Much the same as many ground breakers, the first generation Volkswagen Touareg sought to set the world on fire with its 5.0-liter 310hp and 553 lb-ft of torque V10 turbodiesel. But it didn’t. The price of entry was too high, $64,565, and then of course there is the fact that most American’s don’t like diesels, unless it’s under the hood of a Golf or Jetta. No matter, because Volkswagen is trying again. Read more…
Editors Gernand and Muxlow take a little road trip to get a gauge for just how fuel efficient the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg TDI can be. Tune in to the Automotive Trends Garage Episode 2 for final details on how the Touareg fared.
Diesels have intrigued me from the time I was old enough to make basic automotive observations. Much to my delight, on family road trips my parent’s diesel 1978 Olds Custom Cruiser would fill up alongside the big-rig trucks. This fascination was bolstered by an uncle who owned a yellow diesel Rabbit in the ’80s followed by a diesel Ford Tempo, complete with the secondary battery mounted in the trunk. When it came time to find a light duty long distance tow vehicle I purchased a ’92 Chevrolet C2500 Silverado with a 6.5L turbo diesel. For all of their actual and perceived faults, each of these vehicles were compelling in some significant way. And yet diesels remain merely a niche in America’s automotive market. What is the reason for this? Is this simply due to undeserved stereotypes that won’t die, or a deficiency in the vehicles themselves? Read more…
Now this is what we are talking about! A fully loaded Audi Q7 outfitted with none other than the V12 TDI motor from the R10 TDI LeMans racer. A detuned version of it that is, though 500-hp and 738 lb-ft of torque can hardly be considered detuned. This titan of the SUV race was on display at the 2007 NAIAS.
There might be a cute face on the front of this one, but there is no Bug hiding behind that smile. Underneath that gentle demeanor is more grunt than any Yank bargained for. At least according to the spec sheet. But numbers don’t contact the pavement, rubber does. So what happens when a homegrown Red, White, and Blue farm boy gets behind the reigns of a German steed on western soil? Read on and find out. Read more…
Volkswagen’s Golf is a master of disguise.
It’s a hatchback, but it doesn’t feel like the little economy cars that dotted America’s roadways through the 1980s. Those were — I’ll try to say this nicely — noisy, ugly rust buckets that felt like driving wheeled cigar boxes. Read more…
