The 2024 Volkswagen Tharu is good, but is it PHP 1.945 million good?
When Volkswagen Philippines launched the Tharu last year, they were out to prove that they could take on the other stalwarts of the compact crossover segment. With rivals like the Toyota Corolla Cross, Ford Territory, MG HS, Honda HR-V, and the Changan CS55, the Tharu has plenty of competition to go through.
It’s painted in a unique shade of color called Polytech Blue which blends nicely with the black roof rails, black side mirror caps, chrome door handles, and 18-inch diamond-cut wheels with red accents. Perhaps my most favorite part of the vehicle is the full-width LED taillights which are eye-catching to say the least.
Like most vehicles today, the Tharu comes with a pair of high-resolution displays. One is a 10.25-inch multi-info display while the other is a 12-inch touchscreen infotainment with gesture control. I didn’t get to use gesture control that much but I was impressed with the crisp graphics and the quick response of the infotainment system.
Despite my criticisms of certain parts of the Tharu’s cabin, there are three things I really liked about the Tharu’s performance. First is the 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine. It’s not the most powerful but it has more than enough pep to motivate the Tharu in both city and highway driving. It makes 160 PS at 5500 rpm along with 250 Nm of torque between 1750 - 4000 rpm.
When it comes to fuel consumption, the Tharu can easily average 10 km/L in light city driving but it does go down to around 8.5 km/L in heavier traffic conditions. Out on the open road, however, the Tharu can return around 18 km/L at an average of 90 km/h which is impressive. This makes the Tharu easier on the fuel bills compared to the T-Cross despite its bigger dimensions.