2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun

Earlier this year, Hyundai launched the facelift of India’s favourite SUV, Hyundai Creta. After the latest updates, the Creta looks better than ever, packs a lot of features, and is the most powerful SUV in the segment. Another SUV that is putting up a fight in the same segment is the Volkswagen Taigun. The VW SUV promises excellent performance, European looks and some neat little features as well.

This comparison of 2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun pits them against each other in key departments, so that you can decide which one you should put your money on.

2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun: Dimensions

When it comes to the dimensions of both these SUVs, it is the Hyundai Creta which takes a clear lead. It is longer, wider and taller. The Volkswagen Taigun, however, has a longer wheelbase. Now, while these measurements aren’t always indicative of how spacious a car’s cabin is, the Creta’s cabin does feel slightly bigger than the Volkswagen Taigun’s. Moreover,  the Creta’s boot is larger by 48 litres over the Taigun. The ground clearances of both SUVs are almost alike and shouldn’t make all that of a difference in the real world.

Ultimately, the Volkswagen Taigun feels more of a four-seater with the option to seat an extra person if required. The Hyundai Creta can take on that added responsibility with greater ease due to its larger cabin and with its bigger boot, it can haul considerably more luggage.

2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun: Engine & Transmission

On the powertrain front, it is the Hyundai Creta that offers you more choice. It lets you pick between a naturally aspirated petrol engine that’s adequate for most use cases, a diesel engine that is punchy to drive and fuel efficient as well, and if you seek power, then you can look towards the turbo-petrol engine which is the most powerful engine in the segment. It is a crown it took from the Volkswagen Taigun’s larger 1.5 litre turbo-petrol engine. 

The 1.5 litre petrol engine of the Creta is refined and does the job quite well in urban environments as well as on highway journeys. With a CVT automatic and light steering, it makes driving a breeze. In addition to that, it delivers a  respectful mileage, as it stays north of 13 km/l even when the SUV is driven in an inefficient manner, and has the potential to go higher. 

The diesel engine is highly frugal and can easily deliver an efficiency of 20+ km/l. The six speed automatic transmission it comes mated to, is smooth in its shifts. The only downside is the drone from the diesel engine, which is audible inside the cabin at high rpm’s. The turbo-petrol engine is the punchiest of the lot, and it is only paired with a dual clutch transmission. It’s a smooth powertrain, and if driven efficiently, it even has the potential to return a good fuel efficiency.

As for the Volkswagen Taigun’s turbo–petrol engines, both of them are quick to respond. In fact, off the line, the smaller 1.0 litre engine feels more enthusiastic. It’s not as frugal as the Creta’s less powerful petrol motor, but it feels more responsive in everyday applications. On the highway, it can break the triple digit speed barrier and cruise north of it easily. The larger 1.5 litre engine feels a bit slow to respond at lower revs, but once the turbo spools up at about 1800 rpm, it starts to churn out speed at a breakneck pace. The 100 km/h mark goes by hurriedly, and on a straight enough road, this engine packs in enough horses to hit 200 km/h. Despite being slightly less powerful than the Creta’s engine, it still feels more engaging to drive, and combined with the driving dynamics of the Taigun, it still comes across as the more desirable choice for driving pleasure. And, to keep the fuel efficiency in check, the Taigun’s 1.5 litre engine gets cylinder deactivation technology, which can shut off two out of the four cylinders when engine is under a light load.

The Creta offers diversity with its powertrains allowing most people to find what they are looking for. The Volkswagen Taigun is more of a performance SUV, and understandably so, it is on sale in two separate performance brackets.

2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun: Features & Comfort

The Hyundai Creta and Volkswagen Taigun are worlds apart when it comes to cabin ambience. The Creta has a more luxurious appeal to it and hard plastics have been kept to a bare minimum compared to the Taigun. On the other hand, the Taigun has a great touchscreen and digital instrument cluster setup, which looks highly sporty, and that is the general overall ambience of the cabin. The seats too are scooped out more than the Creta’s adding to overall seating comfort. The ambient lighting setup inside both cars feels similar in quality, although the red lighting on the Taigun comes across as more sporty.

