Volkswagen Taigun Concept 2012 review

The two-piece tailgate, while providing excellent access to the rear, is also too complex to consider on a car set to compete at the lower end of the market. It is likely to be replaced by a simpler one-piece hatchback style arrangement.

A turn behind the wheel of the Taigun, on a variety of roads, indicates that it successfully combines the elevated seating position of a small SUV with the compact dimensions of a traditional small hatchback. There is a compelling completeness to the concept that hints its development is perhaps more advanced that Volkswagen is willing to admit.

With the front seats mounted 694mm above the ground, you sit 64mm higher in the Taigun than in its mechanical identical sibling, the Volkswagen Up. It doesn’t sound like much, but the moderate increase in seat height is sufficient to provide the driver with quite a commanding view of the road along with excellent visibility to all corners.

Although it rides on a platform structure whose wheelbase has been stretched by 50mm over that of the Up, at 2470mm, it is still quite compact by SUV standards, measuring just 3859mm in length, 1728mm in width and 1570mm in height. Still, the Taigun gives the impression of being a much larger car from inside, owing to deep footwells, generous cabin width and rather substantial seats.

The interior of the concept car, including its high-mounted dashboard complete with passenger grab handle, has been conceived for production, although certain aspects will clearly need to be reworked before it can be deemed production ready.

The same goes for the brightly coloured trims and neoprene upholstery, which will no doubt be replaced by more sombre hues and more traditional materials on the showroom version.  

Once underway, the Taigun concept’s 109bhp turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder direct-injection petrol engine, which is borrowed from the upcoming Up GT, provides genuinely peppy performance with entertaining aural properties, while the six-speed manual gearbox has a crisp and urgent feel across the gates.

At 995kg the VW is a relative lightweight, so it doesn’t take much effort on the part of the engine to propel it along at typical city speed limits; with 129lb ft of torque on tap at between 1500 and 3500rpm there’s plenty of low end pull and sufficient mid-range shove as you shift up through to the gears to make it quite lively despite the engine’s modest output.