All hail the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan – named the Best Compact SUV of 2017 by Cars.com!
As announced, the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan has won the Cars.com Compact SUV Challenge, an annual ranking in which Cars.com editors test compact SUVs against criterion such as ride quality and in-cabin storage.
Our price requirement was a maximum of $35,000 including all options and destination charges, which yielded primarily all-wheel-drive SUVs (except for one) and mostly base engines. Competitors included the 2018 Chevrolet Equinox, 2017 Ford Escape, 2017 Honda CR-V, 2017 Jeep Compass, 2017 Mazda CX-5, 2017.5 Nissan Rogue, and 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan.
Three judges individually awarded points in categories as noted in our September 18 announcement. The results:
- 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan, 751 points
- 2017 Honda CR-V, 749 points
- 2017 Mazda CX-5, 709 points
- 2017 Ford Escape, 664 points
- 2018 Chevrolet Equinox, 643 points
- 2017.5 Nissan Rogue, 624 points
- 2017 Jeep Compass, 591 points
As you can see, the 2018 Volkswagen Tiguan narrowly edged out the 2017 Honda CR-V. What made the difference in the scoring was the CR-V being tied for the lowest number of points for its powertrain. Meanwhile, in the words of our judges, “The 2018 Tiguan raises the bar with its generous size and value.”
Congratulations to the brands who ranked so well in our test! In addition, we advise compact SUV dealerships to get more familiar with the judges’ in-depth comments here.
Because Cars.com is a popular destination for all auto shoppers, your customers will likely be getting insights about the top performers from our news and asking you for your impressions as well. Be ready to talk performance with your customers.
