Volkswagen is replacing the Tiguan Allspace with an entirely new model called the Tayron (pronounced tie-ron), and it will fulfil the same role as the outgoing seven-seat mid-sized SUV, slotting in between the five-seat Tiguan and the range-topping Touareg.
Whereas the Allspace was little more than a stretched Tiguan in order to fit in a third row of seats, the Tayron gets a bespoke exterior design, though it still looks more like the Tiguan than its bigger brother, the Touareg.
Similar to the latest version of the Mk8.5 Golf, the Tayron gets illuminated VW logos front and rear, with LED light units at either end as well. In Europe there are three specification grades – Life, Elegance and R-Line – and these are likely to be offered in Australia as well.
In terms of size, the Tayron stretches to 4792mm in length and is 1853mm wide, with the roofline reaching 1668mm. Built on the same MQB Evo platform as the Tiguan, the Tayron’s wheelbase is a smidge longer at 2788mm, benefitting those sitting in the rear.
Both five- and seven-seat layouts are available in the Tayron, though the plug-in hybrid only comes with five seats on account of the battery placement beneath the rear seats.
That is a pity as, with relatively few seven-seat EVs on the market, a long-range PHEV such as the Tayron could have been a great compromise for families looking to reduce their carbon footprint.
We got behind the wheel of the Tayron at its international launch in Europe to see how it compares to the Tiguan and whether those extra seats are useful.
How much does the Volkswagen Tayron cost?
It’s unlikely that the Volkswagen Tayron will be appearing in Australian dealers until closer to the end of 2025, and as yet there are no pricing details.
But as the Tayron is a successor to the Tiguan Allspace, we expect it to be similarly priced, perhaps with a modest premium. Currently the Tiguan Allspace has a driveaway price of $47,990 for the entry-grade 110TSI Life.
What is the Volkswagen Tayron like on the inside?
The Tayron’s interior mirrors the overall aesthetic of the smaller Tiguan, with minor differences to the air vents and some of the material inserts on the dashboard. Its dashboard layout is a horizontal vista of structure with no physical buttons other than the legally required hazard warning at the centre.
We’re very pleased to see that Volkswagen has reverted to using a multifunction steering wheel that has physical buttons on its two upper spars, however, and if you opt for the R-Line specification, the bottom spoke gets the ‘R’ logo.
Ahead of the wheel is a 10-inch digital instrument cluster that provides the usual variety of screen options to suit individual preferences. For example, you can switch between having more traditional rev counter and speedometer readouts or having the navigation map fill the entirety of the screen. A large colour head-up display can also be added to the Tayron, bringing speed and traffic sign information – along with turn-by-turn navigation prompts – into the driver’s eye line.
Two infotainment touchscreen options are available, starting with a 12.9-inch unit, though our test car was equipped with the larger 15-inch display that really fills up the centre of the dashboard. Unlike the instrumentation that’s inset within the dashboard, the 15-inch touchscreen looks more stuck onto the fascia, sticking up above the leading edge of the dash.
Nonetheless, the infotainment system is comprehensive, and the display is quick to react to inputs, but the layout of the menus and lack of physical buttons mean you often have to hunt around the various sub-menus to find what you’re looking for.
Both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are supported, however, and the capacitive slider at the base of the screen lets you adjust volume and temperature by swiping your finger across. Thankfully, that’s now backlit – unlike earlier iterations of the idea.
Additionally, a backlit panel in front of the passenger seat can be changed to different colours or ‘Atmospheres’ as Volkswagen calls them – linked to the drive modes – matching the upper inserts on top of the doors that are also illuminated from within.
Between the front seats, there’s plenty of storage, including a useful area below the central air vents. Lift that up and there’s a wireless phone charging pad underneath. A nifty rotary controller has hints of BMW iDrive about it, though its functionality is nowhere near as varied. It’s possible to adjust stereo volume and to cycle through the drive modes. The general look and quality of the materials throughout the interior are quite high, especially in the R-Line version.
Rear passenger space in the second row is quite generous, and it is noticeably different to the Tiguan thanks to the 108mm increase in wheelbase, no doubt. Some markets will offer the Tayron as a five-seater in addition to the three-row setup, but the latter is likely to be the more popular option.
