One more facelift, then the top SUV from VW manufactured in Bratislava says goodbye. Until then, there will be some body cosmetics, smarter lights and fine tuning of the chassis from autumn.
So that's it for the Touareg - one last facelift before driving into the final sunset. The third generation of Wolfsburg's Made in Bratislava will remain the last. Gone are the days when a five-liter V10 was even screwed behind the grill. And so that he can make the transition to retirement properly, VW is giving him another facelift. Facelift, among other things, because of the delicately modified front including the optional HD light. We'll get to that in a moment, first the overview of the changes.
Full V6 range with diesel, petrol and hybrid
Or what has remained the same, such as the range of engines, which as usual contains five variants, each with a V6. A pure petrol engine with 340 hp, two three-liter diesels, 231 or 286 hp and the two plug-in hybrids eHybrid with 381 hp and the 462 hp top model R (by the way the most powerful production Volkswagen of all time). Everything stays the same here, right down to the battery capacity (17.9 kWh gross/14.1 net) and the top electric speed of 135 km/h.
Driving. Good idea. Unfortunately not yet possible. VW presents the Touareg facelift statically and optically slightly camouflaged. Dangers are at the market launch in the fall. Customers should then be able to expect an improved driving experience. Not one-dimensional in the direction of comfort or performance, but a broad one with "as well as". The whole thing either with the standard steel chassis or the optional two-chamber air suspension.
At the presentation in Arvidsjaur, Sweden, the word roof load detection is often mentioned. This is in the carrier attachments of the standard roof rails and reports when something is attached there. Roof load is a sensitive issue with SUVs, as it further increases the already high center of gravity. And because of the leverage, it literally carries more weight here. For this reason, the electronic control systems in SUVs tend to be designed conservatively, specifically to prevent a rollover. On the other hand, if the car knows that there is no ballast lounging on the roof, it can allow more lateral forces on the chassis side. The Touareg can therefore be more active when cornering if desired. When the carrier is mounted, the corresponding control is activated from the outset in order to adapt the driving behavior from the first meter. All in all, the engineers coordinated all the components in such a way that in the end there should be a greater spread between comfort and dynamics.
Grippy tires, ultra-fine light
Isn't that enough? Okay, active roll compensation via adjustable stabilizers and all-wheel steering are available as options.If you want to know about driving dynamics, you can order particularly sticky 21-inch wheels, which not only improve handling, but also reduce the braking distance to well under 34 meters. We are looking forward to the first test. Until then, for the time being, we are only happy about the new option light in theory. The HD headlights work with 19,200 individually controllable micro LEDs on each side, which creates a particularly fine carpet of light, regulates the glare-free high beam more precisely and can project additional information onto the road, such as a virtual lane. The so-called Lane Light should follow the lane exactly, making it easier to navigate difficult passages.
Also lane-accurate and high-resolution: the navigation that will use higher-resolution map data in the future. This is shown on the well-known central touchscreen with a diagonal of 38 centimeters. As usual, combined with the digital instruments plus analog controls in the center console, optional head-up display and night vision system. Smartphones benefit from higher charging power and wireless coupling when using apps.
Keyword coupling: Where the arms and knees of the front passengers connect to the Touareg, VW has added padding and improved the impression with double topstitching. Time for a good ending? Okay, that's done by the new continuous light strip with illuminated VW logo on the tailgate, under which the optional hitch and 3.5 ton trailer load are waiting as before. If the VW Touareg wants to tow something on its last trip...
Conclusion
As expected, the facelift of the Touareg is gentle. Small improvements instead of hardware conversions with which the large VW SUV can drive a little more perfectly and calmly towards the finale.
