2023 Volkswagen Tiguan vs 2022 Honda Odyssey

The 2022 Honda Odyssey was a minivan that catered to families with its practical design and thoughtful features. Its sliding side doors were a significant advantage, making it easier to load children into car seats, especially in tight parking spaces. The Odyssey offered a comfortable third-row seat, accommodating additional passengers like grandparents or carpool groups without hassle. Its cargo space was impressive, with the ability to fold down seats to create a vast area for storage, rivaling that of larger SUVs. Despite its utilitarian nature, the Odyssey maintained a sense of style, with its kinked sliding doors and dark grey 19-inch aluminum alloy wheels on the Touring trim adding a touch of flair.

In contrast, the 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan presented a more traditional SUV aesthetic with a sporty edge, especially in the R-Line trims. It offered a range of exterior and interior colour options, though choices were limited by trim level. The Tiguan's design was conservatively drawn but aging gracefully, with features like adaptive front lighting and a light bar across the grille enhancing its appeal. Inside, the Tiguan boasted an upscale cabin with quality materials, a panoramic sunroof, and digital instrumentation. However, some ergonomic choices, like touch-sensing controls, detracted from its overall usability.

The 2022 Honda Odyssey was powered by a 3.5-litre V6 engine, delivering 280 horsepower and 262 pound-feet of torque. It featured a front-wheel-drive system paired with a 10-speed automatic transmission. While it lacked all-wheel drive and hybrid options, the Odyssey offered a Natural Resources Canada fuel consumption estimate of 10.6 litres per 100 kilometres in combined driving. During testing, it averaged 10.4 L/100 km. The Odyssey was enjoyable to drive, with quick acceleration and responsive handling, though its brakes tended to heat up on downhill grades, leading to pedal vibration.

The 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan, on the other hand, came with a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine, producing 184 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque. It featured an eight-speed automatic transmission and VW’s 4Motion all-wheel-drive system. The Tiguan offered various driving modes, including Eco, Normal, and Sport, with an Individual mode for customization. It had a fuel economy estimate of 9.8 litres per 100 kilometres in combined driving, though testing showed 10.4 L/100 km. The Tiguan's powertrain had quirks, such as turbo lag and delayed downshifts, but its dynamic qualities, like light steering and excellent tire grip, made it enjoyable to drive.

The 2022 Honda Odyssey provided easy access with wide-opening doors and a lower ride height. Inside, it featured quality leather seats with power adjustments, heating, and ventilation. The Odyssey excelled in storage space, with numerous compartments and a handy onboard vacuum cleaner. Its Magic Slide second-row seats offered flexibility, allowing for easy access to the third row or better protection for children in side-impact collisions. The third-row seat was comfortable for adults, and the Odyssey offered substantial cargo space, with 929 litres behind the third row and up to 3,984 litres with seats removed.

The 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan offered a spacious interior with comfortable front seats featuring power adjustments, heating, and ventilation. However, its dashboard had questionable ergonomics, with touch-sensing controls that were difficult to use. The Tiguan excelled in passenger and cargo space, with generous legroom and headroom in the rear seats. Its cargo area was cavernous, accommodating full-size suitcases and offering adjustable load floor height and handy levers for folding seats. With AWD, the Tiguan provided 1,064 litres of cargo space behind the second row and 2,078 litres with the rear seats folded.

The 2022 Honda Odyssey Touring was equipped with an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system, satellite radio, Bluetooth, and smartphone connectivity. It featured CabinWatch and CabinTalk technology for monitoring and communicating with rear passengers. The Touring trim also included a rear entertainment system with a 10.2-inch display and an 11-speaker premium audio system. However, the Odyssey's infotainment system was considered outdated, with a small screen and limited voice command functionality.

The 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan offered digital instrumentation, with R-Line trims featuring a larger 10.25-inch display. Its infotainment system included an 8-inch touchscreen with wireless smartphone connectivity, a nine-speaker Fender premium sound system, and Car-Net connected services. However, the system's user interface was complex, with multi-layer processes for simple tasks. The Tiguan's voice-recognition system was also lacking, often failing to perform as expected.

The 2022 Honda Odyssey came with Honda Sensing, a suite of safety features including adaptive cruise control, forward-collision warning, automatic emergency braking, and lane-keeping assist. It also had a rear-seat reminder system and optional blind-spot monitoring. However, Honda Sensing lacked refinement, with occasional false alerts and abrupt responses. The Odyssey earned a five-star rating from the NHTSA and a Top Safety Pick+ from the IIHS.

The 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan excelled in safety features, with standard Front Assist and Side Assist, including forward collision warning and blind-spot monitoring. The IQ.Drive package added adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, and Emergency Assist. The Tiguan's safety technology was effective and rarely issued false alerts. However, its crash-test ratings were incomplete, with concerns about the driver's door unlatching during a side-impact test. The IIHS gave the 2023 Tiguan a Top Safety Pick+ rating for 2022, but this did not apply for 2023.