[macrothinker]

Hello All,

I have been a long time reader but this is my first post.

Some context and background:
I currently drive a Hyundai Grand i10. I am 28 years old and looking to buy my first big/fun to drive car. The car will be self driven and used mainly in the city as a daily driver with the occasional highway drives. My budget is around 35.

The cars which were considered:
Skoda Kodiaq - Fantastic car would have loved to get it but beyond my budget at around 46 on road.
Hyundai Tucson - Seems a good car but probably not as fun to drive plus the long waiting period.

The choices:
I am torn between the Skoda Octavia and the Volkswagen Tiguan. While i really like the Octavia and it is probably my first choice i have concerns regarding the practicality of the low ground clearance even on city roads. The Octavia is probably better to drive than the Tiguan and has better interiors. While the tiguan has the practicality of an Suv a large panoramic sunroom it does also miss certain features the octavia has and its ride quality is also inferior to the octavia.
So the question really comes down to is the Octavia with the better driving dynamics and interiors worth the trade off over the Tiguan in terms of practicality and peace of mind of being able to take the car anywhere.

Suggestions for this dillema would be highly appreciated. Looking to finalise within the next couple of weeks.

[GTO]

I would personally go for the Skoda Octavia. Better styling & presence in my opinion (Tiguan is too bland & understated), soft & comfortable ride quality (Tiguan is too stiff), nicer interiors, more features, deadly sound system in the L&K and a whopping 4 - 8 lakhs cheaper OTR (depending on variant). Even the L&K is noticeably cheaper than the Tiguan. I'd see this saving as free fuel for a couple of years (or free fuel + maintenance if you go for the Style variant).

Since your driving is mainly in the city & some occasional highway runs, you'll do okay with the Octavia's ground clearance. Different matter if you had to frequently visit rural areas.

Originally Posted by macrothinker

my first big/fun to drive car

Keep in mind that, thanks to the firm suspension, the Tiguan 2.0 TSI is also a whole lot of fun on the open road. There's nothing to choose between the two when it comes to driving pleasure as the latest Octavia's suspension is softly tuned.

[vijaykr]

Voted for Octavia. I agree with GTO and feel that the Octavia is likely better for primarily city usage. And the savings will help too

Between the Tiguan and Tucson, I'd personally go for the Tucson given the softer suspension will be more comfortable for city driving.

The comparatively easier availability of the Octavia is another plus (hate to have to wait for months and months after paying this kind of money ). You need to keep in the mind the exit of the current gen Octavia and Superb from India next Feb/Mar. The feedback and comments from this forum indicates that parts & spares availability should not be too much of a concern, but a factor to consider nevertheless

Let us know what you decide finally. All the best!

[GForceEnjoyer]

Voted for the Octavia for the exact same reasons as everyone above: a very comfortable and practical suspension tune that doesn't sacrifice high speed stability, well trimmed interiors and a fantastic sound system when compared to the Tiguan. Perfect for the usage you have outlined. However, you get the same explosive powertrain option with the 2.0 TSI and DQ381 DSG (which is a wet clutch unit with a high torque rating, so should be more reliable than the earlier DQ200 dry clutch unit).

If you don't mind owning a car that's set to be discontinued soon, the Octavia would be the one according to me. Do update us when you choose.

[TechnoBloop]

While Tiguan is a great car, no doubt, but its ride is on a firmer side.
Octavia is also a great car but it does miss out on a pano sunroof and practicality. If the roads are good in your city and you're fine with a stiff suspension, go for the Tiguan.
If you want a plusher ride and don't care much about sunroofs and all, opt for the Octavia!
Tiguan feels better on highways, Octavia feels much much better on roads full of potholes
Anyways, you get the same engines on both cars, so that makes both the cars really fun to drive

[sunikkat]

First of all congratulations on shortlisting 2 of the best cars below 50 lakhs.

