2022 Volkswagen Taos SE, FWD - 3,000 mile review

[Zee09]

I drove to North Carolina last weekend behind a uhaul trailer, around 70mph with periods of higher speed 80ish, and averaged 36mpg with the AC on, I can say I'm quite happy with that. The periods of higher speed kinda ruined it, for a while after refueling and 70mph I saw an average of 41-42mpg for a time. Oh and this was also fully loaded down probably to payload capacity, I was very impressed.

That is great...
I suspect 87 octane?
I test drove one today. Has many of the Arteon goodies too.
Enjoy!!!!!

 

[KCJeep]

You were driving VeeDubs?

Go drive an Alfa for me i don't think my heart would take it.

 

[jstert]

I drove to North Carolina last weekend behind a uhaul trailer, around 70mph with periods of higher speed 80ish, and averaged 36mpg with the AC on, I can say I'm quite happy with that. The periods of higher speed kinda ruined it, for a while after refueling and 70mph I saw an average of 41-42mpg for a time. Oh and this was also fully loaded down probably to payload capacity, I was very impressed.

the one thing that i haven’t liked about vw’s 1.4turbo is the lack of highway passing power, in my test drives it simply ran out of steam if i needed to pass above say 60mph. how is the vw’s new 1.5turbo?

i am unfortunately in the market this summer for an additional non-awd car and on paper so far it’s looking like a choice between a vw taos and kia soul, base model in both.

 

[KCJeep]

The 1.4 has plenty of power. It is unfortunately mated to a transmission tuned for maximum mpg at all costs for obvious reasons. I drive in "Sport" mode always which IMO makes the car drive more normally. Not jumpy like some sport modes can. I still get over 42 mpg overall doing so as well.

The 1.4 is an amazing little piece of German engineering. Its reliable, amazingly efficient, yet it will still propel the Jetta to over 120 mph and is peppy in normal driving if you want it to be. I have started referring to it as " The Shrew". I get a kick out of it.

I'd expect the 1.5 in the Taos to be an improvement, which is the way VW is marketing it.

 

[K.Aoi]

the one thing that i haven’t liked about vw’s 1.4turbo is the lack of highway passing power, in my test drives it simply ran out of steam if i needed to pass above say 60mph. how is the vw’s new 1.5turbo?

i am unfortunately in the market this summer for an additional non-awd car and on paper so far it’s looking like a choice between a vw taos and kia soul, base model in both.

I tend to drive in sport mode instead of regular mode but in general I can't say I have a problem with the power. More would always be better and I think any version of the 2.0T EA888 would be a more fun engine, the 1.5 is fine once you learn the best way to get the most out of it. At lower speeds you're better off with less throttle which will build boost but not cause it to downshift. If you get it to downshift you want to use more throttle to get the most power out of it. I can't say I had an issue with it when fully loaded down with stuff, me and another passenger and the backseats down and trunk completely full. No issues with having enough power to pass or anything like that.

 

[wemay]

Great writeup! This is a really attractive vehicle.

 

[Zee09]

I tend to drive in sport mode instead of regular mode but in general I can't say I have a problem with the power. More would always be better and I think any version of the 2.0T EA888 would be a more fun engine, the 1.5 is fine once you learn the best way to get the most out of it. At lower speeds you're better off with less throttle which will build boost but not cause it to downshift. If you get it to downshift you want to use more throttle to get the most power out of it. I can't say I had an issue with it when fully loaded down with stuff, me and another passenger and the backseats down and trunk completely full. No issues with having enough power to pass or anything like that.

Yes the 2L is very nice.
I could live with the 1.5 L as it is more than adequate...
Being new to VW I usually drive very modestly but my Arteon doesn't reward me with stellar mpg's unless I wind it out more than I am used to doing. Weird but true.

The Tao's is impressive for the cost

 

[jstert]

i finally had a brief test in a fwd vw taos se yesterday. most taos here are awd and i don’t want a dsg transmission.

the 1.5t engine an 8sp auto trans combination is sweet. plenty of seamless power from start, in stop & go traffic, highway merging and at highway passing speed. much improved over my experience in the 1.4t in the 2019+ jetta.

my only gripes are the highly side-bolstered seats in the se and some wind noise at 75mph. im hoping that my desired s trim has flatter, less bolstered seats-can anyone tell me?

now need to find a fwd taos s in white without the iq drive nanny option...

i also need to test drive a kia soul lx and chevy trailblazer/buick encore gx awd (to get the 1.3 engine and 9sp auto trans combination). maybe a kia seltos too?

 

[dbias]

Was at the dealership yesterday with the Cross Sport and I noticed two things abouttheTaos. One it looks like a mini atlas and two there is some magic going on because as small as it looks it has a lot of space inside.

 

[K.Aoi]

Was at the dealership yesterday with the Cross Sport and I noticed two things abouttheTaos. One it looks like a mini atlas and two there is some magic going on because as small as it looks it has a lot of space inside.

The packaging on the Taos is impressive, it's almost a foot shorter than the tiguan but the interior volume is only a little bit less.

 

[BLND1]

We are 1 year 10k miles into our 2021.5 VW Atlas. Very very happy with the FWD 2.0T. I’ll have to agree with you about VW SUV’s - we are fans, so far.

 

[Boomer]

Congratulations and welcome to the VW family!! Great cars. I hope you are as happy with yours as I am with mine.