Volkswagen Might’ve Just Teased America with Its Most Exciting Car in Years

Volkswagen’s best-selling model could once again be on the path to excitement. Spy shots recently surfaced of VW testing the next variant of the Tiguan due for launch, and that’s the new Tiguan R.

The popular crossover SUV just entered its third generation globally and thus, fans are wondering if Wolfsburg is going to follow up with a second iteration of the Tiguan R. According to the spy shots, they most certainly are, and it’s apparently shaping up to be a serious performance machine.

But will it come to the States?

VW’s bet on performance SUVs

Volkswagen

During the previous generation Tiguan, VW introduced the first-ever Tiguan R. As you can probably tell from the badge, it’s basically a high-performance variant of the Tiguan, much like the Golf R and Euro-spec Arteon R.

And like the Golf R, it has VW’s potent turbocharged 2.0-liter gas inline-four, complete with a performance-tuned 4Motion all-wheel-drive system with torque vectoring, suspension and chassis bits. It’s basically the hottest Tiguan in all the land, and it was available to all, except for us Yanks.

Volkswagen

According to the latest developments, the Tiguan R will inherit all the improvements and updates of the third generation. But the new R cranks things up a notch. It’ll start by getting the Golf R’s more powerful EA888 turbo-four and performance-tuned dual-clutch gearbox.

As a reference point, the latest Golf R is good for 315 horsepower and 310 pound-feet. Other upgrades reportedly include high-performance brakes lifted from Audi’s parts bins, larger 21-inch wheels and a louder, freer-flowing exhaust system.

Volkswagen really wants drivers back

Volkswagen

However, while the Tiguan R has always seemed like a lovely proposition, especially for a boring crossover SUV, it’s remained off-limits to Americans.

Reasons were likely to avoid stealing sales from similarly priced Audis and product overlap. But as Volkswagen fans proved with the Golf R and the Audi S3, there’s a preference among tastes and brands. And, having both isn’t such a bad thing.

Recently, however, VW of America (which operates almost completely independently from the homeland) realized that its lineup had become pretty stagnant over the last decade. Now, it appears that it’s looking to change that.

The American branch of the German automaker has revived its iconic “drivers wanted” marketing campaign from the 1990s and 2000s. VW also made sure to revamp the sportier Tiguan R-Line variant, along with an optional peppier turbo-four.

Volkswagen

It’s not quite the same as a full-fledged Tiggy R. But it’s the closest thing to it, especially for those who want the CUV with more punch and performance.

VW also realized its electrification plans fell flat. Thus, it is costing the company major financial losses due to failure of return on investment. With sportier and more fun-to-drive cars making a general trending comeback, could that be enough evidence for VW to justify bringing the Tiguan R to the States?

Only time will tell.

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