Volkswagen Taigo spotted running around nearly naked

The Volkswagen Taigo is a coupe-like crossover SUV that should soon be officially introduced in Europe. In the meantime, a nearly camo-free prototype vehicle has been spotted somewhere in Germany.

The only thing that screams ‘pre-production test car’ is the measuring equipment clearly seen on the wheels and the roof (with an antenna). Other than that, all the bodywork and lighting look finalized.

One thing we noticed is that many details – the front air intakes, the DRL niches and the radiator grille, to name just a few – look much tamer and less sporty on the current car than they did on the first sketches (watch the video for a comparison). Of course, there is always something like a 1-in-100 chance of these details coming back with the reveal of the production car, but we wouldn’t hold our breath.

The Taigo comes based on the same chassis as Nivus, a CUV for Brazil that ships in its home country with a 1.0-liter turbocharged engine and six-speed automatic transmission. Its power comes close to 130 PS (128 hp / 96 kW). Volkswagen said a while ago that customers in Europe needed greater powertrain diversity than that, including ‘fuel-efficient TSI engines’, so that’s what we should expect in this regard.