Where fitted, the Tayron’s third row provides a useful extra set of seats within limits. The Tayron remains more a ‘five-plus-two’ rather than a proper seven-seat SUV, though it is possible to slide the second row forward by up to 18 centimetres to give those in the rearmost row more legroom (or to increase boot volume).
On the subject of boot space, the seven-seat Tayron has a generous 850 litres available, with up to 1905 litres when all the rear seats are folded. When all three seat rows are in place, the usable boot volume is still 345 litres, which is almost equivalent to a mid-sized hatchback such as Volkswagen’s own Golf.
The five-seat Tayron gets the largest boot, at 885 litres, and that can swell to 2090 litres when the rear seats are folded. In the plug-in hybrid five-seater, that boot space decreases slightly to 705 litres due to the hybrid battery underneath, and the total cargo capacity is 1915 litres.
What’s under the bonnet?
Volkswagen’s desire to provide something for everyone in the Tayron is reflected in the range of powertrains available.
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Tayron eHybrid
You can have a basic turbocharged 2.0-litre TSI petrol engine, which comes equipped with VW’s 4Motion all-wheel drive. This four-cylinder motor is available in 150kW and 190kW states of tune, and, as is the case across the entire Tayron lineup, automatic gearboxes are standard.
The 2.0-litre TDI diesel comes with either front- or all-wheel drive. There’s 110kW at your disposal in the front-wheel drive Tayron, while the 4Motion version makes up to 142kW.
The plug-in hybrid – badged as the eHybrid – is an appealing prospect as it has a useful battery-only driving range of up to 126km, thanks to its 19.7kWh energy capacity. The electric motor generates 85kW on its own, and it is paired with either 110kW or 130kW petrol engines, resulting in quoted system maxes of 150kW or 200kW, respectively.
Recharging can be done at 11kW three-phase AC chargers and 50kW DC fast-chargers, as well as at home.
For those who don’t want to faff around with charging cables, there is a mild-hybrid variant of the Tayron. Badged as the eTSI, its 110kW 1.5-litre engine can provide brief moments of engine-off coasting and longer periods of stop-start in traffic to help save fuel.
| Specifications | Volkswagen Tayron eHybrid |
|---|---|
| Engine | 1.5L 4cyl petrol with 85kW electric motor |
| Power | 150kW |
| Engine torque | 350Nm |
| Transmission | 6-speed auto |
| Driven wheels | Front-wheel drive |
| Weight | 1939kg (kerb) |
| Braked towing capacity | 1800kg |
| CO2 (claim) | 10-12g/km (combined) |
| Fuel economy (claim) | 0.4-0.5L/100km |
| Fuel economy (observed) | 1.3L/100km (mixed driving, driver only) |
| Fuel tank size | 45L |
How does the Volkswagen Tayron drive?
It’s very clear that Volkswagen has gone to great lengths to make the Tayron feel polished and refined on the move.
Not only has it been liberal with the use of sound-deadening material in the floor, but our test car was also equipped with acoustically optimised glass that has additional layers of insulation film to help reduce undesirable wind and external noise from breaching the cabin. At 4.96mm thick, the glass does do a good job as it’s rather hushed inside.
That’s emphasised when driving the plug-in hybrid as once there’s some charge remaining in the 17.7kWh battery, it will default to driving in electric mode wherever possible. Even with just the 85kW motor doing its thing, the Tayron easily keeps up with urban traffic and can drive at highway speeds in near-silence.
Combine that quiet running with a well-judged suspension setup and light steering, and the Tayron proves to be comfortable and untaxing to drive. You can provoke the petrol engine into life when you want to get the most performance, and when it does activate it generally does so quite smoothly unless you’ve kept your right foot firmly pressed on the accelerator pedal.
Even over a long journey that sees the battery fully deplete, the switch from fully electric to hybrid mode means fuel consumption remains pleasingly low. On one particular route, which was longer than the battery’s maximum 126km range, the total fuel consumption was a mere 1.3L/100km.
Of course, if you’re on a much longer journey and you’re not stopping to plug in and recharge the battery, that consumption figure will quickly rise as the engine is then pulling around the extra weight of the hybrid hardware.