Features have become a big selling point in cars nowadays and in this comparison, it is the Hyundai Creta that truly takes that sentiment to heart. Now, that’s not to say that the Volkswagen Taigun is lacking in this area, but the Creta simply pulls away by doing everything a bit better. The touchscreen on the Creta is bigger than the one on the Taigun, although it is worth mentioning that both are HD units and offer great quality. Then again, the Tiagun gets 6 speakers, and the audio quality is good, but the 8 speaker BOSE system on the Creta is simply in a league of its own. The Korean SUV also offers a panoramic sunroof, compared to the regular sunroof on the Taigun.

Nevertheless, the Taigun offers the advantage of wireless connectivity for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, while the Creta gets rather rudimentary wired connectivity for the same. In everyday conditions, it feels seamless when your phone pairs up with the car as soon as you start it up, insteading of requiring a wired connection first. 

In terms of cabin appeal, the Creta feels more luxurious whereas the Taigun has a more sporty side to it. When it comes to features, the overall supremacy lies with the Hyundai Creta, but the Volkswagen Taigun isn’t behind modern standards.

2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun: Safety Features

Carmakers have doubled down on the safety standards they offer in cars nowadays. This is due to the government’s relentless pursuit in framing policies that further this agenda, and the buyers also opting for cars that are known to be safer. When it comes to safety features, the Creta simply has more. It even gets six airbags in all its variants. Not just that, the Hyundai Creta also gets a comprehensive suite of ADAS features such as auto-emergency braking and lane-keep assist among others.

But, despite all of that, the Volkswagen Taigun  is the safer SUV of the two, because of its robust body which has earned a 5 star rating from Global NCAP. When the testing agency published the results in 2023, the Taigun seriously impressed with its maximum star rating not only for adult occupant protection, but for child occupant protection as well. In that regard, the 2024 Creta is yet to be tested by Global NCAP, but the previous model that was tested, received an overall rating of 3 stars.

The Creta offers a better active safety package with all the features such as ADAS working in real time to prevent an accident. However, in the real world, Taigun’s more protective body shell gives it an advantage.

2024 Hyundai Creta vs Volkswagen Taigun: Price Comparison

When it comes to the base variants of these cars, the Hyundai Creta feels a better pick. Not only does it have a lower starting point, but even the base-spec Creta gets six airbags, a feature that is reserved for the higher variants of the Taigun. Chances are, if you are shopping in this price bracket, you will also want a powertrain combination that is frugal, and the Creta has the normal petrol and the diesel, both of which can fit that criteria.

When it comes to the middle variants, the Creta continues to be the more logical choice because of its considerably lower starting price of Rs 13.43 lakh. However, as you climb up the price ladder, the 1.0 litre engine of the Taigun in the Topline offers most top-end features, impressive performance, and the choice between a manual and an automatic. Alternatively, the Taigun’s GT variant, i.e. the one with the 1.5 litre turbo-petrol engine also starts around this mark. These variants offer all the hallmarks of a performance SUV, without requiring you to break the bank.

In the top variants, the Creta’s price once again starts real low and the top-end variant is only Rs 15,000 more than the most expensive variant of the Taigun. With its considerable lead in the space and features department, and along with the added ADAS package, it is the Creta which is the more value-for-money offering of the two.

Summary

The Hyundai Creta has always been a more well-rounded SUV than anything else on the block, even though the Volkswagen Taigun’s allure of performance had buyers confused between the two. With the facelift, the Creta has grown in all departments, and has definitely narrowed down the performance gap to the Volkswagen Taigun. And for 8 out of 10 individuals, it will turn out to be the right SUV.

However, for those of you who put the driving experience above all else, the Volkswagen Taigun still managed to scratch that itch better than the Hyundai Creta. Not just that, the Tiagun is also the safer of the two SUVs.

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