let’s imagine you’re in the market for a large luxurious SUV but perhaps the mainstays of this class for example the Audi q7 the Porsche Cayenne even the Bentley ventaja you find a little too pretentious so you still want large and comfortable and luxurious but perhaps badge appeal is not your greatest concern the Volkswagen Touareg then could be the one for you the Touareg is the largest SUV which Volkswagen makes and is the my factories flagship model it’s crammed full of the latest technology and is intended to help Volkswagen compete with truly premium rivals by offering a luxury experience for less can it succeed though well in this review we’ll tell you what it’s like to drive how easy it is to live with how spacious it is and how comfortable it is and remember if you would like to buy one at the end of this review go to a new car deal section where we can help save you thousands first though let’s see what it’s like to drive Diesel’s the order of the day as it is with most cars in this class and it’s the three litre v6 that we recommend in particular the higher powered version because it makes overtaking and towing an absolute dawdle it sounds a little bit crumbly at idle but once you get going and you’re cruising it definitely smooths out and if it’s not so much power that you’re interested in then the entry level 3 litre is just simply good enough if you want the kind of acceleration that welds your skull to the back of the headrest then there is a 4 liter diesel but bear in mind it does also have the running cost to go with it if you’re not doing the mileage to warrant buying a diesel then there is a 3 liter petrol v6 and if you fancy some fast and frugal power there’s a 362 brake horsepower plug-in hybrid whichever version you go for you get four-wheel driver’s standard and an 8-speed automatic gearbox which is mostly smooth although when you are pulling away from a standstill it can for in a little bit hesitant and if you’re accelerating hard or pulling out to overtake you can find it scratching its head a little bit and in that case I’ve been using this little downshift here so we’ve got full control of our gears when we want if you specify your tour rank with the optional air suspension it feels relaxed on the motorway allowing you to cover long distances in great comfort you can also raise to go off-roading or lower it for easier entry and loading we certainly think the air suspension is a must-have option
because we found the Touareg thumps over large bumps and jostles view from side to side over broken roads without it now the Touareg is a large car so it’s no surprise that it leans a little bit in the corners but it’s not excessive even without air suspension it doesn’t feel like a tall ship at sea and if you have ticked the box for suspension you also get full wheel steering which gives you a really good turning circle for driving around town and greater stability when driving at speed the Torah’s interior is different to what you’ll find in other Volkswagens no surprise perhaps given that it’s the brand’s flagship car conventional instruments have been replaced by this configurable screen and in top spec you’ll find a massive 15 inch touchscreen infotainment system as well in many ways having this large screen is a big moment for Volkswagen because it’s got rid of virtually every other single button that you would expect to find in a car on the downside though just to adjust some simple settings such as the climate control or some of the seat settings you’ve got to go through menu after menu just to try and find what you want to do and if you’re on the move it can be a little bit tricky and it’s angled towards the driver so asking your passenger for help might not be so convenient either on the plus side there you can configure it like your mobile phone so you’ve got regular items that you need access to often elsewhere interior quality is a bit of a disappointment granted the items that you touch often such as the steering wheel and the gear selector do feel very premium and good quality but in other areas you can tell that bits have been taken from the Gulf and the Tiguan which is a little disappointing when the price tag is north of 50,000 pounds that’s a shame because it’s very easy to find a comfortable driving position but there’s plenty of adjustment in the steering wheel and also the seat and these large windows mean you have great visibility there’s a whole host of parking aids should you need them and all round cameras for example but parking sensors front and rear do come a standard if you’re looking at the Touareg with the aim of carrying seven people then you’re out of luck because even though it’s based on the 7 seater ldq 7 it is strictly just a five-seater that said in the front there is so much space it is borderline palatial and there’s also bucket loads of storage there’s some there there’s two
cupholders there more storage here and decent sized Orban decent-sized glovebox good news if you’re over 6 foot tall because there is so much space in the back here there is plenty of legroom and Headroom even if you spec the optional panoramic sunroof and if you sit in the middle seat well there is plenty of space but you are either have to straddle this tunnel or put your feet on top if they are small enough another nifty feature is your rear seat passengers can move the seat forwards and if they would like to have a little sleep they can do so it’s quite comfortable actually in sliding these rear seats backwards and forwards you can prioritize either boot space or legroom not that you should need to because the Touareg boot is even larger than the key sevens in five-seat mode so no matter who or what you’re taking with you you should have room to spare that said if you’ve had an adventurous day at IKEA you can drop the rear seats to extend the load bay there’s also a useful function that lowers the back of the car if you’ve gone for the optional air suspension it’s worth noting that this Volkswagen has had its emissions tested with the new far more strict W LTP tests and that would explain why the co2 emissions are slightly higher than some of its key rivals three trim levels are offered and we think the entry level SEL models have everything you’re going to want including a simpler nine point two inch touchscreen infotainment system with apple carplay and android auto smartphone mirroring heated front seats and adaptive cruise control our line and our line tech cars add extra luxuries such as a reversing camera for zone climate control and a self parking system but this way the Touareg quickly becomes too pricey to recommend being based on the audi q7 which scored the full 5 stars in the euro and cut crash tests means that the Touareg is likely to be a very safe car as well we like the Touareg space high speed comfort and towing capability but it is let down by its efi interior and complicated infotainment system therefore if you are in the market for a luxury SUV we feel the audi q7 is better for plenty more in the volkswagen touareg including our full online review head to watcard calm and remember we can help save you thousands just go to our new car deals section for your next new car deal but before you go anywhere hit subscribe and never miss another video you you