Rockford Rocks the Tiguan

Don't be deceived by the looks of the VW Tiguan. It isn't some compact SUV for your mom or maybe your sister. It's actually a versatile body style and the vehicle can easily be a custom performance car with the addition of a turbo kit. And of course with an aftermarket audio system you can quickly transform the Tiguan into a raucous sonic machine with some Rockford gear, as seen here (no pun intended).



Rockford was tapped by VW to recreate the interior of the car for the SEMA Show by adding a 1400 watt sound system, while leaving the factory source unit intact. This was made possible by using a sophisticated interface, the Rockford 3Sixty. This product allowed them to keep the factory radio while adding aftermarket amps and speakers. The 3Sixty additionally has a bass controller, which was installed in a lower compartment in the center stack. Turned a quarter of the way, you could feel the low frequencies starting to play through your internal organs. Any more, and it would probably be safer for your ears to be outside the car.



We liked that the Tiguan has a single-disc slot in the head unit, as well as a disc changer and a mini-jack aux input in the center console. You can play CDs, DVDs, files from an SD card, iPod or from the internal hard-drive. VW didn't skimp on anything — even if most of us don't really need discs players anymore.





Powering the system are Rockford's formidable amps. Their amplifiers used to be almost as great in size as they were in power, but recently the company's engineers have shrunk the chassis and improved the performance. Last year's Power T1000-1bd is a 1000-watt mono amp that powers two P3D410 dual-voicecoil Punch subwoofers in a vented enclosure in the trunk. To complement the car's style and badging, the system's creators incorporated a VW badge into the design, mimicking the front-end of the car, with the subs serving as "headlights". That's symmetry for you.



The four-channel Power T400-4 amp takes care of the component speakers, Rockford's 6.5" mid-bass drivers in the front doors and hard-dome tweeters in the sail panels. The rear doors have 5.25" mids, with the tweeters mounted by the door handles.



All in all, we're talking about a ton of watts combined with 295hp to create a vehicle that is as powerful under the hood as it is in the cabin.



Listening In

This Tiguan was built to be a show car. That usually means the audio designers want it to play for an audience outside the vehicle as well as for passengers inside. Sometimes this dual-purpose can adversely affect the audio fidelity in the cabin but in this case, the Tiguan proved to be more than a one-trick pony.

I listened to some test tracks, starting with a recording of drums and bass. I had to turn down the bass via the controller to achieve a realistic sound. After all, this system was meant to thump, but with a lower setting the sound quality was decent enough.

I moved on to another track but the mid-bass was a little muddled. However, the highs on the vocals were very good. There was also a surprisingly good soundstage depth and breadth.

I finished with Rage Against the Machine's "Take the Power Back". The Rockford Fosgate system had no problem conveying the force of this track. The guitar sound was hard and sharp. And the system's almost overwhelming bass (which works on a song like this) put you in the audience, as if it were a concert. If you can't make it to a live performance, this may be the next best thing!



Rockford has a reputation for building heart-pounding audio products and that's definitely evidenced here with this add-on system. You don't need to go to 11 to really feel the music. And you don't have to mess with a new car's dash and factory radio to be able to get the aftermarket power that audio enthusiasts crave. And non-enthusiasts need only sit in the vehicle once and crank the stereo to know what driving with power really means.