(first posted 3/29/2018) Volkswagen, which quite literally means “people’s car” in German, was founded on the principle of making the automobile attainable to everyday working people by means of the economical and humble Beetle. While that was a reasonable way to start, as its customers grew wealthier, Volkswagen grew to meet their needs and retain their business with larger and more luxurious automobiles — so much so that by the early 2000s, VW was selling a near-$100,000 W12-powered flagship that competed directly with its Audi A8 corporate sibling, not to mention the Mercedes S-Class and BMW 7 Series et al.
Yet all brands have a ceiling, and for Volkswagen, the Phaeton exemplified this to the highest degree. Given its positioning and expected low volume, the flagship Phaeton never had any massive sales expectations, and more or less flew below the radar as anticipated for a car of this class.
Similarly, and to a more meaningful extent given its perceived greater potential, VW’s other vehicle with luxury ambitions and unremarkable success was the Touareg, the brand’s first mass-market SUV. Released at a time when gas was cheap and SUVs were something Americans couldn’t get enough of, it’s surprising that the Touareg didn’t find much acceptance, with sales dramatically falling to minuscule figures after its initial hype.
Introduced late in 2002, the VW Touareg was the product of a joint-venture between Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche, with the goal of creating an SUV capable of superior on-road handling and off-road capability. The results of this joint-venture ultimately manifested in the VW Touareg, Porsche Cayenne, and Audi Q7, with only the Audi riding on an extended wheelbase to accommodate a third row.
All featured standard all-wheel drive, though the Q7 and Cayenne were tailored more for on-road comfort and performance, whereas the Touareg boasted the greatest off-road capability. Only the Touareg featured a standard two-speed transfer case and automatic locking center differential, allowing up to 100 percent of power transferred to either axle, along with automatic hill-start control and automatic downhill assist.
Furthermore, the Touareg boasted an available locking rear differential, as well as adaptive air suspension with semi-active damping control providing a range of 5.5 inches of height, from load-level at 6.3 inches to X’tra at 11.8 inches.
The Touareg offered a multitude of engine choices over its first generation’s 2002-2010 run, featuring 3.2L V6, 3.6L V6, 4.8L V8, and 6.0L W12 gasoline engines, and 2.5L I5, 3.0L V6, 5.0L V10 turbo direct injected diesel engines, with each offering and output depending on market and model year. Mated to either a 6-speed manual or 6-speed automatic, depending on engine, output for most was impressive for the decade. Unfortunately, the Touareg’s hefty curb weight limited both acceleration and fuel economy. In North America where the inline-5 was never offered, only the 3.0L turbodiesel managed to average above 20 miles per gallon in real world testing.
Fitting of its price point and positioning, the VW Touareg offered a host of standard comfort and convenience features, with the base North American-spec V6 model including genuine wood and aluminum trim, dual-zone automatic climate control, side impact and side curtain airbags, dual-power front seats, heated front seats, leatherette upholstery, and power moonroof. V8 models added leather upholstery, 12-way power front seats, extended wood trim, and side rear sunshades, while the V10 added items including xenon headlights and air suspension as standard.
In typical German fashion, an überabundance of extra-cost options and packages were available, their contents ranging from premium stereo, navigation, heated steering wheel and heated rear seats to push-button keyless access, power tilt-telescoping steering wheel, rear parking sensors, and passenger seat memory — and this was just for 2004. Later years of its first generation saw new available options including rearview camera, lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, iPod adaptor, adaptive bi-xenon headlights, front and rear obstacle detection, and a power tailgate, the latter two of which became standard by 2008.
Throughout its first generation, the VW Touareg generally received favorable reviews, though it never proved a showstopper in the luxury SUV market. Ride quality was praised for its comfort and composure, though from a handling perspective, steering was criticized for its somewhat vague feel, and in cornering, body roll was more prevalent than in other German competitors. As aforementioned, acceleration and fuel economy were both hampered by the Touareg’s curb weight, which depending on engine and options, could tip the scales at over 5,800 pounds.
While its interior received high marks for fit and finish, it was also criticized for complex controls and inferior ergonomics. Notwithstanding this, the Touareg’s interior was overall a pleasant place to be, with comfortable and supportive seats, ample space, vault-like levels of quietness, and convenience features galore. As expected, the Touareg’s off-road capability was universally applauded.
