Touareg's little brother to be called Tiguan

Middle East drivers, who have already embraced the Touareg's unique naming, are set to adopt the Tiguan with equal excitement. More than 350,000 readers of publications from the AutoBild group, from ten different countries, voted for the name of the new member of the Volkswagen family, due in 2008.

'This is another example of people responding to Volkswagen in an emotional way.' said Andres Prinz, Managing Director of the Middle East Regional Volkswagen Office, 'The Middle East has easily empathised with the distinctive sounding Touareg, and it's certain that drivers in the region are going to have a similar reaction to the Tiguan, especially as the method of selection was so people-orientated.'

Volkswagen's respect of the public is typical of its recent brand strategy of getting closer to people, as Dr Wolfgang Bernhard, Chairman of the board of management for the Volkswagen brand said, 'This unique event is demonstrative of how Volkswagen is opening up: we made a clear appeal to the market. The positive reaction shows that this is the right approach.'

In confirmation of the Touareg's much-loved philosophy, the Tiguan name conjures the same exotic notions of adventure and discovery as its older brother, truly marking them as siblings. The Tiguan, a compact SUV (Sports Utility Vehicle), will boast a crossover appeal from urban cruising to off-road adventuring thanks to its combination of luxury interiors and first-class engineering - Middle East drivers will have the freedom to roam between cities, deserts and mountains as they see fit.

Volkswagen Marketing drew up a shortlist of five names in total - the Nanuk, Namib, Rockton, Samun and Tiguan. At 350,000 the response was overwhelming, with a clear majority deciding that the Tiguan suited the vehicle. A first glimpse of Volkswagen's latest offspring SUV in the form of an off-road design study concept at the beginning of 2006.

The Volkswagen Middle East Regional office is on the verge of celebrating its first birthday in the region, on back of a new brand campaign centering on the slogan 'Volkswagen - it gets me.'