Although SAIC-Volkswagen Tiguan continues to lead the joint venture SUV market in terms of sales, its dominance has encountered challenges.

According to data from the Passenger Car Association, from January to December 2019, the cumulative sales of SAIC Volkswagen Tiguan reached 249,457 units, still the number one sales model in the joint venture SUV market. However, compared with 2018, Tiguan's sales fell by 12.5% ??year-on-year. On the contrary, Nissan X-Trail approached Tiguan with sales of 212,629 units and achieved a full-year growth of 3.9%. After X-Trail, Honda CR-V's sales increased by 60.1% year-on-year, with cumulative sales in 2019 reaching 211,216 units. The cumulative sales of FAW-Volkswagen Tanyue for the whole year also reached 167,749 units, showing a strong tendency to catch up from behind.

Entering 2020, the competition in the joint venture SUV market in the 180,000-300,000 yuan range will become more intense, including: GAC Toyota Veranda, GAC Honda Haoying, and FAW Toyota's new generation RAV4 Rongfang, all of which are quite powerful. car model. These models will put pressure on the sales performance of SAIC Volkswagen Tiguan L this year. Judging from its own reasons, as the product cycle goes by, Tiguan L has objectively encountered challenges from competing products. In addition, the test results of China Insurance Research Institute's C-IASI also had a certain negative impact on Tiguan L.

However, the passage of product cycles and safety collision results can be solved through vehicle updates, so the launch of the mid-term facelift Tiguan is very important.

Currently, the mid-term facelift Volkswagen Tiguan is entering the final testing stage and is expected to be released this year. SAIC-Volkswagen’s facelifted Tiguan L is expected to be domestically produced to follow suit.

In terms of appearance, judging from the hypothetical renderings released by overseas media and the actual road test spy photos of the facelifted Tiguan, the front face of the mid-term facelift Tiguan L will adopt a new Volkswagen family-style design. The headlight shape will have traces of the Volkswagen Golf 8. Modifications at the rear of the facelifted Tiguan L are limited. According to the news, after the facelifted Tiguan is launched, Volkswagen will follow up with the launch of Tiguan R and Tiguan Coupe models.

In terms of interior, the facelifted Tiguan L is expected to update the steering wheel, central control screen and vehicle system, and upgrade the interior workmanship. Of course, what consumers are most concerned about is whether SAIC-Volkswagen will improve and enhance the overall safety of the vehicle on the facelifted Tiguan L. After all, China Insurance Research Institute has given out the test standards, and it should not be a problem to produce high-scoring answers with Volkswagen's R&D strength.

In terms of active safety configuration, the facelifted Tiguan L is expected to be on par with the FAW-Volkswagen Tanyue, and the level of driving assistance systems reaches the L2 level. Main functions include: ACC? 3.0 adaptive cruise, lane keeping, TJA traffic jam assist system, blind spot monitoring, automatic parking assist, and 360-degree panoramic imaging. With the upgrade of active safety configurations, the comprehensive safety of the facelifted SAIC Volkswagen Tiguan L is expected to be significantly improved.

In terms of power, the facelifted Tiguan L is expected to eliminate the 1.4TSI engine and replace it with the Volkswagen Group’s latest EA211 series 1.5TSI EVO engine. The new engine’s maximum power is expected to still be 150 horsepower, matched with a 7-speed DSG twin Clutch transmission. The power of the 2.0?TSI engine remains unchanged. The maximum power output of the 330TSI model is 186 horsepower and the maximum power output of the 380TSI model is 220 horsepower. Both are matched with a 7-speed DSG dual-clutch transmission.

With the upcoming mid-term facelift model, SAIC-Volkswagen Tiguan L will consolidate its position as the top player in the joint venture SUV market through product upgrades. If the overall safety is significantly improved, the Tiguan L will still be one of the most competitive SUVs in the RMB 180,000-300,000 range.

(Text: Louis9, He Wei)

This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.