VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG
New version of the big 4x4 is now Volkswagen’s flagship model. Is it up to the task?
You might have noticed that the Volkswagen Phaeton – one-time vessel of a mighty 6.0-litre W12 engine shared with Bentley – is no longer on sale. But it’s more likely that its culling from the range in 2016 passed you by entirely, such was the glacial rate at which people bought them and the model’s resulting rarity. Either way, it’s a development that promotes the subject of this week’s road test to nothing less than flagship status for one of the world’s largest car makers.
We’re talking about the thirdgeneration Touareg, which Volkswagen describes as a new high-water mark for the brand in terms of design and technology. Concerning the tech, it’s difficult to disagree, because you might say that this SUV borrows a chassis from Porsche, elements of its driveline from Lamborghini, suspension componentry from Bentley, semiautonomous driving features from Audi and, as an option, a new Innovision Cockpit infotainment system, with displays measuring no less than 12in and a Tesla-esque 15in.
And yet perhaps the most interesting element of this new Touareg, which arrives 16 years after the original, is that it has been styled for China, not Europe. Perhaps that’s understandable, given SUVS now account for almost half of sales in the largest market for new cars globally. It’s why the Touareg comes bedecked with status-enhancing chrome (although European buyers will have the option of black) and why it’s even larger than its predecessor, in length surpassing the ‘five-metre barrier’ to which designers on this side of the world so diligently adhere. And as if to cement the fact that this is now what we used to call a soft-roader first and foremost, the Touareg isn’t available with a low-range gearbox for the first time. Fewer than 5% ordered it last time out and Volkswagen has got the message.
Superficially, it would seem there’s plenty going for this car, but does it have the luxury to compete with an Audi Q7, the dynamism to tempt BMW X5 owners or the style to bear comparison with Volvo’s XC90? Let’s find out.
both will be joined in due course by a 335bhp V6 petrol, a mighty twin-turbo V8 and the inevitable plug-in hybrid. Power is channelled through an eight-speed shift-by-wire automatic that can cope with 738lb ft, although it need only marshal an admittedly generous 443lb ft in this case. In place of a traditional transfer box is a centre differential lock capable of delivering up to 70% of torque to the front axle and as much as 80% to the rear. The split depends not only on conditions under tyre but also which of the car’s driving modes – ranging from Eco through Comfort to Snow, Sand and Off-road Expert – you’ve selected via the rotary control on the transmission tunnel.
An Off-road pack, available as an option, equips the car with a 90-litre fuel tank (75 is standard), various protective measures for the underbody and an additional towing eye. Many of these cars are ordered with a tow ball (now electrically retracting) and the maximum towing weight remains at 3500kg (braked, up to a 12% incline).
As standard, the car is suspended using steel springs. Our test car is equipped with the optional (£2370) two-chamber pneumatic alternatives (the Bentley Bentayga, Cayenne and Lamborghini Urus use a threechamber system) although not 48V electromechanical anti-roll bars (as used on its sibling cars), which are part of a £4890 chassis pack that also includes the air suspension. Above 75mph, the air springs lower the body by 15-25mm but they can raise it as much as 70mm in Special Terrain Level mode, increasing the front and rear ramp angles to 31deg. The VW’S breakover angle also increases substantially, from 18.5deg to 25deg, although its maximum gradient capability of 60% is unaffected. Below 23mph, the four-wheel-steering system (shared with the Urus) turns the rear wheels at an opposing angle to the front wheels for a turning circle comparable with that of a Golf.