First drive: Is Volkswagen’s Tayron worth the price tag? Spoiler: it impresses!

First seen at the Volkswagen Indaba in Gqeberha earlier this year, the Tayron has now officially made its local debut.

Before we go any further, VW was at pains to explain that it’s pronounced Tie-ron (as in neck tie), not Tay-ron.

Designed and built at Volkswagen’s head office in Wolfsburg, the seven-seater (five in the Base version) is positioned between the Touareg and the Tiguan, replacing the phased-out Tiguan Allspace.

Line-up

It comes in three derivatives: Tayron Base, Life and R-Line.

The five-seater Base is equipped with Eco LED headlights, park assist, blind spot monitor with rear traffic alert, 12.9-inch infotainment system, adaptive cruise control with front assist, lane keeping assist and 18-inch Bologna alloy wheels.

The Tayron Life gets an additional three-zone automatic climate control, 10-colour ambient lighting, nine airbags, driving experience control (which adjusts driving profiles), wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto App-Connect, digital instrument cluster, LED headlights with automatic main beam control and illuminated Volkswagen logos at the front and rear. 

The range-topping R-Line receives sports comfort seats in Varenna leather, leather inserts in the dash panel and doors, faux aluminium decorative trim, R-Line bumpers and 19-inch Coventry alloy wheels.

It’s also fitted with LED Plus headlights (including dynamic cornering light), 3D LED tail clusters with dynamic turn signal and 30-colour ambient lighting.

As always, there are a number of optional packages, including the Black Style package for the Tayron R-Line.

It includes decorative body trim and attachments (including roof rails) in high-gloss black, black diamond turned surface 20-inch alloy wheels, a front bumper with R-Line design and interior decorative trim in dark chrome look.

There’s also a leather package, a navigation infotainment package and an IQ package, which includes travel assist and LED matrix headlights.

Exterior

Standing 4.79m long, 1.85m wide and with a 2.79m wheelbase, the Tayron is unmistakably a Volkswagen SUV.

With lines and curves in all the right places, the designers have used the large swathes of steel to good effect, making for an attractive specimen with a good-looking silhouette. 

Interior

Inside, it’s also typical VW fare with a refined look and feel and quality materials such as ArtVelours Eco (microfibre), although the brushed “aluminium” on the dash looked a bit like it had come from the bargain bin.

Seating is comfortable with good lumbar support, and there’s plenty of room for the second row passengers, but the third row, like most seven-seaters, is almost exclusively for toddlers.

There’s oodles of boot space with the Base coming in with 885-litres and 1,900-litres with the seats folded down, and the seven-seaters with 345-litres with all seven seats up and 850-litres with the seats down.

Engine

All derivatives are powered by the company's well-known 1.4 TSI  engine producing 110kW and 250Nm coupled to a seven-speed DSG transmission. 

A 2.0-litre mild hybrid is scheduled to arrive next year in 4-Motion guise, but sadly, there are no plans for a diesel plant because of the sulphur content of our diesel.

I do have some concern about the engine size, though, given that it’s a seven-seater.

With four or five adults, a couple of children, luggage, and possibly towing a small trailer for longer holidays, the engine would be hard-pressed to keep up, especially at highveld altitudes. 

On the road

With its longer wheelbase and 18-inch rims, the Tayron provides a smooth and controlled driving experience.

My driving partner and I were impressed by how comfortably it took care of road imperfections on our drive out to the Magaliesberg area, thanks to a well-set-up suspension. 

You would be hard pressed to find any VW product with borderline engine, throttle and gearbox calibration, and the Tayron is no different.

Gear changes come at just the right time and are smooth throughout the seven gears, while the uphill bits proved no issue with two of us and no luggage.

There is some engine noise in the cabin when pressed hard, but thanks to acoustic glass that reduces noise by four decibels, there’s virtually no wind noise at highway speeds.

With about 200 kilometres of mixed driving, or consumption was 7.3l/100km. 

Overall, it’s a refined and poised drive that underscores Volkswagen’s overall attention to detail in all things driving.

The  VW Tayron is a welcome addition to the seven-seater brigade, but its pricing could make potential buyers look around, especially at Chinese offerings.

What you do know is that you get German engineering at its best, a wide dealer network and the peace of mind that owning a Volkswagen brings.

It comes with a three-year/120,000km warranty, five-year/90,000km service plan and a 12-year anti-corrosion warranty. 

Pricing

• Tayron 1.4 TSI 110kW Base DSG: R811,800.
• Tayron 1.4 TSI 110kW Life DSG: R 853,800.
• Tayron 1.4 TSI 110kW R-Line DSG: R899, 900.