2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport vs 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan

The 2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport offered an elegant blend of modernist and reductive design, focusing on clean and simple lines. Despite its subdued design language, Land Rover's limited offerings for flashy elements meant it wasn't the choice for those who desired maximum attention. However, performance-tuned SVR models with vivid paint colors and a louder engine were anticipated to shake things up in the future.

In the test vehicle, finished in Eiger Gray paint with silver 23-inch wheels and a subtle Black Exterior Pack, the exterior exuded understated luxury. The interior featured Deep Garnet over Ebony tones, paired with aluminum and shiny black trim, which imbued a sense of quiet opulence. The model came with a list price of $98,420, inclusive of destination charges. Highlights of the design included premium LED headlights, flush-mounted door handles, and taillights that used surface LED technology for the first time. Its aerodynamic profile boasted an impressive drag coefficient of 0.29. Inside, the cabin featured Ultrafabrics and intoxicating Windsor leather, presenting a luxurious yet sustainable look.

Meanwhile, the 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan, continuing from its numerous updates the previous year, largely retained its look, only adding a complementary five-year Car-Net Safe & Secure connected services plan. Offered in trims from S to SEL R-Line, its pricing started from $26,950 and went up to $37,680, plus a destination charge of $1,295. The SEL R-Line test vehicle arrived with an Atlantic Blue paint job and Storm Gray leather interior, giving off a refined yet sporty vibe.

Contrary to the Range Rover Sport’s simplicity, the Tiguan presented a design dictated by its trim levels, somewhat restricting combinations of exterior and interior choices. Despite this limitation, the SEL R-Line's sporty appearance with 20-inch machined-finish wheels and its aging yet graceful design received favorable nods. Inside, the interior boasted quality leather, appealing artificial wood trim, a panoramic sunroof, and solid construction, closely matching the luxury of higher-priced rivals.

The Land Rover Range Rover Sport aimed to deliver a dual personality of refinement and driver engagement, albeit achieving only partial success. It offered a turbocharged 3.0-liter inline six-cylinder engine in the SE and SE Dynamic models, producing 355 hp and 369 lb-ft of torque in SE P360 and 395 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque in SE Dynamic P400.

The Autobiography P440e trim provided a plug-in hybrid drivetrain, generating 434 hp and 406 lb-ft of torque with a 51-mile electric driving range. Early builds of the 2023 models even had a 523-hp twin-turbo 4.4-liter V8 engine. Our test vehicle’s 395-hp inline-six exhibited formidable acceleration, reaching 60 mph in 5.4 seconds and providing a decent towing capacity of 7,716 pounds. Fuel economy hovered around 21 mpg combined, with real-world results aligning closely at 22.3 mpg.

The Range Rover Sport’s new vehicle architecture and adaptive damping air suspension resulted in a refined and composed drive, performing exceptionally well both in city and off-road conditions. However, it fell short of matching its German rivals' agility on twisty roads, appearing tall and heavy with non-involving steering. Despite its off-road prowess, experiencing lash and clunking as well as stability control activation made it less enjoyable on winding paths.

Alternatively, the Volkswagen Tiguan's turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine delivered 184 horsepower and 221 lb-ft of torque, coupled with an eight-speed automatic transmission. It offered a standard front-wheel drive and an optional 4Motion all-wheel-drive system. The SEL R-Line with AWD included settings like Onroad, Snow, Offroad, and Custom Offroad, manipulating power distribution between the front and rear wheels as needed.

Driving modes such as Eco, Normal, Sport, and Individual allowed a degree of control over the vehicle's dynamics, although the power delivery was less satisfying when requiring quick bursts, exhibiting turbo lag and delayed downshifts. Achieving a combined 24 mpg fuel economy, the Tiguan returned 22.6 mpg during testing. Handling the mountain roads and urban environments, the Tiguan’s dynamic qualities shone through with excellent tire grip, predictable stability, and responsive steering.

The 2023 Land Rover Range Rover Sport maintained its commanding driving position with an airy feel, assisted by a low dashboard, upright windshield, and thin roof pillars. The air suspension could be adjusted for easier cabin access. Inside, the front seats, wrapped in Windsor leather and featuring 20-way power adjustments, heated and ventilated seats, and the potential for a massage feature, provided supreme comfort.

Rear-seat comfort was less impressive, with tight legroom and hard seatback panels. The back seat's slouched posture and narrow door openings were drawbacks despite features like manual sunshades and USB ports. Storage space inside was practical, and the rear cargo area accommodated 31.9 cubic feet, expandable to 53 cubic feet with the rear seats down and air suspension enhanced loading.

Contrastingly, the 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan excelled in interior space and functionality, particularly in AWD models without the third-row seat. The SEL R-Line featured comfortable, leather-wrapped front seats with heating, ventilation, and a heated steering wheel. The front cabin storage was more accommodating with larger spaces compared to the Range Rover Sport. However, the Tiguan’s dashboard ergonomics were flawed with its touch-sensing controls presenting usability challenges.

The rear seating area had excellent legroom, headroom, and foot room, making it passenger-friendly. The cargo area, offering 37.6 cubic feet with the second row up and 73.4 cubic feet with seats folded down, provided ample space. FWD models had slightly lesser cargo capacity at 33 cubic feet and 65.3 cubic feet, respectively.

When it came to technology, the Range Rover Sport boasted a 13.7-inch digital display and a 13.1-inch infotainment touchscreen with haptic feedback, along with standard features like wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa, and a premium Meridian audio system. Despite these tech-rich offerings, the Pivi Pro infotainment system felt confusing and frustrating, failing in voice command functions and offering unnecessarily complex interfaces.

The Volkswagen Tiguan’s tech package included digital instrumentation, with the SEL R-Line showcasing a larger 10.25-inch display. It offered an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Car-Net services, a Fender premium sound system, and advanced navigation capabilities. Despite apparent user-friendliness, the system’s sub-menus and touch controls introduced unnecessary complexity, similar to the Range Rover Sport, though less problematic overall.

Land Rover equipped the Range Rover Sport with an array of advanced safety features, including forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, parking sensors, and a surround-view camera. However, adaptive cruise and steering assist technologies proved less reliable and smooth, adding unwanted driver frustration.

The Volkswagen Tiguan excelled with its IQ.Drive safety package, standard on most trims. This encompassed adaptive cruise control, active blind-spot monitoring, lane assist, travel assist, and emergency assist, integrating semi-autonomous driving aids. The technology operated smoothly without irritating the driver and performed reliably, offering a more trustworthy experience compared to the Range Rover Sport.