While Agent 001 is out in Boulder Colorado enjoying some of the prettiest scenery on earth, the rest of us are left behind to soldier on.  I had a chance to check out the new VW Tiguan on my own this week as they are starting to arrive at dealerships nationwide.

Initial impressions are good, this SUV certainly has a nice presence.  The lines are such that if this were the only small SUV in the market, we probably wouldn't have the term "cute ute."  Cute this thing isn't, it has a funky almost bulldog stance to it, but that bulldog stance is one that knows it has a chain attached to its collar.

The question that really matters however is will people buy it.  I for one think that this SUV will sell well.  It is certainly a decent alternative to others currently in the marketplace.  It is not going to be an all things for all people kind of car, but VW's never have been.

Volkswagen does benefit with its Audi arm as those interiors everyone loves to rave about does trickle down in bits and pieces into the Tiguan.  Although there aren't any new design themes here, I think they did a nice job with the circular vents and the trim detail that surrounds them.

All in all I think VW did a decent job, too bad they couldn't get the diesel to market at the time of launch, I think those would sell like hotcakes.

Be sure to check out Agent 001's gallery from Boulder:  shows.autospies.com/gallery/2009-VW-Tiguan-79/

and the photos I got this week courtesy of Glenn Krueger at www.hallmarkvwcoolsprings.com/


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