Rugged LuXury - Ten Years of the Touareg

In the market for a new SUV? In particular, a certain German SUV? If the Touareg has been on your short wish list, now might be the time to pull the trigger with the special edition Touareg X. 

The Touareg X has been released to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the Touareg’s debut. The Touareg happens to be a former whip of mine, and one of my favorite vehicles in our line up. The Touareg has a perfect mix of luxury, performance, and practicality with it’s available super efficient clean diesel engine. When I was driving my TDI Touareg, I achieved in the low 30’s on the New Jersey Turnpike traveling back and forth from NYC to Philadelphia. That’s unbelievable fuel economy for a 5,000 lb vehicle. 

The name Touareg originates from the name of a North African tribe called the Tuareg. They are traditionally a nomadic group that moves throughout the Saharan parts of Niger, Mali, and Algeria. The Touareg has an elegant beauty about it, yet is as strong as the Tuareg people, coming equipped with 4 motion AWD and a towing capacity of over 7,000 lb. That’s tough.

The Touareg is a love child of a joint effort by Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche. They wanted to create off-road SUVs that would still perform like a sports car. The result was the Volkswagen Group PL71 platform, which is shared by the Touareg, Porsche Cayenne, and Audi Q7. These vehicles are all currently built in Bratislava, Slovakia.

The Touareg has had some awesome engines available in the U.S. throughout the years, including the petrol W12 engine and the V10 TDI engine. Although these powerhouse engines were beyond awesome for its performance, they weren’t the best on the pocketbook. To accommodate the best of both worlds, the Touareg now is equipped with 3 different efficient engines - A petrol 3.6L VR6, a 3.0L V6 TDI, and a supercharged 3.0L V6 gas engine and electric motor combined Hybrid engine. 

In my opinion, the Touareg TDI is the best option all around. This luxury vehicle’s EPA estimated fuel economy of 20 city/29 highway, it has a range of 765 miles on one tank. That makes trips from DC to Chicago possible without stopping for fuel. And unlike most SUVs, it picks up speed quickly with smooth transitions because of it’s DSG transmission and it’s 406 lb-ft of torque. For a moment you forget that you’re driving a mid-size SUV! The Touareg is also outfitted with premium features like 12-way power-adjustable, heated front seats with driver’s seat memory, heated side mirrors with integrated turn signals and memory, and keyless access with remote start. 

Fortunately for you potential future Touareg owners, the special edition Touareg X will be equipped with a TDI engine, based on the Lux trim level. The Touareg X will be available only in a special Moonlight Blue exterior with a beautiful Truffle Brown leather interior. Special features also will include the following:

• 19-inch ‘Moab’ alloy wheels
• “Touareg X” badging and scuff plates
• Ambient lighting with illuminated doorsills
• LED taillights and LED license plate lightings
• Piano black interior trim inserts
• Ebony wood trim decor
• Alloy pedals

The Touareg X will be a limited production model with only 1000 units to be distributed. Luckily for you, there’s one available on Stohlman VW’s lot right now. Been itching to test drive a Touareg? I’d say there’s no better time than now. For more information about the Touareg X, tweet us @stohlmanauto. Until next time!

Esther Cho
Volkswagen Product Specialist
@esther_ch5