Despite its many praiseworthy qualities, what could not be overlooked was the fact that the Touareg was a luxury SUV from a non-luxury brand. Aimed squarely against other luxury SUVs with luxury brand credentials, the Touareg forever faced an uphill battle, something further aided by the fact that it wasn’t significantly less pricey than luxury-branded competitors. In many ways, the Touareg was like the one kid at a snooty prep school who didn’t come from a well-known and high-powered family, but merely an “ordinary” one.
Therein lies the Touareg’s trouble: its positioning and price. At least in North America, VW positioned the Touareg as a competitor to the BMW X5 and Mercedes ML (and confusingly, its Audi Q7 platform mate), and priced it accordingly for its six- and eight-cylinder models.
While the Touareg may have been a few thousand dollars less expensive than a comparable X5 or ML, to the discerning luxury SUV buyer, the Touareg’s cost savings didn’t necessarily translate to greater value, as Volkswagen didn’t carry the same prestige and experience as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, or Audi.
The Touareg’s failure is something more profound considering that sales of the similarly-sized yet more prestigious and more expensive Mercedes M-Class and BMW X5 held steady during this time, as Touareg sales nosedived. Even more astounding is the fact that the Touareg’s own far more costly platform mate, the Porsche Cayenne, began outselling the Touareg in the United States in 2006, and has done so every year since.
Ultimately, the Volkswagen Touareg was an ambitious effort and an overall competitive one, having all of the on-paper qualifications enabling it to find the same success as its sibling and competitors. Unfortunately, product planners severely miscalculated the Touareg’s ability to break VW’s image as a value brand, and buyers sniffed out its lack of luxury pedigree from miles away.
Best exemplifying Volkswagen’s ceiling, the Touareg was ultimately withdrawn from the North American market in 2017, after nearly 15 years and two generations of underwhelming success. In North America, the Touareg has effectively been replaced in North America by the larger and more value-oriented Atlas, a car whose success is yet to be determined.
In other markets, however, the Touareg has had somewhat better success. A third generation Touareg is set to debut soon, promising even greater levels of luxury that arguably surpass that of its siblings, as if the Touareg’s ambitions weren’t as aggressive enough.
Photographed: Whitman, Massachusetts – January 2018
Related Reading:
2012 Volkswagen Touareg (COAL)
A couple of years ago a neighbour of mine inherited a large sum of money and bought all kinds of ‘toys’ with it, including:
-a speedboat
-a 90’s Jeep Wrangler
– this thing
As a kid I found this car to be huge, but I can’t remember what engine option he chose. He later replaced the Touareg with a VW Transporter T5 Van, with a chip-tuned performance package (of course).
Rather unrelated, but me and my dad were once invited to come along for a boat trip, boy was that a blast. Everytime the boat hit the waves I thought it was going to break in half.
Not to mention staggeringly expensive maintenence for the V10 and W12 as they age. Ironically, I had never heard of Touareg W12 until recently. I always assumed that Audi Q7 was only recipent of V12 diesel motor until Bentley Bentayga came to the game late.
Touareg has the special equipment that isn’t listed in the sales material or owner’s handbook. The owners usually discover this magical feature down the road as they start to hear the swishing sound somewhere inside the Touareg. The undocumented special equipment called ‘7-litre water tanks’ is due to the poorly designed drainplugs in the frame sills that become clogged over the time.
Lot of YouTube videos has been posted on how to deal with the ‘extra 7-litre water tanks’ that magically appeared inside the frame sills. Prying the plugs off the frame reveals how much water is trapped over the time.
I’ve never been able to understand Volkswagen’s constant determination to rise above the “people’s car” image and become a luxury marque, especially when they already have one of the big three luxury badges as part of the organization. My perception is probably colored by the US not getting SEAT and Skoda, which in Volkswagen’s eyes is the people’s car in the line. Just the same, in the US such efforts make Volkswagen look hilariously pretentious.
And the Cayenne outselling the Touareg? No surprised in the least. If you’re going to blow $50k on a German SUV, which would you rather be seen driving?
Can you imagine the inferiority complex VW must have when it looks around at its German neighbors?
As JP says, I think it has something to do with being a product of its environment, headquartered in a country where just about every other automobile brand is a luxury and or high-end performance brand.
It’s also important to note that in Germany and Europe, the lines between German brands are more blurred, with smaller, lower-content, and less expensive cars from brands like Audi, BMW, and Mercedes, and this is nothing new. So if those brands are pushing down into VW’s core segments, you can’t really blame VW for pushing upmarket with larger and more luxurious models to compete with them across more fronts.
