Volkswagen’s UK arm is aiming to sell 3,700 Touareg luxury SUVs in the model’s first full year, taking around 10% of the “large 4×4 sector” which the company defines as models longer than 4.5 metres, writes just-auto.com deputy editor Graeme Roberts.
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VW will launch the Touareg, a model jointly developed with Porsche, on May 1 and expects to sell about 2,500 this year.
Four engines will be offered from launch – a 174PS five-cylinder 2.5-litre turbodiesel, 220PS 3.2-litre petrol V6, 310PS 4.2-litre petrol V8 and a 313PS five-litre V10 turbodiesel (essentially the same engine as recently launched in the Phaeton luxury limousine) that delivers a stump-pulling 553 lbs/ft of torque at just 2,000rpm. Prices range from £28,600 for the six-speed manual 2.5TDi up to £50,440 for the V10. A V12 petrol model will be launched later.
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While acknowledging the growing anti-big SUV backlash in the USA, VW GB says the luxury 4×4 segment in the UK is still growing and is forecasting sales of 44,286 in 2004, their contender’s first full year, up from 37,464 in 1998.
The entry-level 2.5-litre diesel model is expected to account for the bulk of sales – 57% – followed by the petrol 3.2 (24%), the V10TDi (15%) and the 4.2 petrol V8 (4%).
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By GlobalDataOnly the 2.5TDi and 3.2-litre V6 offer a manual transmission; all other variants have a six-speed Tiptronic automatic specially developed in Japan to handle the V10’s massive torque. Self-shifters are expected to account for 94% of UK sales.
Standard equipment on all models includes alloy wheels, separate opening rear window, ‘walnut’ interior trim inserts, dual-zone climate control, auto-locking doors, cruise control, 10-speaker radio-CD player, trip computer and leather-rimmed steering wheel with remote stereo controls.
Ready for the rough stuff, the 4MOTION permanent four-wheel drive system splits torque 50/50 front to rear under normal driving conditions but four wheel electronic diff locks will send all the torque to just the one wheel left with grip on the landscape if necessary. An automatic centre diff lock with a manual override can send all the torque to just one axle and there is also ‘hill descent assist’ which uses the anti-lock brake system to slow each wheel independently as you sneak down a steep slope.
Come to a halt halfway up a steep hill, perhaps to survey the remainder of the climb, and ‘hill start assist’ kicks in, automatically braking the Touareg. Gently press the accelerator and the brakes release smoothly and on you go.
Going further up the range from the base 2.5TDi adds more equipment, such as the V10TDi’s electronically-controlled air suspension, and there is also a vast options list that may well mean no two Touaregs sold in the UK are alike.
It’s a complex vehicle that requires familiarisation – even the level of footwell illumination can be tailored to an owner’s taste – and that’s before you explore its considerable offroad capabilities so VW GB dealers will need to set aside some time for the new vehicle handover, and the new owner would certainly benefit from a detailed study of the handbook. As for learning what his vehicle can do off tarmac, every owner will be offered a complimentary full day of offroad experience at one of six sites across the UK.
