Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
--'rocco
Touareg & the Phaeton. Dealers who fail compliance will not be handling these products.
VWAG is developing Diesel products because shortly America will be rid of the filthy diesel we now have available...The Diesel fuel available and standard in Europe is almost drinkable in comparison to the crap US Oil Cos.
serve up today for us. We have Diesel engine project cars that develop 100+ miles per gallon.
They don't have loaner cars on site. Rather, when you get there, they call up Enterprise, which doesn't open up until 8 AM. Enterprise will show up around 8:30, drive you to their office, where you wait in line. If you're very lucky, you're out of Enterprise by 9 AM, so you'll be late to work. And you'll have to leave work early to return the rental car.
I am sure you meant Plain Old Silly! :-)
Since most US VW Bugs, Golfs, and Jeddas come from our NAFTA buddies south of the border, POS clearly stands for Product Of Spanish-speakers. If you thought Tequila gave you a bad hangover, try a Mexican-built VW.
Disclaimer:
My Brazilian-assembled GTI has been trouble-free. I guess Portugese is a more reliable language than Spanish.
There is in place a Volkswagen MarketPlace Initiative & a Volkswagen Brand Standards Program... both of which will insure a Sales & Service Experience commensurate with both the
Touareg & the Phaeton. Dealers who fail compliance will not be handling these products.
My dealer is in the process of building a brand-new facility. I expect I'll be paying an extra $10/hour to have the exact same mechanic work on my VW. The only difference will be the "comfort level" of the waiting room. I'll now be drinking my watered-down coffee and eating my stale Dunkin Donut (no Krispy Kreme here yet) on a cloth sofa in a color-coordinated room instead of a vinal-covered chair in a cinderblock room. I'm sure the TV will still have 24x7 Oprah.
It sure was a far cry from my fast but hardly well built Altima.
I don't know how the new Touareg will be in terms of reliability but the interior is about as luxurious as anything I've seen. Plus, it sure feels good to know that it's chassis is shared w/ none other than a Porshe. Pretty high structural standards, don't you think?
The new FX45 may be another alternative, but I like the VW approach. Infiniti is trying to make everything sportier - they think this is their niche...so you sacrifice something to get something else. i.e. ride quality for top notch handling, so you have to compromise.
VW is using the old Honda method - see what the competition has to offer and just make the car/suv equal or better in all aspects w/ no weakspots. Kind of nice to know when you are spending your hard earned money, that you are getting more for your money w/ little or no compromise.
I don't know about VW's reliability or if they have improved, but the build quality sure is top notch. When I helped one of my friends buy a VW Passat, I couldn't help but to notice the impeccable build quality as well as material quality of every single component.
The Passat does not get assembled in Mexico.
I'm hopeful that the Touareg won't suffer from the first year build quality problems of the US-assembled Mercedes and BMW SUVs. Personally, I'd rather wait a year or two and get some history on the design before I take the plunge.
Then do a search for *diesel*...
Focussing on fancy new showrooms is putting the money in the wrong place. I would much rather that the dealership take the $5M they were going to spend on a new showroom and instead spend that on 1) training service techs, and 2) parts inventory.
The VW is very much a luxury SUV in the truest American sense with some very serious off-road hardware. The off road bits and the traction enhancing devices actually compare almost point-to-point with the new Range Rover.
I suspect people who cross shop the Touareg will be looking at Volvo XC90, Discovery, and top-of-the-line Grand Cherokees, Pilots, 4Runners, Pathfinder, and the Acura MDX.
The FX45 is very much a tall super-wagon. 0-60 in 6 sec., 60-0 in 170 ft, .89 g's on the skid pad.... those are super-sedan numbers, but all with more people space. The FX makes no pretense of being an off-road vehicle other then available AWD. 20" wheels, low ground clearance, etc.. it's a road car.
I suspect people who cross shop the FX45 will be looking at E-class MB wagon, BMW 540i Touring (wagon), and BMW X5
Both are very cool, but also very different, vehicles.
"May be available this year".
- D
Yesterday I went to a dealer to get the brochure, 1 dealer here in downtown Salt Lake wouldn't give it out & the other didn't have them. I went south about 40 miles to Orem where the dealer had boxes of them & couldn't believe they wouldn't give them out saying "They're for the public to sell the vehicle". Just wanted to put a plug in for the Orem dealer 'cause he was so nice.
The brochure is limited in info but really wets my appetite. The info states you can only get skid plates if you get the V8X package (maybe the most expensive). Hope this is not completely true.
I am concerned about getting good service after I buy one though.
