Volkswagen Tayron R-Line Short Review: What We Liked & What Needs To Improve

Volkswagen India just got a new flagship SUV. The Tayron is the spiritual replacement for the Tiguan AllSpace, offering 7-seater flexibility with European finesse and driving dynamics. This isn’t a car meant for a social media flex. If anything, it’s for the person who’s interested in the diametric opposite.

Volkswagen Tayron R-Line Looks

The Tayron R-Line looks subdued and sporty. It may be a 7-seater but unlike its price rivals, including its own cousin, the Skoda Kodiaq, it’s not especially bulbous or gargantuan in its presence. Its vibe reads allroad station wagon and all you’d need is some more body cladding to play the part.

19-inch wheels adorn the side profile and while not as subtle as the body’s design in itself, they do pop and make heads turn ever so slightly. Generally speaking the Tayron R-Line isn’t a loud or attention-grabbing style package but people will take notice because it does look premium. It’s a similar experience as the Tiguan R-Line itself in that regard.

You can also be a bit playful with 3 different lighting animations to see in either the head or tail lights. The difference isn’t night vs day and you can only see it while locking/unlocking the car but it’s possibly what the Germans would deem “humour”.

Volkswagen Tayron Boot

With the third-row in use, the 345-litre boot can fit in 3-4 small trolley bags and a few more small items. Drop the third-row down and you access 850-litres of space, which can hold luggage for a family roadtrip with ease. 

You can also fold the middle-row and have enough space to move house or business equipment.

Volkswagen Tayron Space & Quality

Cabin space in the Tayron isn’t cavernous but it’s sensibly designed for a family of 3-5 who occasionally need the third row of seats. 

• Third row: No tumble-down middle-row so you only drop the backrest to access this row. It’s not easy or graceful to get in there but kids or short adults who are at least moderately fit can hop in. Space is restricted and you will sit in a knees up position. If not kids, pets can find their new home in this row too.

• Second row: Enough space for a six footer to sit behind themselves. Underthigh support could be better but the seat cushioning is well set for long hours in the saddle. Amenities like rather intricate fold-out cupholders and a rear sunblind come in handy.

• Front row: Well-shaped dashboard makes the space tall person friendly. The driving position has you cocooned like you’re in a sedan but you still get a good view of the bonnet. Getting in and out of this and the middle-row is super easy and doesn’t involve a climb up nor is it too low.

Volkswagen Tayron Tech 

At launch, the Tayron is available in one variant - R Line, which gets:

• Dynamic LED IQ lights

• Panoramic sunroof

• Tri-zone climate control (two front + one rear)

• Rear sunshades

• 12-Way power-adjustable front seats with 3 memory settings

• Front seat heating and ventilation

• Massaged front seats with intensity, duration and program settings

• Powered tailgate with gesture control

• 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster (multi-view)

• AR head-up display

The central 15-inch touchscreen is and looks simply massive. A lot of functions can be controlled from here like ambient lighting, seat massage settings, wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay and even, unfortunately, the air conditioning settings. While big in size, the layout is well-structured and easy to follow after about 15-20 minutes of use.

Sound quality from the 11-speaker Harman Kardon music system is good too and most won’t feel the need for an upgrade. A special mention for the massaged seats which pleasantly dig into your back even if you’re hefty.

Volkswagen Tayron Drive & Ride

With only one engine option available, those hopeful for a diesel or hybrid will be disappointed. If a good old fashion turbo-petrol tickles your fancy though this one’s a gem. The 2-litre TSI with a DSG autobox makes city drives uneventful and rockets past 100 kmph like it’s late for an event. It has this easy ability to make 100-150kmph feel as eager as 50-100kmph. It isn’t a 7 seater you just push your pram into, it’s ready to push hard and fast like it’s in the maternity ward.

Dynamic chassis control (DCC) / adaptive dampers have been given a miss, but the ride quality, even with the 19-inch wheels, is supple. Expansion joints and uneven roads get balanced out even above 100kmph. Rough road ability is good too, though you will hear the sharper bumps if not feel them. Just be careful with those tyres though because they are biased towards performance and pace vs punishment and a pummeling. 

The Tayron R-Line is a driver’s delight with great handling and stability at any speed. You won’t feel invincible over the rough stuff like you would in a ladder-frame alternative but side-to-side tossing or vertical bobbing of any kind are essentially inexistent.

Volkswagen Tayron Safety

Safety features in the new Volkswagen Tayron R Line include the following:

• 9 airbags

• ABS with EBD

• Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

• Hill-Descent Control (HDC)

• Tyre Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS)

• ISOFIX Child Seat Mounts

The Tayron also gets Level 2 ADAS with a good touch being the inclusion of a standard cruise control mode along with adaptive cruise control. However, auto-emergency braking is far too sensitive for our traffic conditions especially in the city. It takes little to trigger the auto brake even at crawling speeds so be careful with it.

To Summarise

The Volkswagen Tayron R-Line is an all-wheel drive car with hot hatch performance, sedan dynamics and SUV acceptance. Its design is charming, the quality feels well-built, the features are plenty and sensible in their application (for the most part) and it exudes the term “stealth wealth”. It’s the Tiguan R-Line with more features and a 3rd row of seats but it is closer to a Jeep Meridian as a third-row offering car i.e. it’s more 5+2 than 7.

Prudent to mention, it’s assembled in India like its cousin, the Kodiaq so we expect the price to sit just under Rs 50 lakh ex-showroom.