Touareg's weight does not help in terms of fuel economy, either: The V6 earns an EPA rating of 15/20 mpg City/Highway, while the V8 returns 14/18 mpg. This weight is more noticeable in the less-powerful V6 version. Though 200 pounds lighter than the V8 model, a V6 Touareg takes about 9.4 seconds to accelerate from 0 to 60, slow by anyone's stopwatch. Indeed, the V6 Touareg felt sluggish at altitude, its 220 horsepower reduced to only 175 at 6000 feet. Punch it while going 55 mph on a long grade in the mountains and you'll hear it downshift and you'll hear the engine working harder, but you won't go rocketing past that truck. That's especially true if you happen to be pulling a trailer or have several passengers and their gear aboard. In short, the V8 Touareg delivers decent performance, while the V6 Touareg is merely adequate in this regard. Even so, we were quite happy in the V6 and we wouldn't hesitate to choose it. The V6 engine is smooth and quiet and should offer enough power at lower altitudes.
The transmission is brilliant, a luxury-grade six-speed automatic used in the new Audi A8 L. The transmission uses fuzzy logic to sense the driver's intentions before smoothly selecting the proper gear. After switching from Normal to Sport mode, it automatically selects higher shift points for more aggressive driving. There's also a Tiptronic mode for manual shifting, useful in some situations, but ultimately the transmission will still shift up automatically when redline is reached.
The ride quality of the Touareg is good, though it certainly doesn't ride like an A8 L. And its ride quality varies somewhat according to the suspension and wheel package you've selected. There is some road vibration, which becomes more acute with the larger diameter wheels that are available. The 19-inch wheels transmit more road vibration into the cabin due to the rubber compound and short, stiff sidewalls of the summer performance tires. The 17-inch wheels offer the best ride quality, smoother and quieter, though the aggressive tread pattern of the tires does generate some noise and vibration. Steering responses are sharper with the 19-inch wheels, and more lethargic and mushier with the 17-inch wheels. The 18-inch wheel and tires seem a good compromise between the two. Most of my time with the 18-inch wheels was spent off road, but the ride seemed quite pleasant during the few, short highway sections with them. Overall, I preferred the 17- and 18-inch wheels and tires.
Two suspensions are available for Touareg: a standard suspension with steel springs and an optional air suspension. The standard suspension works very well and we recommend it highly. It might even be our preference. Fully independent, the standard suspension provides a nice ride and does a great job in the handling department as we discovered on some winding mountain roads in Utah. With it, the Touareg boasts an impressive 9.3 inches of ground clearance.
The optional air suspension features adjustable ride height and Continuous Damping Control, which varies shock stiffness according to driving conditions. The driver can select among three damping modes: Comfort, Sport, and Auto. The Sport mode is firmer, which we found offered better handling on winding roads with less wallowing in corners and less chassis oscillation. The Comfort mode feels softer, and we found it in more comfortable on bumpy roads. Road vibration can be felt even in the Comfort mode, particularly with the 19-inch wheels. And even in the sport mode, this is a heavy vehicle that reacts more ponderously in corners than a sedan. We found it was often best to select the Auto mode, as the system does a good job of adjusting the damping automatically according to the driving conditions.
The air suspension can adjust ride height automatically and manually. In normal operation, the driver need do nothing. The system maintains an 8.7-inch ground clearance in normal driving. At 87 mph, it automatically lowers the ride height to 7.7 inches, dropping the center of gravity and reducing wind resistance. At 118 mph, it lowers the ride height to 7.3 inches. We found the Touareg feels quite stable at high speeds, though we didn't hit the 118-mph mark. By turning a knob, the driver can raise the high ride height to 9.6 inches when heading off the pavement or through deep snow. An ultra-high mode is available to ford extreme obstacles, offering an impressive 11.8-inch ground clearance. The extra-high level raises the suspension to the tops of the springs, making the ride uncomfortable, however, so you'll want to switch back to the high setting as soon as you clear the obstacle. Also, it sometimes takes a moment to raise the suspension to the extra-high level. So the technique is to approach the obstacle, raise the suspension to the extra-high level, clamber over, and then lower it to the high level. We tackled Hell's Revenge near Moab without any trouble and easily drove down the Dragon's Tail, only invoking the top level on a few occasions. On the other end of the spectrum, the ultra-low kneeling mode (6.3 inches) is quite useful for getting less-agile passengers in or out or when loading cargo or dogs.
We pushed Touareg to the limits of off-road travel in Moab and came away impressed. With the air suspension, the Touareg boasts an impressive approach angle (33.2 degrees),departure angle (33.6 degrees), and breakover angle (27.2 degrees). Touareg can be driven on a 35-degree offset angle (side inclination), an uncomfortable position, we might add. Models with the air suspension have an air hose that can be connected to the system (under the passenger's seat), and used to inflate the tires or accessories.
With the optional rear differential lock, up to 100 percent of the engine's power can be used by any wheel that still has traction. The center differential is controlled automatically when the transfer case is set in the High position. The driver can shift on the fly into low range, and doing so automatically locks the center differential.
Hill Roll-Back Control prevents the Touareg from rolling back on a steep incline by locking the gearbox, which makes accelerating up a steep hill from a standing start easier. Going down a steep hill is easier because of Hill Descent Control, which detects it's on a steep hill (greater than 20 percent) and automatically eases you down, applying the brakes to individual wheels as needed. Just take your feet off the pedals and enjoy the ride. The system works extremely well, allowing you to adjust speed with the brake or gas pedal, and will maintain whatever creepy crawly speed you want it to hold.
On the road, the Touareg feels more substantial than a Lexus RX 330. Granted, the Touareg is heavier than the RX, but the Volkswagen suspension is beefier and more sophisticated than the Lexus suspension, and the VW drive system is more sophisticated. I find Touareg easier to manage and more pleasant than a BMWX5, which feels taller and jiggles more on bumpy pavement. And Touareg feels more like a car than the Mercedes M-Class trucks do with their body-on-frame construction. Next Page