Despite dropping sales of the
larger sport utility vehicles, consumers are still interested in the mid-sized sector--which could be good news for Volkswagen, whose Tiguan and Toureg rated "Very Good" scores from
Consumer
Reports in its analysis of compact and mid-sized sport-utility vehicles.
The magazine tested six vehicles in the category for this year's ratings. In addition to the Tiguan and
the Toureg, the tests covered the Nissan Murano, Infiniti EX, Land Rover LR2 and Jeep Grand Cherokee.
The Tiguan outscored both the Infiniti EX and Land Rover LR2 to take third place among the
compact sport SUVs tested by Consumer Reports. The Tiguan still ranks behind Subaru's Forrester and Toyota's RAV4. Consumer Reports praised the Tiguan's roominess, handling and
performance. However, the car only got 20 miles per gallon on premium fuel in the company's fuel test.
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The Toureg also earned a "Very Good" score, and ranked fourth among two-row SUVs behind Lexus RX hybrid and
non-hybrid models and a redesigned Nissan Murano. However, the organization would not recommend the Toureg because of reliability issues.
Infiniti's EX is the only vehicle to receive a
"Recommended" rating from Consumer Reports. The rating is based on the test scores, reliability ratings based on Consumer Reports subscribers and performed adequately when crash-tested.
Consumer Reports did not have reliability ratings on the Tiguan or the redesigned Murano and therefore could not issue a recommendation on the vehicles.
The vehicle scoring at the bottom
was the Land Rover LR2. According to Consumer Reports, the LR2 obtained only 18 miles per gallon during the fuel test, and it momentarily lifted two wheels off the ground during a handling
test.
Increasing gas prices have curtailed the popularity of larger SUVs recently, forcing carmakers to stop production on some models. But smaller SUVs, which are built on car rather than truck
frames, have not been hit quite as hard.
"Where truck-based cars are really on the decline, these are more like station wagons with more ground clearance," Fisher says. "But people are going to
smaller SUVs when before they had large ones."