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Volkswagen has dropped the first official photos of its refreshed Tiguan following the leak of a single picture of the compact SUV that appeared on the automaker's public website on Thursday. But while we got more than half a dozen of photos, VW did not release any info on the 2012 Tiguan other than that it will make its world premiere at next month's Geneva Motor Show and that the base price of the new model in Germany remains the same as before at €24,175 (US$33,000) for the entry-level Trend and Fun with the 122HP 1.4-liter TSI petrol.

The company added that it accelerated the presentation and the start of advance sales of the "technically and visually refined" Tiguan several weeks because "sustained high demand for the previous model has resulted in it being sold out."

Looking at the photos we can see that the exterior changes have shades of the new VW design language seen across the Eos, Passat and Touareg. There's a new face up front with a wider but more plain grille flanked by redesigned headlamps incorporating LED daytime running lights and a restyled bumper. The changes at the rear are also inspired by latest VW models as the Tiguan's tail lamps have been squared off, while the bumper has also been re-designed.

The only visible change inside the cabin appears to be the newly designed steering wheel.

We'll have more on the updated Tiguan as soon as Volkswagen releases more information and /or photos.

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Audi has done an awfully good job in keeping its forthcoming Q3 under wraps, but it won't be long before the Ingolstadt-based automaker launches its smallest SUV offering. According to a inside source, the new Q3 will arrive in European showrooms this fall, most likely in September or October, depending on the market.

The insider also told us that the Q3 will be offered at launch with three powertrains, a 170PS 2.0-liter TFSI with a 6-speed manual gearbox and CO2 emissions of 172 gr/km; a 211PS 2.0-liter TFSI with an S Tronic transmission and CO2 emissions of 184 gr/km, and a 170PS 2.0-liter TDI diesel and an with an S Tronic transmission and CO2 emissions of 158 gr/km. More engine options will be added further down the line.

The Q3 will be based on the underpinning of the VW Tiguan, with the styling drawing heavily on the firm's 2007 Shanghai Motor Show Concept (pictured above). The new crossover model will slot beneath the larger Q7 and Q5 SUVs, targeting the BMW X1.

Production of the Q3 will take place at the Seat's Martorell plant in Spain.

Volkswagen hasn’t given up on its plans to become the world’s biggest automaker and for that it needs to sell more cars in the U.S. The Germans want to triple their American sales in the next seven years and one solution is to expand their SUV line-up in order to catch up to GM and Toyota.

“We will be looking to really grow, particularly in the compact SUV segment”, VW's U.S. chief Jonathan Browning told Bloomberg news. “Over time, I think there's also scope for growth in terms of a larger SUV within the portfolio”.

Volkswagen sold 20,946 Tiguans and 4,713 Touaregs in the U.S. last year, which is insignificant compared to the total of 3.3 million SUVs delivered in the country.

“VW is simply not a player in the American SUV segment”, said Stefan Bratzel, director of the Center of Automotive Management at the University of Applied Sciences in Bergisch-Gladbach, Germany. “Their models aren't being recognized as sufficiently competitive”.

The automaker is exploring other means to increase its sales as well, one of them being the all-new New Mid-Size Sedan (NMS), which is set to debut at this year’s North American International Auto Show.

The yet to be named model will be assembled at the company’s new factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee, with deliveries programmed to start in the third quarter of 2011.

By Csaba Daradics

Source: Bloomberg

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