VW updates the Touareg for 2007
Wolfburg's SUV gets new look and tweaks
2007 VW Touareg
Prices will start from £29,465 on the road RRP for the 2.5-litre TDI 174 PS with DPF (Diesel Particulate Filter) before rising to £57,535 for the range-topping Altitude 5.0-litre V10 TDI DPF.
VW reckoned over 2,300 individual parts were replaced in the course of the update.
Among the most noticeable is the adoption of the new Volkswagen ‘face’ first seen on the Eos coupé cabriolet. The Touareg gets a new grille section, re-profiled headlights framing a new bumper and a pair of aerodynamic wing mirrors. At the rear the light clusters are replaced by distinctive new units featuring two pronounced circular lenses.
More subtle is the mildly revised rear bumper along with new tail pipes. The changes continue inside where the interior features new leather finishes and redesigned front seats which are joined by a refreshed instrument panel incorporating a new multifunction display.
An option new to the Touareg is a 620W Dynaudio stereo system.
New among the oily bits is VW's ABSPlus system which it's claimed can cut braking distances by up to 20 per cent on loose or muddy surfaces. When applied to the V10 TDI model the system is linked to new Brembo brakes to haul the chunky SUV to a stop.
Front Scan technology is also an option -- this is a system uses a series of sensors linked to Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) to scan the road ahead for any dangers and can – if necessary – slow the vehicle to a complete halt, a first in an SUV. Similarly, Side Scan senses the area next to the vehicle and acts as a lane changing aid by lighting a small warning lamp in the wing mirrors to warn of the danger of collision.
It also gets new rollover sensors that scrutinise acceleration, yaw angle and yaw speeds. Should the system detect that a rollover is imminent the head / thorax airbags are automatically deployed to reduce the risk of injury. Could be useful off-road...
The new Cayenne-alike comes in three versions: Touareg, SE and Altitude. As with the previous model the Touareg gets 4XMOTION permanent four-wheel drive, air conditioning, a CD player coupled to ten speakers, hill start and descent assist, six airbags and ESP (electronic stabilisation programme.)
The engine line-up remains unchanged with the option of a single petrol 3.6-litre V6 276bhp or the choice of three diesel engines in 2.5-litre TDI DPF 172bhp, 3.0-litre TDI 222bhp or 5.0-litre V10 TDI DPF 306bhp guises. The 3.6-litre V6, 3.0-litre TDI and 5.0-litre V10 TDI engines are all fitted with six-speed automatic gearboxes as standard while the 2.5-litre TDI retains a six-speed manual gearbox as standard with the option of an automatic gearbox.
Good point! But I think that was more about internal politics and pi55 poor management than a corporate strategy
Still this should keep the Environ- Mental-ist happy!
A huge SUV for then to rant about!
However, as has been said already the new Touareg has gone very bling. That's not for me so i think i'll stick with the older model.
(and before anyone asks.....yes,I have driven them both and the Q7 is superior in every way!)
I think there is every need for these vehicles. They are essential bits of kit and when you have a large family and want to keep them safe from all the other idiots on the road. I can't think of a better bit of transportation for personal safety, unless you drive a tank that is.
These vehicles are not for tree huggers or anyone that drives a very small car.
No lentil-eating New Labourites allowed on this website .....eff off to www.treehuggerliars.co.uk
WHEELS magazine in Australia just did a vehicle dynamics test using SUVs, some of which performed pretty well in terms of active safety (avoiding the crash). The best tested was the Mercedes Benz ML320, followed by the Volvo XC90 V8 and the Ford Territory. The Mercedes was almost as good as a Mazda 6, which was best of the passenger car testing done earlier in the year (The 6 beat the Rx8, Lotus Elise, Porsche Boxter etc).
The criteria for both rounds of testing was wet and dry braking distances from 70kmph, Wet and Dry slalom times, wet and dry circular G testing etc. Some SUVs are actually better than some best selling cars, although it is true that on average they are a bit worse. Better Passive safety, due to size most likely makes up for this, if your not schumacher.
So an SUV can be safer and have comparable economy to a large 6cyl petrol sedan, whilst having 7 seats.
Anyone here from Australia? If you read the WASP test, imagine how good a diesel Ford Territory would be for a family car? Good Power, good active and passive saftey, comparable economy (use the 2.7l PAG unit, the most likley candidate) and most likley a reasonable price (TS AWD at around 45k).
Not all SUVs are shit.
(Don't buy a landcruiser unless you really need to go bush though, that did appallingly).
Theres this thing called personal choice.....if they want a 4x4 and dont want a Golf thats up to them...why should you tell people what car they can drive???
If you cant see round them then your driving to close to it !
The headlights dazzle less than some old banger with badly adjusted lights or some chav boy with his front fogs on ?
The comments on safety are more directed to some idiot crashing into you rather than the owners own driving ability - and in that case most times the people in the biggest vehicle come off best!
If the tree huggers are allowed to ban 4x4's caused there big and uneconomical and because they think people "dont need" that type of vehicle - how long do you think it will be before they start targeting sports cars - lots of them are uneconomical, have high emissions and are quite impractical you can just hear the shout of "you dont neeeeeeeeed a car that does 140+ mph when the speed limit is 70"- thin end of the wedge and all that.
p.s i dont own a 4x4 - not really my cup of tea!
You know you can actually dip your rear view mirror to stop being dazzled at night - I find it works rather effectively, and supposedly lots of others do, because its been a feature on cars I suspect for rather a long time. And it doesn't matter if your the best driver in the world, because accidents can happen in a split second and some are just unavoidable, so I can understand people wanting the best passive safety they can get, which often an SUV affords. I think the best thing we can all do is not drive like idiots, you know, not tailgating and all...
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