"Marketing"...They have been published to whet the appetite.
Rest assured...the Dealers that have new MarketPlace facilies and more than one Touareg, ie. a continuing availabilty...will give you top notch service.
All dealers here are saying they will have vehicles in March/April. If they are not wrong that is not 5 months away.
And I don't know what a new "MarketPlace" facility is. One of the SL dealers I mentioned just built a new place... if that is their new "MarketPlace" then I guess we are terribly lacking here in the "small" market of Utah because the attitude didn't change with the new facility.
I was also hoping to see a Phaeton there but no such luck.
For any Questions - just post.
We always love to hear from our European friends!
tidester, host
picture it will link you to a picture of a New
MarketPlace facility.
Production of the Touareg for No. American Delivery begins in April; so the East Coast & parts of the Midwest will get theirs first. Here
in Ca. we have to wait a bit longer due to shipping time.
And for big_guy...Power is disconnected and gas tanks are emptied as Fire Protection in closed venues.
city/highway
V6: 19,1/10,8
V8: not yet available
V10 diesel: 16,6/10,8
Greetings, Tom
City/Hwy
V6: 12/22
V10: 15/22
The 12 mpg city number looks a bit suspect but the ratings used in Europe don't always translate to the same figures you see stateside.
I have seen other report that put the V10 TDI in the 19 mpg city and 24 mpg hwy category.
Generally don't expect a car not drinking when buying a Touareg.
I have only driven the V10 until now but I do plan to try either the V6 or the R5 TDI which will be available in Austria soon (can already be ordered) and which is my choice of engine (little fuel consumption, sufficient "punch").
I had the chance to drive the Touareg in an off-road area and a little onroad. (For anybody to know: I am driving a Mitsubishi Pajero, I think its called Montero in the US with a 2,5 liter diesel engine in the short edition)
First, when you get into this car, you have to admit that VW was able to show quality. Everything is looking, feeling and sounding quality. Seats are covered with cricket leather which is a kind of grainy leather so you wont see those usual cracks in aging flat leather. everything feels fine, except the foot rest for the left foot, as VW has introduced a parking brake activated by foot (as Mercedes has since ever) and the pedal is somehow disturbing when placing the foot, not when resting it. Controls are very self-explaining.
Driving off-road:
Well, as the V10 has the air suspension I must say it did not feel too much off road. I am not saying that is good, when really on your way in hard terrain, but it is good for most gravel roads and the Touareg won't see much more off-road. As the front hood is quite high, you don't see the terrain close to the car in front, which I really hated when the terrain was tricky. I heard others say that the view was good. Well I don't know american SUV's but the Montero feels better concerning control over things.
So closing I would say that the type of off-road usually driven with a car that price and size won't be a problem, harder terrain would not be a problem as for the capabilities of this car, but it doesn't feel good. For that kind of off-road driving take a Wrangler or Hummer.
On-road:
Best SUV-feeling I ever had. Even better than X5, except you really like it hard and supersporty. But for most of us that's the driving we want. Only thing to say is that the V10 is pausing some milliseconds before accelerating from 0 as the Turbo-hole is feelable. But afterwards the pressure's on.
Hust to say how lucky you guys in the US are: the car is cheaper than in Europe and in Austria we do have taxes, you would like to run away. For the Touareg it's 39,2%. So if I can settle for one, it will be the small R5 diesel. And I read that the normal suspension is almost as good as the air suspension, only in fast turns you can feel the difference and on very bad roads.
So thats it for now, questions welcome,
Tom
Tom
Its the Austrian VW-Homepage for the touareg. It should be quite selfexplicatory, even when not german-speaking. At least some Information. There is even a configurator, but be told that the prices do already include all taxes (39,2%).
Also bear in mind that these are Austrian Touaregs. There are even differences to german ones, as eg in Germany, the V6 is sold without leather and leather as an option.
Most of the words on the right should somehow be understandable, which will only be really diffcultm when there is a lot of text.
But there you may find all weights, speeds, consumption, colors and so on.
Hope you have fun.
Translation questions german-english can be answered ;-))
Tom
Also, many thanks to our Austrian friend tbreth for taking the time to share his observations. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on the rear seat roominess and comfort level.
Remember that these mileages were obtained:
1. from non broken in vehicles,
2. in the hand of automotive journalists,
3. including performance measurements.
This magazine is dead on when it comes to driving vehicles the way they're normally driven (except for performance measurements - not everybody measures the kilometer from a standstop), and this is why it's my ultimate reference when I look for a car. They obtained a mileage of 29.1 mpg for the 330d but I do 35 with mine, so again it all depends on your driving style.