As much as I love Tiguan, my vote is hands down on Octavia. The 2 TSI in Octavia feels more lively than Tiguan and its all more fun to drive. Agree the new gen Octavia has gone softer and doesnt handle like previous gen, but still it is THE most fun to drive car under a 3 series.
Also Octavia is a new generation than Tiguan (or even Kodiaq) and I personally feel the interior quality in Octavia is better than both of these. A drawback for many would be lack of sun roof, but then the fact that you have shortlisted Octavia says you are okay with not having a sunroof. In my 6+ years of owning MK3 Octavia in (In)famous Bangalore roads I have hardly scrapped the bottom, and even I have taken it in some worst highways and forest roads. Obviously you need to be more careful in driving through those roads compared to a Tiguan.
One reason I would go for Tiguan is it has AWD.
The money that you save over Tiguan can be used for some performance mods in future

[lamborghini]

This is a tough one!

I was a firm believer of sedans over SUVs for many reasons : performance, handling, fuel economy, ride quality on city roads, etc.
But at least in Bombay, the recent deterioration of roads in and around the city + aging family members have seen the crossovers & corolla see much more usage than the lower to the ground premium sedans.

Despite what the GC numbers say, I haven't heard of ground clearance woes with the Octy so far, and I would take an extended test drive on the worst roads you would throw at it. If it passes, it is the one to get. If the road conditions are decent, and family are ok with the lower seating - the Octavia is hands down the choice to go for.

We had the Laura TDi before picking up the Tiguan - and it handled almost all the roads thrown at it without issues, and was much more fun to drive! But the Tiguan is a little more carefree a car when it comes to poorer roads & for the family!

In the sedan space, I would also look at the outgoing Superb Sportline & the A4 Premium.

Similarly, I wouldn't write off the Tucson in the SUV space either. With a torquey diesel, acres of space, a model that would be in production for the next 6 years, etc. it could be worth a buy.
The Tiguan is definitely more fun to drive on a good road, but for all you & I know - the Tucson could be more fun to drive on a daily basis if it can absorb bumps better, or with an addictive mid-range of torque. Definitely worth a test drive.

[Unfazed]

It is indeed a tough one. Octavia styling and road presence is much better than tiguan. Tiguan is very understated in terms of styling whereas Octavia looks very stylish.
Octavia is cheaper by 6/7 lakhs and make good value for money. I cannot vote still but my vote will go for Octavia. The only concern with Octavia is GC. If the roads in your area are good enough and you don't intend to travel unbroken road. Octavia is the clear choice.

[Dr ST]

Hi,
Our family owns both Tiguan Allspace and Skoda Superb.
1) If your routine roads are bad without large potholes - Octavia
2) If your routine roads are bad with large potholes - Tiguan with tyre pressure 33 - 35
3) If your routine roads are great- Any day Tiguan because the new Octavia has soft suspension and rides like a boat
4) Tiguan’s interiors are easy to maintain than the new Octavia’s.
5) Wired CarPlay is better than wireless in quality and wireless breaks
6) Wireless charger is a sophisticated frying pan in superb which doesn’t charge. I hope it is the same in Octavia
7) Occasional off-roading with a great sunroof in Tiguan
8) Better mileage in Octavia

This is my personal opinion from my experience and hope it helps.

Regards

[AKSarkar1]

I would personally have gone in for the Superb by spending a bit more and kept that car for at least the next 10 years. A friend of mine daily drives his New Superb on Mumbai roads without any problem whatsoever. While I am not denying that the Octavia is a great car, I feel the Superb should be the pick by stretching the budget a bit more, it is a lot of car for little more money.

I would stay away from the Tiguan personally even though I am a VW fanboy. The car is too bland and lacks the sexiness that the Superb/Octavia offer at a similar price. Parts situation can also be rather annoying in the near future if they decide to stop selling the car because the Tiguan is essentially a niche market product that even VW fanboys like me would think twice before buying. The situation would have been a lot different if the Tiguan was the VW equivalent of the new Kodiaq.

[SP2490]

I was in a similar dilemma a few months, although it wasn't with Tiguan as the other option. Ultimately I went ahead with the Octavia. It is a fun car to drive, with very refined interiors and a hush cabin. The ground clearance has been a topic of discussion with this gen car, however, it really isn't a problem at all. It hasn't scraped or scratched anywhere in Mumbai city, and well the roads here are absolutely the worst. It rides higher than the likes of 3 Series/C Class etc.

