessor, thanks to the new dual-clutch automatic being sandpapered when it comes to its initial engagement and shift-mapping. Even the base 110TSI, which can sometimes struggle for initial torque thanks to a dollop of turbo-lag, has a decent roll-on, and with no stop-start system this time, it’s much more friendly when hopping on the accelerator from a standstill.

The steering tune is great in all grades, helping to make this new Tiguan feel light and reactive, despite its slightly expanded dimensions. This lightness is a trait which shines through on this new version, making it feel much less pedestrian than almost all of its rivals.

On the base variant, this can be to its detriment at times, with the 110TSI engine occasionally overcoming the grip of the front tyres when a lot is asked of it, however all-wheel-drive versions are much more confident in their footing, not only delivering power in a more linear fashion, but also putting it to the ground more smoothly.

R-Line variants, with wider and more expensive tyres, are reactive, grippy, and simply outstanding to drive in this mid-size segment, with the 195TSI bringing a strong additional lump of torque and a throatier engine note.

Indeed, this version of the Tiguan leans into the nameplate’s best traits and solidifies its position as the driver’s option in the segment. The 150TSI R-Line in particular stood out as raucous amounts of fun for a mid-sizer for a fair price, as it could be driven significantly harder than the more powerful 195TSI.

However, this new Tiguan was also not without some disappointments. The amount of road noise in all grades was notable, and while VWs are usually known for their balanced ride quality, all Tiguan variants also featured a certain seemingly inherent firm response to sharper blemishes in the road, perhaps a cost for the otherwise superb body control.

These blemishes in driving ambiance were relatively minor in scale, but surprising to find nonetheless.

It’s fair to say the Tesla Cybertruck is an intimidating prospect in the metal. It towers over you and seems to stretch into forever, because it does, at 5.68m long (too long to fit in a standard Australian parking space). 

It’s also a full 2.0m wide, 1.8m tall and weighs 3.1 tonnes, but along with its size comes the fact that it just doesn’t look… right. There’s not a round surface on it but there are plenty you could cut yourself with, or lose a finger in.

It’s no less weird inside, as the giant A-pillars, vast dash, crazy yoke steering device and graphically lovely screen confront you, making it feel like you might be on the Starship Troopers ride at Universal Studios rather than in an LA car park.

Then, while you’re getting used to this and having a good laugh at the Easter egg on the touch screen (smash the windows on the graphic of the car with your finger and you hear the sound of Elon freaking out at the infamous failure demonstration of its unbreakable glass), you’re warned that it is going to be almost as weird to drive as it looks.

This is, in part, due to the Cybertruck’s unique drive-by-wire steering - a technology previously popular only with jet fighters and other planes - which allows it to have a yoke instead of a steering wheel without being annoying, because your hands will never cross over and be left grasping air.

Yes, the Infiniti Q50 debuted with 'steer-by-wire' a decade ago, but featured a full mechanical system as a fail-safe back-up. No mechanical safety net here.

The Cybertruck has less than one full turn lock-to-lock, and it has not just passive but aggressive rear wheel steering, allowing the back wheels to turn the opposite direction to the front ones at parking speeds, quite radically, which, once you’re used to it, makes it much easier to park than seems possible. 

It also makes this Tesla incredibly sharp and direct and means that, for the first few minutes of driving it you will turn the wheel, sorry, yoke, far more than necessary.

Once you get used to it, however, it is fabulous, as long as you don’t think about what would happen if the software that’s the only thing connecting you to the wheels - rather than actual moving parts - failed. 

The steering makes the Cybertruck shrink around you to the point where you forget, at times, just how big it is. Combined with the low centre of gravity and the bank vault solidity of the chassis, it also makes it turn-in and handle like a much smaller sports car (and it has a turning circle that defies belief, one that’s sharper than some sedans).

Speaking of sports cars, most of them won’t keep up with the Cybertruck if there’s someone brave in its driving seat. Indeed, you’d need a proper hypercar to match its constant, surging torque (no, I don’t believe it can really have 13,000-plus Newtons, but it’s a lot), and its purely outrageous, surging speed.

Tesla has a habit of calculating torque at the wheels, not the motor(s) and gearing reductions increase torque markedly. 

Yes, I do believe it would do 0 to 100km/h in three seconds, maybe slightly less, but I’m also equally sure it’s not a great idea to try (I'm also very grateful I didn't experience the problems with the throttle sticking open on some examples that recently saw every Cybertruck recalled).

The problem is that 3.0-tonne weight figure, and all that mass. It feels beyond weird to move something this big, that fast, and it quickly makes you pause for a chilling thought about whether it’s all going to be able to stop again. It does, or it did for me, but boy, it puts the wind up you every time you try.

Overall, though, it’s hard to overstate just how surprisingly good, and yes, at times even fun, the Cybertruck is to drive.

Oh, and for the trainspotters out there, claimed efficiency is 22.4kWh per 100km, but we actually saw 27kWh during our two days of test drives. Our second Cybertruck was also making some distinctly weird metallic clanking noises from underneath, particularly when we switched between forward and reverse.

It might be worth waiting for the second generation of this thing before buying one, but that won’t be an issue for Australian fans, anyway.

As far as its off-road abilities, we managed to find a bit of beach in a car park and pointed the Cybertruck at it. After an initial fearful moment of being sure we were going to sink, we just put the foot down and let all that torque power us out of trouble. It felt effortless.

Some unkind experts have referred to the Cybertruck as a “death machine” and a “guideless missile”, pointing out that putting a stainless steel body on top of a big old battery is inherently problematic. As is the lack of crumple zones.

Making all this very pointy metal move as fast as a McLaren supercar has also raised some questions about sanity.

Then there was the recent recall of every Cybertruck built so far:

"Cybertruck owners reported that their vehicles were at risk of getting stuck driving at full speed due to a loose accelerator pedal. Video showed the pedal itself falling off and the piece beneath wedging itself into the car’s interior, which would force the vehicle into maximum acceleration. One driver was able to save himself from a crash by holding down the brake pedal."

Elon Musk, has claimed, however, that the Cybertruck, is “much safer per mile” than its competitors. 

Australia has different pedestrian safety regulations to the US and while some have posited that the Cybertruck will pass, pointing to the fact that you can buy an even bigger Ram truck here, others are not so sure.

The Tesla Cybertruck does have six airbags, and a suite of active safety features as part of its 'Autopilot' system, but it does not yet have 'Full Self Driving'.