The head-scratching thing of course is that Volkswagen Group owns Audi and Porsche, so doing this is having VW brands cannibalize sales from one another.
“doing this is having VW brands cannibalize sales from one another”
Maybe the multiple brands are hampering VW as they came to hamper GM in the States.
>>“doing this is having VW brands cannibalize sales from one another”<<
Maybe the multiple brands are hampering VW as they came to hamper GM in the States.
I keep thinking about the 3 separate organizational structures for VW, SEAT and Skoda, all drawing from the same parts bin and competing in pretty much the same market, and want to pull out the beancounter knife.
Thing is, I might be able to make a case for killing SEAT, but Skoda is so successful, it would be very difficult to try and kill it. The best selling C segment car last year was the Golf. The second best selling C segment was the Skoda Octavia. Best selling D segment car was the Passat. Second best selling was the Skoda Superb.
VAG released their annual report a couple weeks ago. Skoda’s profit margin last year was even richer than Audi’s. Demand for Skoda products is so high they are in a production capacity bind. Skoda figures it needs capacity for another 360,000 cars/yr by 2020. The Skoda union doesn’t want it’s people to go to a six day week. Putting Skoda production in German VW plants would run up against higher German cost structures, and, from reports I have seen, the only German plant with excess capacity is Wolfsburg as Golf sales have been waning as the European market swings to SUVs. VW has said that moving Golf production out of Puebla and consolidating Golf production in Wolfsburg was due to pressure from the union to “create jobs”, but with robust sales of the Puebla built Tiguan, I wonder if the move is as much about freeing capacity in Puebla.
The time to kill Skoda was when the company was first acquired in the 90s, when Skoda was an eastern block joke.
VW’s profit margin, while low at 4.1%, is double what it has traditionally been. With the government of Lower Saxony and the union both having seats on the BoD, I get the impression that VW in Germany has been run as much as a “jobs program” as a commercial enterprise, but some streamlining has been done in the past year.
SEAT is clearly the weak sister, with a 1.9% profit margin last year.
Well, not yet, but it will probably end up with similar issues. VAG is still able to “pass down” their platforms to the “lesser” brands and markets. That worked for GM, to a degree, but they ended up sharing too many things between the low, middle, and upper brands from the get-go. Daimler used the idea with Chrysler while they owned it, giving old Mercedes platforms to underpin the Crossfire and RWD sedans. Fiat will surely do more of the same, and already has with the late 200/Dart being an old Alfa platform. Yet VAG already shares too many of the platforms between market segments that probably should not share. An Audi or Porsche probably should not have a VW equivalent on the market at the same time. It is hard to pass up the savings on a SEAT or Skoda version of the Golf when they are on the same platform, have the same engines, and yet cost several euros less.
GM is learning, but not there yet. They still have a bit more to trim as brands, and we may see a leaner overall GM with only 2 or 3 brands before too long. They can go worldwide with either generic GM branding or with Chevy for low end and Cadillac for high end with little or no issues. Ford should do the same, and kill off Lincoln unless it is a different platform than the other Ford products.
Equally odd is the statement, “a joint-venture between Volkswagen, Audi, and Porsche” when all are Volkswagen corporate brands.
They (VW, Audi, Porsche) are all corporate brands of VAG but they are run very independently from different locations. Really not like GM at all. (but interestingly the way Cadillac has been moving is somewhat similar, Johan de Nysschen is on a leash but it seems to be quite a long one…)
While there is plenty (lots) of platform and component sharing going on historically VW has always been the mothership, and the leadership of VAG has generally favored VW over the others. VW has historically been considered the “main” marque, Audi used to be owned by Mercedes, and was definitely the red-headed stepchild at the beginning of the VW ownership period. Porsche has had plenty of its own problems but in fact the Cayenne is really what has kept it a going concern, things were looking awfully grim for a long time.
It’s not quite like a regular holding company but much more separate than what we think of when we say corporate brands.
So yeah, it was definitely more of a “joint venture” rather than one planning department doling out different versions to different divisions such as Chevy Traverse/ Buick Enclave/ GMC Acadia. Saturn Outlook etc
Ferdinand Piech
Just the same, in the US such efforts make Volkswagen look hilariously pretentious.
At first blush, I would tend to agree, though the Mk 6 Jetta has a depressingly cheap air about it.
The reality is that VW designs for it’s largest markets, which are Europe and China. If some offerings miss the mark in the US, well, the US has not been a big, important market for VW in a very long time. In Europe, the Golf is the best selling car in the market. In the US, the Golf is an oddball niche offering.
