Spec comparison: Volkswagen Tiguan vs Hyundai Tucson vs Isuzu MU-X vs Ford Endeavour vs Toyota Fortuner

The much anticipated Tiguan has gone on sale in India today, at a starting price of Rs 27.68 lakh (ex-Mumbai) for the base, Comfortline variant. The top-spec Highline trim will set you back by 31.04 lakh (ex-Mumbai). For the price, you get a Volkswagen that rides on the company's new MQB or Modular Transverse Matrix platform, the first in India. VW chose to launch the Tiguan with the 2-litre TDI diesel motor only, which produces 143PS and 340 Nm. The engine is mated to a 7-speed DSG. The Tiguan also gets VW's 4MOTION All Wheel Drive system, with selectable driving modes to suit the terrain. It should give the Tiguan decent off-road capability too.

Besides this, the Tiguan also features a panoramic sunroof, hill descent control and an active hood that softens the blow, in the event of a pedestrian colliding with SUV. What you also get is Volkswagen's superb build quality that the company is renowned for.

The Tiguan's pricing, however, is almost in the same ballpark of focused, highly capable off-road SUVs such as the new Isuzu MU-X, Ford Endeavour and the Toyota Fortuner. The Tiguan's price is also at quite close to the Hyundai Tucson, another feature loaded crossover kind of SUV. The Tucson, however, does not come with AWD.

In terms of size the Tiguan is almost similar to the Tucson, however the MU-X, Fortuner and Endeavour are much larger than the Tiguan. The Endeavour is the longest SUV here at 4892mm while the Tucson is the shortest at 4475mm. The Tiguan is the second longest at 4486mm, only 10mm more than the Tucson.

The Endeavour also has the longest wheelbase in this comparison at 2850mm, 5mm more than the Isuzu MU-X. The Toyota Fortuner's wheelbase is 100mm shorter than the MU-X's while the Tiguan's is just 7mm more than the Tucson's. As is evident, the Endeavour is clearly the biggest SUV among the group.

The Tiguan is also the least powerful SUV, with its 2-litre TDI motor developing 143PS and 340 Nm. The MU-X and Fortuner's engines make the same power, at 177PS, however, the Fortune's mill produces considerably more torque at 450Nm, as opposed to 380Nm by the MU-X's 3-litre motor. The Hyundai Tucson's engine is quite powerful, at 185PS and 400Nm and beats the 2.2-litre Ford Endeavour's 160PS and 385Nm. The 3.2-litre Ford Endeavour, however, is the most powerful SUV here, with its five-cylinder motor producing 200PS and 470Nm.

Feature wise, the Hyundai Tucson and Ford Endeavour offer quite a lot of kit. That said, the Tiguan and the Endeavour 3.2 are the only SUVs that offer a sun-roof.

If you consider the 4x2 variants, the MU-X is the cheapest at Rs 25.40 lakh followed by the Tucson at Rs 26.45 lakh. Shell out about a lakh more and you'll get the base Tiguan Comfortline. The Endeavour 2.2 is priced at Rs 29.69 lakh, while the Toyota Fortuner is quite pricey at Rs 30.77 lakh (all prices ex-Mumbai).

The Tiguan Highline is priced quite close to the 4x4 variants of the MU-X, Endeavour and Fortuner. At 31.04 lakh (ex-Mumbai), the Tiguan is a bit more expensive than the Isuzu MU-X (27.52 lakh) and the Ford Endeavour 2.2 4x2 (29.69 lakh). The Toyota Fortuner 4x4 AT costs a little more, at Rs 32.85 lakh, whereas the Endeavour 3.2, 4x4 is cheaper than the Toyota at Rs 32.82 lakh.

While we wait to put the new Volkswagen Tiguan through a road test and comparison test to see what's it really like, take a look at our spec comparo to see how the German SUV stacks up against the competiton.