Neat German trick: Volkswagen Touareg test drive

THE TOUAREG may look boring to some, but its discreet lines will age quite well.

Volkswagen’s flagship vehicle in the Philippines is the luxury SUV Touareg. As befits the vehicle on the top step, it features power and space aplenty. The driving experience was satisfying during our first drive, and a longer weekend stint confirmed that   it has the makings of a proper offroader that doubles as a luxury conveyance for the city. Here are some of the highlights:

Engine: Touareg is powered by a 3-liter turbocharged diesel V6. With 243 horsepower, the Touareg is capable of brisk acceleration. There’s a whole spectrum of torque on tap, from “smooth” to “that’s nice” to “oh mein gott!” as the turbo spools up the entire 550 Newton-meters. The engine stays nearly silent throughout the rev range, with not a hint of diesel rattle. There’s a hint of a raspy growl to add to the satisfaction of the locomotive-like acceleration.

Transmission: If the engine sings softly, the gearbox provides the equally buttery backup vocals. With eight forward gears, the car can be in sixth gear while running at just 60 kilometers per hour, aiding the fuel efficiency and quietness. Seventh and eighth gears are overdrive ratios that lower the rpm further on the highway. In our combined highway-city driving, including Thursday’s horrid citywide traffic jam, the Touareg’s mileage hovered at around 7.2 kilometers per liter.

Solid feel: The Touareg has the ride comfort of a proper sedan and has the proverbial bank-vault solidity. It feels massively heavy at low speeds and does the neat German trick of seeming to shrink as you go faster. The big SUV feels perfectly planted at triple-digit speeds.

Electronic dampers and air suspension: Part of the credit for the good ride-handling balance goes to the electronic dampers and air suspension. Even in “sport” mode, the dampers provided excellent ride comfort, shrugging off bad roads. The air suspension can raise the SUV about 3.5 inches for offroad use or for clearing city obstacles like steep ramps.

Design: Some say it’s boring and derivative, but we like the clean, sleek lines of the Touareg. The interior also has little room for whimsy, instead playing serious from the all-black color scheme to the aluminum and leather trim. Seats are supportive and major controls are easy to access. Even the cabin aroma is appropriately luxurious.

What’s lacking

Yet there are some options on the Touareg that weren’t checked off, and at this price level, we think pretty much everything and the kitchen sink should be included. Here are some items that we found wanting in VW’s top SUV:

Manual seats: I actually prefer adjusting seats manually but, at this price level, power-actuated driver and passenger seats should be standard. Multi-user seat position memory should also be included.

Manual tailgate: The Touareg tailgate shuts with a satisfying thunk, but as a vehicle that will be used by ladies and children, a power tailgate is a must.