Our brief first drive in 2021 of the new Volkswagen Taos left us with a positive impression, overall. But given that VW’s newest and smallest SUV is, according to the folks behind it, designed and built for North America, it seemed a good idea to put it to a fuller test with snow on the ground and temperatures south of zero. I used the Christmas break to poke and prod from top to bottom what is in essence the model taking the spot in the VW lineup of the Golf SportWagen.
I like the illuminated band traversing front grille, which makes its presence known come evening - it’s a detail reserved for the Highline – and I also approve of the glossy black finish in front. The rest of the vehicle's skirt is made of matte black plastic, while at the rear, a fake diffuser is inserted between the two fake exhaust pipes, a trend increasingly observed in the industry... as if manufacturers were ashamed of their “polluting” vehicles.
I would have liked to have paddles for shifting gears - especially in this case with the presence of a dual-clutch transmission that's quicker than the automatic unit that comes with the front-wheel-drive version - but that's not the purpose of this vehicle, which is more family-oriented than sporty. So you have to use the gearbox lever to shift the gears yourself.
As for the 1.5L turbocharged 4-cylinder engine, its power is sufficient for this type of vehicle, which will mostly be used in urban areas. That said, the few passes I made on the highway were just fine, proving once again that German manufacturers’ ultimate litmus test for its vehicles is if they doesn’t embarrass themselves on the speed-limitless Autobahn.
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