Compare the2023 Chevrolet BlazerVS 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan

For enhanced safety, the front shoulder belts of the Chevrolet Blazer are height-adjustable, and the rear seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Volkswagen Tiguan doesn’t offer comfort guides on its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Blazer are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Chevrolet Blazer has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Tiguan doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Blazer’s standard lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane and gently nudges the vehicle back towards its lane. A lane departure warning system costs extra on the Tiguan.

Both the Blazer and the Tiguan have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Chevrolet Blazer is safer than the Volkswagen Tiguan:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Blazer is 1.3% to 2.1% less likely to roll over than the Tiguan.

Chevrolet’s powertrain warranty covers the Blazer 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Volkswagen covers the Tiguan. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Tiguan ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 5 times as many Chevrolet dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Blazer’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Blazer’s reliability 58 points higher than the Tiguan.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Blazer second among midsize suvs in their 2022 Initial Quality Study. The Tiguan isn’t in the top three in its category.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet third in initial quality, above the industry average. With 83 more problems per 100 vehicles, Volkswagen is ranked 30th, below the industry average.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Chevrolet above average in long-term dependability. With 21 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Chevrolet vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Chevrolet 7 places higher in reliability than Volkswagen.

The Blazer’s standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 44 more horsepower (228 vs. 184) and 37 lbs.-ft. more torque (258 vs. 221) than the Tiguan’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder. The Blazer’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 124 more horsepower (308 vs. 184) and 49 lbs.-ft. more torque (270 vs. 221) than the Tiguan’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Chevrolet Blazer V6 is faster than the Volkswagen Tiguan:

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Blazer’s fuel efficiency. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

The Blazer FWD’s standard fuel tank has 4.1 gallons more fuel capacity than the Tiguan FWD’s standard fuel tank (19.4 vs. 15.3 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Blazer AWD’s standard fuel tank has 5.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Tiguan AWD’s standard fuel tank (21.7 vs. 15.9 gallons).

The Blazer has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Chevrolet Blazer, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Tiguan.

The Blazer stops much shorter than the Tiguan:

For better traction, the Blazer has larger standard tires than the Tiguan (235/65R18 vs. 215/65R17). The Blazer RS/Premier’s optional tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Tiguan (265/45R21 vs. 255/45R19).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Blazer has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Tiguan S. The Blazer RS/Premier’s optional 21-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Tiguan SEL R-Line.

The Chevrolet Blazer’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Volkswagen Tiguan only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Blazer has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Tiguan doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Blazer’s wheelbase is 2.8 inches longer than on the Tiguan (112.7 inches vs. 109.9 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Blazer is 4.2 inches wider in the front and 4.3 inches wider in the rear than on the Tiguan.

The Blazer RS 4x4 handles at .87 G’s, while the Tiguan 4Motion® pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Blazer RS 4x4 executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Tiguan 4Motion® (27.1 seconds @ .65 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

The front grille of the Blazer uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Tiguan doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Blazer uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Tiguan doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Blazer RS 4x4 is quieter than the Tiguan 4Motion®:

The Blazer has .2 inches more front headroom, .8 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more front hip room, 2.1 inches more front shoulder room, 3 inches more rear legroom, .7 inches more rear hip room and 2.7 inches more rear shoulder room than the Tiguan.

The Blazer has a much larger cargo volume than the Tiguan with its rear seat up (30.5 vs. 12 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Blazer. The Tiguan doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Maximum trailer towing in the Volkswagen Tiguan is limited to 1500 pounds. The Blazer offers up to a 4500 lbs. towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Blazer uses the StabiliTrak® sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Tiguan doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Blazer RS/Premier’s optional easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Tiguan doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The Blazer’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Tiguan does not have an oil pressure gauge.

On a hot day the Blazer’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Tiguan can’t use the remote to operate the windows.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Blazer LT/RS/Premier’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Tiguan doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Car-Net can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Blazer has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Tiguan only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Blazer’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Tiguan offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Both the Blazer and the Tiguan offer available heated front seats. The Blazer RS/Premier also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated second row seats aren’t available in the Tiguan.

The Blazer has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Tiguan SE/SEL.

The Blazer offers an optional 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Tiguan doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

Insurance will cost less for the Blazer owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the Blazer with a number “8” insurance rate while the Tiguan is rated higher at a number “10” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Blazer is less expensive to operate than the Tiguan because typical repairs cost much less on the Blazer than the Tiguan, including $222 less for a water pump, $129 less for a muffler, $310 less for a starter, $111 less for fuel injection, $36 less for a fuel pump and $243 less for front struts.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Chevrolet Blazer, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Volkswagen Tiguan isn't recommended.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Blazer second among midsize suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Tiguan isn’t in the top three in its category.