I would suggest Octavia all the way!

[MohanPyare]

Go for the Octavia.
Great ride quality, same engine+gearbox combo as the Tiguan, similar goodies on offer at a less price.

I too, was in the same boat, had booked the Tiguan, couldn't get one due to delays, went for the Octavia.
Hands down the best decision I made.

It is a fantastic car with fantastic features.

[ChetanM6]

I am facing an almost similar conundrum albeit with the Octavia, Superb and Tiguan. I would most probably pick the Tiguan in the upcoming months as personally, I felt both Octavia and Superb are not practical enough for Bangalore roads (especially East Bangalore).
I have been lurking around various UK and Australia forums for the Tiguan and it’s actually a very well received product mainly because of the practicality it offers. Also since it’s a VW product the mod potentials are immense ranging from tuning, ADAS retrofit, DCC, etc. Further, the Haldex AWD is a very capable system and performs decently in off road conditions. I tried to take the VW Tiguan Test drive car to a muddy slush filed road last week(after heavy rains) and the AWD system worked brilliantly. I tried some tricky slush filled deep potholes both with and without momentum and the Tiguan performed without any drama. My vote goes to Tiguan. Best of luck.

[three10]

I’m sorry if I confuse you some more. If the Tiguan is under consideration, why not the kodiaq with adaptive suspension?

[vidyabhushan]

Circa 2017, I was in the same dilemma - Tiguan was just launched and so was Octavia vRS, both (Tiguan comfortline and octy vRS) were priced around the same (34 lakhs on road in Bangalore). My upgrade was from a Vento TSI (which I would retain) and an i10 (that I would sell).
I eventually bought Tiguan Comfortline but Octavia is such a good car that I kept thinking about it even after having Tiguan in my garage - but it was then! Now some things have changed and some haven’t. A month later, my collleague got the Octy and I got to test drive it - it’s a hoot to drive, but nicely scraped at the office entrance (vRS GC is lower than normal Octy). This isn’t a one-time drive as we had multiple conversations about our cars for the next few months.
Having seen both cars, here are my pointers:
1. Can’t beat the practicality of an SUV. People may say that SUV is only needed for off-road, our cities (esp Bangalore) have forced me into a 4x4 mode several times, speed breakers and ramps to apartments are crazy. Soft suspension of Octavia means with a full load (4 adults + their luggage), it will scrape at least 50% of Bangalore’s speed breakers.
2. Octavia is the newer generation car with a lot more gizmos and styling elements are more contemporary. Personally, these things don’t matter to me much. Tiguan has aged well and I am still very happy with it, no intentions to give it up just yet. Ownership is fuss-free too.
3. Don’t go by the numbers on car catalogue, Tiguan’s boot space is a lot less usable than Octavia’s
4. There are fewer horror stories of VW ownership than Skoda’s - a lot fewer. Personally, in my family there have been 3 Skoda’s (Superb, Kodiaq and Yeti) and 4 VWs (Polo GT, Vento TSI and two Tiguans) - I would be more comfortable buying another VW
5. I have come from a long list of Sedan ownerships - Tiguan is my first SUV. I can tell you confidently that you would miss nothing about Sedan’s driving style with Tiguan. It’s a monocoque, and it shows (in a good way)
6. Much have been said about harshness of the Tiguan’s ride quality - I have never found it to be that way. It’s better tuned for highways, more tightly sprung than most sedans. But that’s expected - Sedans are targeted at a different segment. For benchmarking amongst SUVs, Tiguan’s suspension is much better than Fortuner and Endeavour.
7. Timeless styling means, you won’t look out of place if you emerge out of a Tiguan in a suit, saree or such formal dressing - this factor can be important to some

To summarise, 5 years with Tiguan and I don’t regret it one bit. Please note mine is TDI Diesel engine and not the TSI that Tiguan is coming with now.