Refreshed Volkswagen Touareg does the heavy lifting for long-distance journey

We kick off 2024 with our experiences with the frivolously refreshed Volkswagen Touareg R eHybrid, the flagship model of the corporate’s flagship mannequin, absolutely the summit of the model. The Touareg was launched manner again in 2002 to get VW into the all-important SUV sector. Now in its third era, it’s truly designated as a ‘mid-size’ SUV in auto-industry phrases, though by European requirements it clearly sits on the higher finish of the size. 

Because it stands, the Touareg has extra in frequent with its shut mechanical cousins, the Audi Q8, Bentley Bentayga, Porsche Cayenne and Lamborghini Urus, than it does with every other VW, even its (smaller) SUVs. That’s to say that it prioritises plushness, efficiency and luxury over any sense of ‘utilitarian mobility’. As an example, swap to ‘sport’ mode – which provides additional increase from the electrical motor – and the inside lighting scheme transforms the cabin right into a Chippenham nightclub, all lairy purple and black. It’s not refined.

In R eHybrid kind, on the very high of the VW product tree, this implies you’re taking a look at an £80,000 automobile, totally laden with an acronymic blizzard of choices to help with progress on and off the street, from highways to parking garages. Fact is, you want a good bit of assist to information the large Touareg by cities with any diploma of precision, such is the size of this 4.9m-long machine (effectively over 2m broad together with wing mirrors).

Powering all it is a petrol V6 linked to an electrical motor and battery pack; the latter offers an electric-only vary of round 30 miles. As with all plug-in hybrids, a projected and sensible use case is to cost at dwelling for normal quick journeys, maintaining the ICE readily available for longer journeys. All effectively and good, however the reality stays that you just’ll be hauling round 3,000kg of largely redundant know-how on the off likelihood you’ll have to run to the retailers in addition to traverse an enormous sand dune on the identical afternoon.

Like many huge SUVs, the Touareg affords occupants a way of impervious detachment from the world, swathed in a layer of know-how that cossets, entertains and occasional infuriates (touchscreen-only controls for the heating and aircon, for instance). An influence output of 455hp signifies that efficiency isn’t missing, though the aforementioned sport mode ensures everybody on board is effectively conscious of your profligacy.

The world of hybrid SUVs presently affords no half measures. In actual fact, it’s one thing of a shock to delve into VW’s present line-up and uncover that the model makes no fewer than eight completely different SUVs, the T-Roc, Taigo, T-Cross, Tiguan, Tiguan Allspace, the electrical ID.4 and ID.5 and the flagship Touareg. Over the Atlantic, there’s additionally the even bigger Atlas and Atlas Sport.

How for much longer can this Swiss Military knife strategy to automobile design and engineering survive? The Touareg and its ilk sit on the peak of the auto {industry}’s imminent tipping level; in some unspecified time in the future within the not-too-distant future, battery tech may have sufficiently developed to make small electrical automobiles a very viable financial proposition. The present glut of big hybridised and electrical SUVs demonstrates that we’re not there but. Positive, automobiles just like the Touareg show you could have it multi function package deal, however the prices are excessive for everybody.

Volkswagen Touareg R eHybrid, from £80,710, Volkswagen.co.uk