Driven: 2011 Volkswagen Touareg TDI Clean Diesel

Published on May 4, 2011 by bmackey in Auto Blog, Reviews

Picture of 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Execline TDI Clean Diesel

All it took was one drive of the new Touareg TDI to bump our relatively uneducated opinion of diesel vehicles from ‘I think they’re ok’ to ‘Wow, I would buy one of these!’ When most people think of diesel cars, images of rusty old beaters spewing dark clouds of smelly emissions pop into their heads, and sure, this was the state of diesel ten or twenty years ago, but today’s oil-burning cars and light trucks are much cleaner, and quieter, than you’d ever imagine. Europeans have welcomed the diesel-engined transportation with open arms, and while we get some sold in North America, the acceptance is not remotely as high. The majority of diesel offerings in North America today have a luxury badge attached to their nose, with the exception of Volkswagen (and soon, Mazda). Volkswagen, with their premium German roots makes a good case for being classified in the same group, especially when the vehicle is spec’d out at the top level. Our tester was a 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Execline TDI Clean Diesel finished in Deep Black Pearl with Saddle Brown Vienna Leather Interior.

Hit the jump to read more about the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Execline TDI Clean Diesel.

Competition
In the land of the midsize luxury SUV, the Lexus RX reigns supreme, outselling the sixth place Touareg by a margin of almost 4 to 1. In between these two you’ll find the Lincoln MKX, Acura MDX, BMW X5, and Mercedes M-Class (based on 2011 YTD sales). Sixth place might not seem like a great place to be, but consider that the Touareg clawed its way up there from a twelfth place finish at the end of last year. Supplanting six other contenders such as the Porsche Cayenne, Infiniti FX, and Range Rover Sport is no easy task, but with its recent redesign, the Touareg is climbing the charts.

Exterior Design
The latest round of Volkswagen redesigns has brought about a regime of much simpler, cleaner designs that give new VWs a classic look which some feel was lost in the last generation of vehicles. The new Touareg benefits from this look most handsomely, going from what was already a nicely styled SUV to being one of the best-looking SUVs on the road. The lines are bold and muscular without screaming for attention, yet clean and sophisticated without being dull. The headlights are particularly menacing with the double lamp look, and the U-shaped LED running lights add a unique touch that makes it instantly recognizable.

Our Execline tester brandished 20-inch wheels that look great in the wheel wells, and once again, feature a simple split five-spoke design. Under the side windows, the body flares out along the side creating brawny shoulders without the lack of any character lines to clutter the smooth side of the vehicle. This shoulder line is most obvious from behind the vehicle, where you’ll also see dual exhaust tips very nicely integrated into the bottom of the bumper. In today’s world where many people believe overstyling equals better design, VW has hit it right on the head with their simplicity motif.

Interior Design/Functionality
At our tester’s price of $63,135, this is no bargain-bin special, but take a look inside the vehicle and you’ll see why it’s worth the price. The inside of the Touareg is appointed as nicely or better than many true luxury vehicles we’ve tested, and with our weakness for brown leather interiors, we instantly fell in love with this one. Saddle Brown Vienna leather is what they call it; we call it an extremely nice place to spend time. The black dash and steering wheel were accented by Anthracite Metallic and Burr Walnut wood trim on the center console, dash, and the door panels.

While the seats were supple and comfortable, we couldn’t seem to find a seating position that we could remain relaxed in over longer drives. Also, we were surprised to find that from the driver’s seat, the rear window looks rather small, leaving a little less rear visibility than we’d prefer in a vehicle this size.

The Touareg also comes with lots of tech features and systems that you’d expect in a $60,000 vehicle; features such as an 8-inch touchscreen navigation/multimedia system, Dynaudio stereo with 620 watts and 12 speakers, keyless start, heated front/rear seats/steering wheel, and a panoramic sunroof that opened wide enough to create a near-convertible feel.

Engine/Transmission
The diesel offering in today’s Touareg is a 3.0 liter turbocharged V6 that puts out 225 horsepower and a massive 406 lb-ft of torque. While this probably won’t pull a Boeing 747, it’s got enough torque to get you up to speed in a hurry, and then some. You could probably come close to relocating your house if you hooked it up and put your right foot down. Power delivery is smooth and strong at low RPM, putting you back in your seat from 0 – 80 km/h. Above that speed the intensity with which the torque spurs you forward drops off a bit, but that’s not to say it becomes slow. That feeling never gets old either, and we were driving around just looking for excuses to pass other cars on the highway.

The Touareg now comes standard in any trim with an Aisin 8-speed automatic transmission with VW’s Tiptronic manual shift option. With this many speeds at your disposal, there’s never an excuse not to have power on hand, and the 8-speed auto did a great job being in the right place at the right time. Having 406 lb-ft of torque at your beck and call would save you if by chance the transmission fell asleep and left you in the wrong gear, but this never happened, and we thought they made a fantastic team! 8-speeds also means the option for lower gearing on the highway, and the Touareg sits around 1,800 RPM at highway cruising speed. This means you can sit back knowing that it’s like sipping diesel through a skinny straw.

Handling
The Touareg Execline TDI comes with all the extra goodies, including a sport suspension and optional 20-inch wheels. Despite this, the ride was never overly harsh or punishing, although that may partly account for our sore back after longer drives. The acceleration may be slightly misleading when compared with the handling, because the torque effectively hides the weight of the vehicle, but this is quite a heavy beast. Weighing in at 2,256 kg/4,973 lb, this big boy has a lot of pounds to worry about before it begins to consider handling like anything but a big truck. The steering is very responsive and nicely weighted, but this isn’t a vehicle you want to throw into corners.

We also had to spend some time adjusting to the pedal feel, which we found was calibrated a bit too hard, requiring some extra effort to elicit proper responses from either the accelerator or brake pedal.

Fuel Economy
For the size and abilities of this vehicle, Volkswagen makes some pretty unbelievable fuel economy claims for the Touareg Diesel. Rated at 11.1/7 liters per 100 kilometers (city/hwy), you’d think you were looking at a midsize sedan by the numbers. Based on the weight and our driving habits throughout the week, we were pretty sceptical about those numbers. Imagine our surprise when we tallied our numbers at the end of the week and came up with the number 10.4. With our ‘test driving shoes’ on, we don’t normally manage to hit within the prescribed numbers, and this would be one of the last vehicles we’d expect to accomplish this, but you can’t argue with numbers. 10.4 L/100 km overall, with an equal mix of city and highway driving. Colour us impressed.

Value
If you’re set on buying a diesel SUV, chances are you’ll be looking at the Touareg along the way, if for no other reason that your options are limited. In the fifteen or so choices you have for a luxury midsize SUV, four of them are available with a diesel engine, including the Touareg. The others are the BMW X5, Mercedes ML-Class, and Audi Q7. The Touareg shares the 3.0L TDI V6 with the Q7, and is fairly evenly matched to the other two, but ranges between $5,700 and $10,700 less than its competition. Combine this price advantage with its great redesigned looks, very well-furnished interior, and unbelievable fuel economy and we think you’ve got a winner.

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