By EWANKENNEDY
23 October 2006

Volkswagen has given its Touareg range a major overhaul for the Australia market, discontinuing some models and introducing new ones. Significant price drops are also part of the package and the Touareg, which has been on sale here for just over three years, looks set to begin a new lease on life.

In particular, the engine range has been completely revamped. The star of the new engine lineup is undoubtedly a 3.0-litre turbo-diesel unit that produces 165 kW and an impressive 500 Newton metres. The latter figure being achieved at just 1500 rpm. The result is an engine that’s on song virtually all the time.

There's minimal turbo lag from this $74,990 Touareg 3.0 TDI and our initial testing showed it to have impressive overtaking power and the ability to climb tall hills (we were in the Snowy Mountains at the time) with ease.

The engine is certainly helped by a fast reacting six-speed automatic transmission. Our initial fuel consumption figures came in at just under 11 litres per hundred kilometres. This is a reasonably good figure, though we had expected it to be slightly better. Running at high altitudes is always hard on any engine so when we a test in our home territory later in the year we anticipate lower numbers.

VW is pushing hard in the diesel market as the managing director of Volkswagen Group Australia, Jutta Dierks, makes no secret of the fact that this is her preferred fuel for VW vehicles. So much so that every model in the ranges, car and commercial, offers at least one diesel powerplant. In the case of the Touareg, three of the four engines are now diesels.

Also new in the engine field is a petrol 3.6-litre FSI unit with 206 kW and 360 Nm, the latter an impressive 100 Newton metres per litre, a figure that’s not easy to achieve without the best of engineering.

Our test drive showed the Touareg with petrol engine doesn’t have the grunt of the new V6 turbo-diesel and it’s necessary to work the auto transmission hard to get the best from the engine. At $74,990 the Touareg FSI costs exactly the same as the new TDI diesel.

A $5000 price reduction on the entry-level five-cylinder Touareg R5 2.5 TDI – it now has an RRP of $64,990 – makes it particularly attractive proposition as it now sits below several Asian SUV vehicles of similar dimensions.

The big gun 5.0-litre Touareg V10 engine (that’s right V10) has also had a serious price reduction – albeit with the withdrawal of the sunroof and satellite navigation from the price list. It now comes in at a reasonable $121,990, or $15,000 less than before. This superb engine manages a huge 750 Nm at its torque peak and has long been a favourite with well-off Aussies who love seemingly endless grunt.

The Touareg's previous V8 petrol engine, never particularly popular, has been removed from the Australian import list.

Touareg continues to forge a reputation as a genuine 4WD. It has a monocoque body with considerable underbody strengthening to give it the traditional Volkswagen solid feeling. Ally that to a dual-range transfer case and Touareg has all the virtues demanded by four-wheel drivers looking for a real off-road vehicle.

Yet the Touareg is a luxury sedan through and through, with quality fittings and a full range of upmarket items that make it an excellent grand tourer. And even a suburban kid carrier which, let's face it, is the fate of most SUVs these days.

It’s easy to drive, though the sheer size can be a hassle in tight parking situations. On-road behaviour is excellent. Its weight means it will never be a nimble sports car, but there's plenty of road grip and it’s not over-reluctant to change direction in spirited driving despite the aforementioned mass.