And the paltry mileage for the V6 is easily explained: this engine is already a gas pig in other VW models (Phaeton, Golf R32, Passat) and here it has more than 2 tons to move, added to the fact that the auto is constantly hunting gears due to the serious lack of torque.
Now I'm really hoping the V10 comes here and soon.
Concerning roominess and comfort in the second row, I have to say that even behind me ( I ussually sit very far backwards as I am quite big and like to have my legs not crmaped) I could sit in the back seat. I would touch the front seat a little bit but not too much, so I could even sit there for some time. The back row has a center and two side air outtakes which is more than usual. With the 4C air condition the back row can even adjust the temperature individually (but thats an option). So as a conclusion: Very good sitting for two, the third in the middle is a little bit worse, as usual.
Concerning folding down the rear seats as to what I saw from photos they folded down fully and on one photo there was some angle left (not much) so I suppose from the number of photographs that they rather fold down totally.
As for Marketplace dealers...I am one of the lucky ones whose local VW dealers has always been very good, with friendly sales staff and excellent service. A few years ago, they became one of the first Marketplace dealers, and they are quite a bit more than nice sofas.
Gunther Volkswagen of Coconut Creek has a huge 4-lane wide, 8 bay deep service lane, 40+ bay indoor garage facility for the service department, and beautiful showroom. Sales experience includes receptionist in the center to greet all incoming, coffee and tea bar with cafe tables, and a sales staff with excellent knowledge of every vehicle. They are friendly and courteous. Service is the same, and includes washing your car when serviced, rentals on site for all warranty work, and courtesy vans. They are easily equipped to service $40-$70K cars to a level those buyers will be satisfied with...better than anything I have yet experienced from my local Mercedes dealer or Acura dealer, and at least on par with the best I have seen from Lexus.
I have driven the Cayenne this past weekend just to get a first taste of the vehicle...it certainly drives more sports-car-like than the Touareg will...but is roomy in all 4 positions, comfortable from the driver's seat, and looks capable off road (again, not as much as the Touareg will).
For those looking to cross shop X5s, MLs, GX450s, and the like, you will find the Touareg to be a more luxurious vehicle, with more cargo and passenger room than all but the Lexus, and on-road handling and comfort the equal of any of them.
For those looking to off-road, the Touareg will simply put the others to shame. It is in a league previously reserved for a rare handful of vehicles...Range Rover, Hummer H1, and older Land Cruisers. On vwvortex, I was asked to compare the off-road prowess of the Touareg to the Hummer H2, which is not too likely to be cross shopped by too many people, but has a certain off-road image which makes it appear capable of anything (it is not). It was very interesting to do the research...with information provided by each manufacturer's own spec sheets:
1) Max ground clearance -
VW - 11.8”
H2 - 10.7”
ADVANTAGE: VW
2) Max approach angle -
VW - 28 degrees
H2 - 40.4 degrees
ADVANTAGE: H2
3) Max departure angle -
VW - 28 degrees
H2 - 39.6 degrees
ADVANTAGE: H2
4) BREAKOVER ANGLE
VW - 29.4 degrees
H2 - 25.8 degrees
ADVANTAGE: VW
5) Max center ground clearance angles -
VW - 11.8”
H2 - 9.4”
ADVANTAGE: VW
6) In-cab adjustable tire pressure -
VW - no (may be optional)
H2 - no (may be optional)
ADVANTAGE: DRAW
7) Locking differentials -
VW - center and rear separately
H2 - center and rear separately
ADVANTAGE: DRAW
8) Transfer case with high and low -
VW - yes
H2 - yes
ADVANTAGE: DRAW
9) Visibility while off road -
VW - excellent (thin pillars, low hoodline, good
greenhouse area, small frontal section)
H2 - poor (high beltline, small greenhouse, high frontal
area, large A, B, and C pillars, poor rear visibility
ADVANTAGE: VW
10) Max water fording depth -
VW - 23”
H2 - 20”
ADVANTAGE: VW
11) Hill descent and ascent controls -
VW - yes - crawl 36:1
H2 - yes - crawl 33:1
ADVANTAGE: VW
12) Max grade percentage -
VW - 45 degrees
H2 - 45 degrees
ADVANTAGE: DRAW
13) Max cross grade performance (i.e. sideways on a hill) -
VW - 35 degrees
H2 - 37 degrees
ADVANTAGE: Draw
14) TOWING CAPACITY
VW - 7700 Lbs.
H2 - 6500 Lbs.
ADVANTAGE: VW