Preview: 2028 Volkswagen ID.Tiguan Reimagines the ID.4 Electric SUV

We liked the roomy interior, smooth ride, quiet cabin, and good acceleration in the Volkswagen ID.4 Pro S that we purchased and tested. Given that the powertrain output is similar to that of the ID.4, we have no reason to suspect that performance or other virtues would change significantly with this redesign. 

We did have an issue with the controls. The lagginess of the ID.4’s infotainment touchscreen, combined with the extensive use of touch-capacitive and touchscreen-based—rather than physical—buttons made for an overall frustrating usability experience. The most puzzling engineering choice was giving the driver just two window switches (instead of the usual four) to control the front and rear windows. The driver had to press a special “rear” touch-capacitive button (that didn’t consistently work on the first press) before the rear windows could be powered up or down. Volkswagen has reversed course and moved back to individual physical controls for each window. Yay!

The new body looks a bit more conventional than the ID.4, which stood out from its Volkswagen siblings with a distinctive appearance, especially when viewed from the side. The ID.Tiguan fits right in with the latest Volkswagens. Its rather tasteful lines and sculpting make it look more upscale in an era when electric vehicles are going for plainer shapes. 

Perhaps the best detail is that it uses regular pull-style exterior door handles, rather than the lift-up type on the ID.4 or the pop-out kind we’re seeing on other EVs. Consider this a win for simplicity. 

The cabin makes use of screens in a rather interesting way. The 10-inch instrument panel can be changed into a choice of six retro gauge designs from Beetle, Golf I, Golf II Country, Golf IV, Tiguan I, and Race Touareg. The Ford Mustang has a similar feature, and we enjoyed using the old-style gauges. 

There is a 15-inch center infotainment touchscreen—large for a small SUV. And to keep the passenger entertained, there is a 12-inch screen on the right side of the dashboard with access to entertainment options, including gaming. The screen is not visible to the driver, much like how a laptop in privacy mode can’t be seen from an angle, and the passenger can listen to audio on Bluetooth-connected headphones. 

Other available niceties include a panoramic roof, a 480-watt Harman Kardon audio system, and massaging, ventilated seats. 

We appreciate the row of physical controls for the most common climate functions under the infotainment screen. Overall, the screens look pleasing, and the controls seem like a promising improvement.

As with the ID.4, the ID.Tiguan has three powertrain configurations. Based on the European specifications, they include two rear-drive versions distinguished by battery size and output. The base setup has 187 hp and a 58-kilowatt-hour battery. 

The midlevel powertrain has 282 hp with a 77-kWh battery, and the all-wheel-drive ID.Tiguan puts out 295 hp with the 77-kWh battery. The SUV comes with one-pedal driving, allowing the driver to control acceleration and braking with just the accelerator pedal. 

European range figures sound promising, but the test cycle differs so much from what we use in the U.S. that the numbers can be a bit misleading. Safe to say that it appears the ID.Tiguan would go well over 300 miles on a full charge.

The Volkswagen ID.4 came with automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, blind spot warning, rear cross traffic warning, lane departure warning, and lane keeping assistance as standard equipment. It seems likely that the ID.Tiguan will only expand on that full roster. 

We do know that it has Connected Travel Assist, which draws on those systems to enable assisted lane changes and stop the SUV at red lights.