Gas may be cheap at this point in time – below $2.00 a gallon average across the USA – but CAFE rules have done anything but relax. Like it or not, the standards are going up, and just as many predicted, the encroaching influence of electric and hybrid drivetrains is starting to affect the world of off-roading.

Evidence of this comes in the form of the recently debuted second-generation Volkswagen Tiguan, which made a splash at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) this week in its GTE Active Concept. Paired with the 148-horsepower gas motor are two electric motors, the front making 54 horsepower and the rear making 114 horsepower, and peak horsepower of the vehicle is rated at 221. The vehicle appears to be an AWD type, so high- and low-range four-wheel-drive is completely off the menu.

The three motors work in synchrony with one another, with the rear motor being the primary engine and the front motors kicking on when extra power is demanded. A system of checks and balances between the motor trio keeps them all turned off or on to maximize efficiency or power, whichever one is more important in a given situation. The driver can dictate the Tiguan’s behavior through the center console switch, which controls the 4MOTION Active Control unit and has six settings: On Road, Offroad, Sport, Snow, Charge, and Battery Hold.

Volkswagen estimates the GTE Active Concept has a travel range of up to 580 miles, when factoring in the 16.9-gallon gas tank and battery capacity of 12.4 kWh. Would this concept Volkswagen do the trick for you as an off-roader? Or is it barking up the wrong tree? Let us know in the comments below.