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As we spent our Christmas and New Year break on the Continent I thought I'd share some experiences. We covered 2771 miles on British, French, Belgian, Dutch, German and Polish roads with sun, rain, sleet, ice and snow and temperatures ranging from 10C to -20C and I'm pleased to say I'm still happy with the choice I made with the car.
1. Before the trip knowing that winter tyres are compulsory during winter conditions in Germany I bought proper rubber for my Tig. I read lots of good reports on Nokian tyres so purchased WR SUV 3 winter tyres. I can't recommend them enough: good wet grip, fantastic on the snow and C class fuel efficiency. A little bit noisier than summer Pirelli Scorpion Verde but hey these are winter tyres with very different tread. Even though I have 2WD Tiguan I wasn't afraid to drive on snowy country lanes in Germany and Poland.
![Tire Wheel Automotive tire Tread Synthetic rubber]()
2. German autobahns gave me the possibility to check the proper speed. I managed to reach 180 kph (i.e. some 111 mph) but didn't pushed harder even though it wasn't a top speed. 18" winter rubber with softer compound made a car a bit soft and wavy around that speed so I kept safe 140-150 kph (85-95 mph). I'm sure cars with 19" (SEL) and 20" (R-Line) tyres will be more firm.
3. The lowest temperature we experienced was -23C. Even though my Tig was always up and running and never missed a bit. Very happy that VW equipped new Tiguan with quick heater as most of the diesels need a lot of time to warm up the interior. Couple minutes and Tig's interior was warm and nice. The only failure was frozen Halfords -5C screenwasher so I had to buy -20C concentrate to de-ice it.
![Wheel Tire Sky Car Land vehicle]()
![Vehicle registration plate Automotive tail & brake light Car Tire Sky]()
![Car Speedometer Vehicle Gauge Automotive design]()
4. At one of the Polish BP garages I topped up AdBlue. After around 2700 miles covered from new my AdBlue indication showed 4000kms range (so around half tank of AdBlue left). They had both pump with AdBlue and bottles but I decided to use a pump. No problem with filling up, nozzle fitted perfectly (even though this pump was mainly used by lorries). And fantastic price around 40p per litre. What not to like…
![Motor vehicle Automotive lighting Font Material property Automotive exterior]()
5. I must admit that Tig's tailgate gets dirty almost instantly. And what's even worse opening handle is dirty as well. So those of you who ordered cars with electric tailgate made a very good move.
6. On the way back to the UK (in Holland and Belgium) in drizzly conditions and temperatures around 0C I had some Front Assist defect warnings. So had to switch off Front Assist completely in anticipation of any sudden unexpected braking in icy conditions. The reason of this failure was ice that was building up all over the front of the car including radar sensor in VW logo. One stop on the services and quick de-icing solved the issue.
7. Obvious items to buy when travelling to Europe are headlight beam converters. Those of you with SEL and R-lines won't bother as you can adjust your LED headlights from infotainment menu. But those with S and SE trims must stick some converters. I bought 2 sets (just in case) from this website. Unfortunately I've been flashed several times by oncoming cars in Germany and this prompted me to check the headlights pattern. As you see from the photo below the beam pattern is simply almost identical to the original UK one i.e. not deflected to the right hand side. The pattern is not even a flat one. There is still clearly visible beam that shines to the left. I suspect that these converters are not compatible with Tig's H7 clear glass headlights however nothing has been mentioned about this in the fitting instructions. I have contacted the seller and reported this and been offered refund but just a warning to stay away from this particular type. It would be good to know whether Eurolites converters do the job properly.
![Automotive parking light Car Grille Automotive tail & brake light Automotive lighting]()
![Automotive lighting Rectangle Window Automotive design Sky]()
1. Before the trip knowing that winter tyres are compulsory during winter conditions in Germany I bought proper rubber for my Tig. I read lots of good reports on Nokian tyres so purchased WR SUV 3 winter tyres. I can't recommend them enough: good wet grip, fantastic on the snow and C class fuel efficiency. A little bit noisier than summer Pirelli Scorpion Verde but hey these are winter tyres with very different tread. Even though I have 2WD Tiguan I wasn't afraid to drive on snowy country lanes in Germany and Poland.
2. German autobahns gave me the possibility to check the proper speed. I managed to reach 180 kph (i.e. some 111 mph) but didn't pushed harder even though it wasn't a top speed. 18" winter rubber with softer compound made a car a bit soft and wavy around that speed so I kept safe 140-150 kph (85-95 mph). I'm sure cars with 19" (SEL) and 20" (R-Line) tyres will be more firm.
3. The lowest temperature we experienced was -23C. Even though my Tig was always up and running and never missed a bit. Very happy that VW equipped new Tiguan with quick heater as most of the diesels need a lot of time to warm up the interior. Couple minutes and Tig's interior was warm and nice. The only failure was frozen Halfords -5C screenwasher so I had to buy -20C concentrate to de-ice it.
4. At one of the Polish BP garages I topped up AdBlue. After around 2700 miles covered from new my AdBlue indication showed 4000kms range (so around half tank of AdBlue left). They had both pump with AdBlue and bottles but I decided to use a pump. No problem with filling up, nozzle fitted perfectly (even though this pump was mainly used by lorries). And fantastic price around 40p per litre. What not to like…
5. I must admit that Tig's tailgate gets dirty almost instantly. And what's even worse opening handle is dirty as well. So those of you who ordered cars with electric tailgate made a very good move.
6. On the way back to the UK (in Holland and Belgium) in drizzly conditions and temperatures around 0C I had some Front Assist defect warnings. So had to switch off Front Assist completely in anticipation of any sudden unexpected braking in icy conditions. The reason of this failure was ice that was building up all over the front of the car including radar sensor in VW logo. One stop on the services and quick de-icing solved the issue.
7. Obvious items to buy when travelling to Europe are headlight beam converters. Those of you with SEL and R-lines won't bother as you can adjust your LED headlights from infotainment menu. But those with S and SE trims must stick some converters. I bought 2 sets (just in case) from this website. Unfortunately I've been flashed several times by oncoming cars in Germany and this prompted me to check the headlights pattern. As you see from the photo below the beam pattern is simply almost identical to the original UK one i.e. not deflected to the right hand side. The pattern is not even a flat one. There is still clearly visible beam that shines to the left. I suspect that these converters are not compatible with Tig's H7 clear glass headlights however nothing has been mentioned about this in the fitting instructions. I have contacted the seller and reported this and been offered refund but just a warning to stay away from this particular type. It would be good to know whether Eurolites converters do the job properly.
!!!
