2020 Honda Passport vs 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan

The 2020 Honda Passport followed the familiar Honda design language, which, while predictable, continued to attract loyal buyers. Its exterior resembled a smaller Honda Pilot but with a more rugged and athletic appearance, fitting neatly between the Pilot and CR-V in terms of size, capability, and price. The Passport's higher ground clearance and robust styling cues gave it an off-road-ready look, while the interior offered a blend of hard-wearing and soft-touch materials, echoing the design of the Honda Pilot. The Elite trim level came fully loaded with features like perforated, heated, and ventilated front seats, a leather-trimmed heated steering wheel, and a moonroof, making it a comfortable and practical choice for many.

In contrast, the 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan boasted clean lines and balanced proportions, presenting a conservative, upscale, and timeless aesthetic. Its larger size for a compact crossover provided a roomy and accommodating interior, with an optional third-row seat expanding passenger capacity to seven. The Tiguan's interior combined modern geometric forms with a no-nonsense control layout, though it featured more hard plastic than one might expect in a premium vehicle. The SEL trim, tested with 4Motion AWD, offered a refined and quiet ride, making it a pleasant choice for daily driving and long road trips.

The 2020 Honda Passport was equipped with a 3.5-liter V6 engine producing 280 horsepower and 262 pound-feet of torque, paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. This powertrain provided sufficient performance for various driving situations, though its fuel economy was less impressive, with FWD models achieving 20 mpg city, 25 mpg highway, and 22 mpg combined. AWD models performed slightly worse. The Passport excelled in off-road conditions, thanks to its higher ground clearance and torque-vectoring AWD system, which could send 70% of engine torque to the rear axle and 100% to either rear wheel. It also offered a towing capacity of up to 5,000 pounds, surpassing many of its rivals.

The 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan featured a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine generating 184 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. While adequate for most driving situations, the engine suffered from turbo lag, making it feel sluggish during acceleration. The Tiguan's fuel economy was slightly better than the Passport's, with FWD models achieving 25 mpg combined and AWD models 24 mpg combined. The Tiguan provided a comfortable and nimble driving experience, though its suspension struggled with sharper speed bumps and railroad tracks. It was quiet and composed on the highway, making it suitable for long trips.

The 2020 Honda Passport was a practical choice, offering ample space for four adults and a generous cargo area with 41.2 cubic feet behind the rear seats. It featured height-adjustable seatbelts, three full LATCH connections, and available tri-zone automatic climate control. The Passport's seats were comfortable and spacious, similar to those in the Honda Pilot and Odyssey. The SUV excelled in small-item storage, with a large center console and additional shelf space in the front doors. Its load floor was high, but the power liftgate made loading and unloading easy.

The 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan prioritized comfort, with large doors and tall seating hip points for easy entry and exit. The front seats offered a wide range of adjustments and excellent visibility, while the back seats provided generous legroom and foot space. The Tiguan's 40/20/40-split folding rear seat allowed for flexible cargo and passenger arrangements, with cargo volume ranging from 33 to 37.6 cubic feet behind the second row, depending on the presence of the third-row seat. The SUV's storage space was somewhat limited, but it featured a large panoramic sunroof and accommodating door panel bins.

The 2020 Honda Passport came with a 5.0-inch display monitor in the base Sport model, while higher trims featured an 8.0-inch Display Audio infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration. The system was practical and easy to navigate, though the dashboard design felt outdated. Standard features included Bluetooth, a USB port, and a seven-speaker audio system, with higher trims offering a 10-speaker audio system, satellite radio, additional USB ports, a wireless phone charger, and a Wi-Fi hotspot.

The 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan introduced the MIB3 infotainment system starting with the SE trim, featuring an 8-inch touchscreen, faster processing, and expanded features like wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, WiFi, SiriusXM 360L, and Amazon Alexa compatibility. The system had some quirks, and the voice recognition technology was lacking. The SEL Premium R-Line trim included a nine-speaker Fender premium audio system, while other trims had a six-speaker system. The SEL and SEL Premium R-Line also featured Volkswagen Digital Cockpit instrumentation, offering an understated approach to technology and information display.

The 2020 Honda Passport prioritized safety, earning good scores from the IIHS and NHTSA and being named an IIHS Top Safety Pick. It came standard with the Honda Sensing suite, including forward-collision warning, lane departure warning, lane-keeping assist, automatic emergency braking, and adaptive cruise control. Higher trims offered additional features like dynamic gridlines for the rearview camera, blind-spot monitoring, parking sensors, and rear cross-traffic detection.

The 2021 Volkswagen Tiguan came with the IQ Drive collection of advanced driving assistance systems, including forward-collision warning, pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert. Higher trims added adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning with lane-keep assist, and automatic high-beam headlights. The Tiguan's safety features were effective but had some inconsistencies, such as the adaptive cruise control's slow acceleration and the lane-keep assist's inconsistent warnings. The SUV earned a "Top Safety Pick" rating from the IIHS for the SEL and SEL Premium R-Line trims.