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VW Tiguan TDI Not Coming to US Until 2015

America used to be the land of the big V8 and of the pickup, however customers have steadily been getting used to the idea of buying small, efficient cars that also suite their everyday needs and are created or built across the big pond. Audi is doing especially will with Clean Diesels and so is Volkswagen, but one particular German crossover is in desperate need of a TDI heart transplant.

We’re talking about the Tiguan, which recently received a facelift that brought it in line with the angular look sported by both its Tuareg big brother and the Passat and Jetta sedans. The US model has been stuck with the petrol-powered version for some time now, and we thought that a clean running oil-burner would make sense in the new, eco-minded America.

Speaking with Automobile Magazine, VW product planner John Ryan revealed the model is under consideration but there are currently a few obstacles, the biggest of which involves... urea. The 2.0-liter TDI engine in the Golf and Jetta would have to be fitted with the expensive urea-based catalyst system to meet U.S. emission standards. While the company already uses that type of system on the Touareg TDI, the cost would make a Tiguan TDI a bit overpriced.

Another big problem has nothing to do with engineering and everything to do with availability. Simply put, TDI demand is so hight in Europe that the company doesn’t have enough to go around.

Despite all these problems, America is leading the charge for fuel-efficiency right now, and the VW official said the company is working on solving all the problems before a new Tiguan is due to arrive in 2015. In all likelihood, the new model will see assembly taking place somewhere in North America.
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About the author: Mihnea Radu
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Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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