@ Spie

[The_Dark_Side]

what do you make of the Toureg?
from a non-owner point of view (ie mine), i think they're a fantastic vehicle but as you own one i'd like to hear your thoughts on the subject.do you feel it suffers the same problem, although to a lesser degree, as the Phaeton in that the only thing "wrong" with it is the VW badge?as you almost certainly considered a Land Cruiser/Range Rover et al do you regret your choice or is the car the giant slayer it appears to be?
thnx.

PS of course anyone else that's owned/driven/rented a Toureg is more than welcome to voice their thoughts.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Well not Spie but one of my m8's has the V6 diesel variant and were offroading a couple of weeks back along with a couple of land rovers and a range rover. When it come to going up a very steep rocky claim the Toureg went up it first time wheras all the others had more than one attempt. So it can off-road.

I know Spie had the V10 and loved it but I am sure when he see's this thread he can add his comments.

he doesn't own it anymore?
didn't know that....anyhoo the VW V10 engine is something i haven't been fortunate enough to sample as yet although views on the car as a whole are of interest to me in this case.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Driven a V10 on quite a few occasions. It can leave some serious 'sporty' cars in a cloud of smoke.

I love the remoteness you feel from the outside world. Hell, you even have to buy the optional megafone just so the front passenger can hear you speak!!

Excellent Vehicles and great for taking the kids to school in!

the interior looks excellent IMHO, build quality seems to be top notch too.
how did the handling compare to other cars in it's class.
road and drivetrain noise?
equiptment levels?

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Build Quality is truely at the Audi end of VAG (this car should have the Audi badge on it).

Handling is superb for the size of the car and road noise.........well there is none. Gearbox was good too. Equipment levels...........I cant think of anything that this car didnt have..............

an offroad Phaeton then?
i must admit that's the impression i had.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

You would expect the handling and performance to be quite adequate, seeing as it's basically a Porsche Cayenne. In my opinion, a much better looking car than the Cayenne, but probably not as depreciation-proof due to the scarcity of the badge in that market sector.

the Toureg is based on the Cayenne platform?
really?
i did not know that

 

[The_Dark_Side]

I remember Spie putting up a very thoughtful and detailed description of why he chose the Toureg in preference to a host of very interesting motors, including his old E39 M5.
Prior to that, I've always written off any big 4x4s as stupid and pointless.
Have to say that his post made me think again.

i don't remember seeing a post as you describe, it must've been before "my time" unfortunately.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Unless you can afford a complete top of the range Touareg, believe it or not, the X5 value for money is a far more attractive option..the Volvo, even more so.

i hear what you're saying, but i just couldn't convince myself to buy an X5.
you just look like such a merchant banker getting out of one if you're under 40.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

my sister told me about a time she was following a v10 toureg on the motorway at about 100mph. in front of the toureg there was a pickup holding everyone up, the toureg followed patiently and ended up having to flash its lights to get the pickup out the way.

when the pickup moved out the way the toureg went. by went it was more like "astonishing how something the size of a bus, already doing 100mph, powered by a diesel and more that likely an auto" really buggered off down the motorway

something silly like 550 pounds of torque.
this is an engine i REALLY want to drive in either the jeep or the saloon variant.....although it's worth noting it's slightly more powerful in the Phaeton.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

If it has to be a diesel, the pricey Phaeton 5.0 V10 TDI is probably the doziest oil burner

amen to that.
/still irked that i haven't had the oppertunity to drive one as yet though

I'd like to have a go in the Audi A8 with the diesel 4.2l V8,
320Bhp and god knows how much torque.
60 comes up in 5.7s

Neil.

about 70 foot pounds less than the VW

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Although the A8 4.2L V8 TDI is 334 Nm/ton @ 1600rpm, whereas the Phaeton is 292 Nm/ton @ 2000rpm. The Audi should pull a fair bit better!

initially it should but once rolling the vehicle weight is, for the most part, irrelevant.
i'd expect in gear acceleration times to be in the VW's favour, but of course we're not talking about huge differences here.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

Surely the torque@wheels/weight is the only determining factor in acceleration until aerodynamics come in to play?

+gearing.
i thought the figures you quoted were @flywheel not @Wheels.
i only had a brief search and couldn't find any "at the wheels" figures.

do you have any links for in gear acceleration times for both cars?

 

[The_Dark_Side]

I'm afraid not.

I can officially confirm the following:

Phaeton/A8

seems they use the same components in their respective drivetrains.
i only found a power curve for the Phaeton, do you have one for the Audi?

 

[The_Dark_Side]

I don't have one for either

hard one to figure IMHO.
you think the Audi all the way, whereas i'd say the Audi to somewhere around 60 or 70 then the Phaeton would start to close the gap.
although whether it would catch the Audi in a reasonable time is another matter.
unfortunately it's difficult to find accurate figures on factors like in-gear acceleration times.

 

[The_Dark_Side]

I'd say it's fairly conclusive, as the Audi has a higher power/weight and torque/weight figure. Considering they seem to use the same drivetrain, I can't see it being any other way!

i'm not so sure.
many times have i seen instances where car a SHOULD be faster than car b as the paper stats show it to be, but on the road the story is different.
power delivery has a part to play in this also and while the max figures you quote are in the Audi's favour by a considerable margin i'd say it's not as cut and dry as you may think.
the other thing to think about is VW (part of the same group as Audi after all) went to huge expense to develop the V10 diesel.if it's inferior to the Audi unit wouldn't you think they would've used it as well having access to the same parts bin?

 

[The_Dark_Side]

The Touareg V10 is one of the best cars I have ever owned, so much so that I've thought about buying another. It has incredible presence, superb build quality and that glorious torquemonster of an engine.

i read that as quite a recommendation.
to be honest i don't "know" anyone else that's owned one so i figured your POV would be pretty relevant hence the thread title.

RR Vogue - doesn't handle but looks good.

totally agree.definitely THE most tasteful of the 4x4's although the build quality is atrocious and the diesel is good for everything except making the car move.

Cayenne - butt ugly but fast.

the turbo version performs incredibly for a car of this type....although you need to remember Jordan has one there goes the image
is there a diesel Cayenne?

X5 - footballer's wives image but good allrounder.

a very good car, shame it's image is summed up by two words.
Bling Bling.

thnx for the reply.