On the flipside, the 110kW 2.0 TDI diesel isn’t quite as polished nor as quiet as the plug-in hybrid, but it isn’t that far behind. For sure, it still sounds like a diesel inside, especially when started from cold, but you can hear how much the boffins have done to reduce and muffle that sound inside the cabin.
The diesel engine reacts much more quickly than previous iterations and it generally feels much livelier as well. Its seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission swaps cogs very smoothly, and a long highway run revealed it is geared in a way that keeps the diesel engine spooling at a lower rpm where it can be at its most efficient.
Ride comfort is also one of the Tayron’s positives, thanks in part to the DCC Pro system (Volkswagen’s adaptive suspension damping setup), which is standard on the plug-in hybrid.
In this latest iteration, there are new two-valve shock absorbers that can react faster to input changes as the system continually monitors the road conditions along with speed and steering input.
The result is a large SUV that handles keenly. It does a solid job of keeping body control in check, and when you do decide to push on a bit more, the chassis feels well able to keep up.
What do you get?
It is expected that there will be three equipment grades for the Volkswagen Tayron, starting with the Life.
This version is likely to include the digital instrument display, a 12.9-inch touchscreen and wireless connectivity for Android and Apple devices. Keyless entry, a reversing camera, 17-inch alloy wheels and LED headlights are included as standard equipment, and all Tayrons can carry at least three child seats thanks to two ISOFIX points in the middle row and one in the front passenger seat.
The mid-level Elegance features 19-inch alloy wheels, LED Plus headlights, silver roof rails, rear privacy glass and electrically adjustable front seats with a massaging function. Up to 30 interior ambient colours can be selected from while other niceties inside include ArtVelours Eco microfleece upholstery inserts, sports seats in the front and leatherette inserts in the door.
Topping the range is the R-Line, and this is more easily recognisable by the more aggressive-looking front bumper and R badging on the front doors. There are also 19-inch wheels and 3D LED tail-lights. On the inside, the seats carry specific R detailing, and there’s seat heating front and rear.
2025 Volkswagen Tayron equipment highlights:
- Unique styling
- Five- or seven-seat options
- Sliding second row
- Front- or all-wheel drive drivetrains
- Up to 126km electric range
- 50kW DC charging for the PHEV
- 12.9- or 15-inch touchscreens
- Wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay
Is the Volkswagen Tayron safe?
The Volkswagen Tayron has yet to be assessed by either Euro NCAP or ANCAP. However, as it does share a lot of its architecture and technology with the Volkswagen Tiguan, we expect it to perform well when it is tested. For reference, the Tiguan achieved a five-star rating from ANCAP in 2024.
Standard safety equipment includes:
- Driver and front passenger airbags
- Curtain and side airbags front and rear with centre airbag
- Front Cross Traffic Assist
- Lane keeping system
- Automatic emergency braking
- High-beam control Light Assist
- Three ISOFIX points
How much does the Volkswagen Tayron cost to run?
All new Volkswagens in Australia come with a five-year unlimited kilometre warranty and 12 months of 24/7 roadside assistance. Volkswagen Australia also offers an Assured Service Plan so owners can clearly see what five years of servicing costs will look like.
| Servicing and Warranty | Volkswagen Tayron |
|---|---|
| Warranty | 5 years, unlimited kilometres |
| Roadside assistance | 12 months |
| Capped-price servicing | Powertrain dependent |
The WLTP combined fuel consumption for the plug-in hybrid Tayron is 18.9-17.8kWh/100km plus 0.5-0.4L/100km, with the more powerful version at 18.7-17.7kWh/100km plus 0.5-0.4L/100km. During our time a combined drive in the plug-in hybrid returned a total of just 1.3L/100km.
CarExpert’s Take on the Volkswagen Tayron
Volkswagen has done a comprehensive job of making the Tayron a comfortable and refined car to drive, though it’s not exactly what we’d call an exciting driving experience.
The longer electric driving range of the plug-in hybrid is a huge plus though, and it’s the best choice of powertrain for the Tayron. It’s just a pity that you can’t have it with seven seats.
Interested in buying a Volkswagen Tayron? Get in touch with one of CarExpert’s trusted dealers here
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