Touareg's exterior makeover has been dramatic at the front. Image: Volkswagen
Announced and revealed in left-hand-drive guise at its 2024 product preview event in February, Volkswagen has finally released pricing details of the heavily updated Touareg.
Still only in its third generation, which premiered in 2018, the internally named CR Touareg remains Volkswagen’s overall flagship in South Africa and is again solely powered by a turbodiesel engine.
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Unveiled in updated form last year, the Touareg’s North American-market Toas and Atlas inspired changes consist of a restyled grille complete with an illuminated Volkswagen logo, a redesigned front bumper and new alloy wheels up to 21-inches.
By far the biggest new addition though is the optional Matrix I.Q. LED headlights, which provide what Wolfsburg calls a “carpet of light” on full beam without dazzling oncoming traffic -this as a result of the 19 216 micro-LEDs contained in each bulb.
More subtle are the changes at the rear in the form of a new bumper and a full-width light bar, also with an illuminated Volkswagen logo, that connects the new LED light clusters.
Inside, the 15-inch infotainment system and 12-inch Digital Cockpit instrument cluster that make-up the Innovision Cockpit under a single-piece of glass have both been kept, although in the former’s case, upgraded with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as type-C USB ports.
Due to customer feedback, softer leather has been placed on the centre console front armrest, and the output of the wireless smartphone charger has increased from 15-watts to 45-watts.
In addition to upgraded materials, the Touareg receives a new steering wheel, extended illuminated touchpoints, a revised Head-Up Display, improved voice control and new standard features in the shape of electric front seats and ambient lighting with 30 colours.
Up front, the mentioned oil-burning 3.0 TDI V6 channels an unchanged 190kW/600Nm to all four wheels via an eight-speed Tiptronic gearbox.
With South Africa’s fuel quality being cited as the reason for the engine prevailing, neither the 3.0 TSI V6 nor the eHybrid version of the same engine have been considered for market introduction.
This also applies to the plug-in hybrid Touareg R, whose combination of the TSI bent-six and a 14.1-kWh lithium-ion battery pack produces a combined 340kW/700Nm and allows for an EV-only range of 45 km.
On the model front, Volkswagen has done away with the Luxury, Luxury R-Line and Executive R-Line trim grades, leaving the Elegance as the base variant and the standalone R-Line as the range-topper.
Priced from R1 457 900 and R1 763 000, respectively, both models’ sticker price includes a three-year/120 000 km warranty and a five-year/100 000 km maintenance plan.
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