BMW rose from the Isetta to become “the ultimate driving machine” in, what, 20 years. Most of the low end brands in Germany died out long ago, or, like NSU and DKW, were absorbed by VW. While the original Audi 100 had “LS” for “luxury sedan” appended to the name in the US, it still had crank windows. I would make the case that the 100LS was less luxurious than a 74 Mustang II Ghia. The 100’s “Super 90” stablemate was a development of the DKW F102 and the Super 90 stickered for a princely $96 more than the VW 411. The bottom line is all the German brands seem to have moved far above where they were 50 years ago.
VAG has, for some time, tried to develop a truly cheap car for the Indian and Chinese markets. A JV between Skoda and Tata collapsed in only a few months. I have seen it suggested that VAG’s engineers have so much “pride” in their work that they can’t bring themselves to intentionally design something really cheap and nasty, so the best VAG can do to bring a car to market at a low price is to use old, fully depreciated, tooling. The latest rumor on a cheap line for China is said to be a new hatchback and SUV built on the Mk V Golf platform of over 10 years ago.
I’ve never been able to understand Volkswagen’s constant determination to rise above the “people’s car” image and become a luxury marque,
They’re over it now. VW’s goal for the US is to increase their market share from 2% to 5% by imitating Toyota. They’re prepared to spend over $3 billion on this latest initiative to find success in the US (they’ve been losing hundreds of millions per year in the US for decades now.) VW in the US has a similar problem that GM and Ford have in Europe, or even worse.
Good luck with that 5% market share goal. Hyundai/Kia eventually stalled our after making a run at being Toyota too.
Good luck with that 5% market share goal. Hyundai/Kia eventually stalled our after making a run at being Toyota too.
The thing working in VW’s favor is that tastes in Europe and China are moving to SUVs, so future VW product may be better aligned with US tastes. Road tests I have seen of the Atlas and Tiguan comment/complain the SUVs “don’t drive like VWs”, but are softer, like other makes sold in the US.
Besides, if VW wants to grow, it will be easier in the US, because they are starting from such a low base (2.0% share for VW, 1.2% for Audi and 0.3% for Porsche) In Europe VAG is the leader with a 23.8% share for the group and the leader in China with an 18% share for the group.
I have always found these attractive. But I am a value buyer and these did not come even close for me, either new or used.
VW really missed a chance on these. To expand on Syke’s point, instead of trying to be an Audi without a 3rd row VW could have pitched the Toureg as “the German SUV you can afford.”
I have no experience with the Atlas. If VW can avoid its two biggest blind spots (trying to be an Audi and dumbing the car down to make it as American as it can) it should have a chance.
I have no experience with the Atlas. If VW can avoid its two biggest blind spots (trying to be an Audi and dumbing the car down to make it as American as it can) it should have a chance.
I looked over an Atlas at the Detroit show last year. The vibe I got inside it was very close to my Ford Taurus X, with maybe better interior materials. The plastic lower door panels of my Taurus X liked to creak, so some material upgrades over the Ford would not be a step wrong.
Rich Bennett and I mosied down to the dealer in Toledo last summer for that dealer’s “launch event” for the Atlas. Rich had all the wheel time, while I stretched out in sultanic comfort in the second row seat. What cracked me up was the view under the hood. While I have become used to seeing hoses and wires seemingly snaking around randomly under the hood of most cars, the engine room of the V6 equipped Atlas was immaculate. Everything was so neatly routed and well ordered it was as if Felix Unger had done the installation.
My neighbor bought one of these new when they were first introduced. I thought it strange as he’s an engineer and usually adhered to the “don’t buy a car the year it’s introduced;” but he’d apparently done a lot of research and went ahead. I ended up having to refer him to a lemon lawyer colleague of mine because the thing had tons of electrical issues and was in the shop most of the few months he owned it. VW ended up buying him out of it and paying him and the lawyer a pile of money.
First year Touareg and Cayenne were full of problems. I was working for Porsche when the Cayanne was introduced, the first one to come in had a non working sunroof from the factory. Tech pulled the motor and it had a VW part number on it, the VW dealership had one in stock, It’s Porsche numbered counterpart was on backorder so the VW one was used to get the vehicle on the showroom floor.
Everybody at the dealership got to take the Cayenne for a test drive, I picked a windy road and pushed it a little, I was impressed how little it leaned around corners, how powerful and smooth it was. The one I drove was an S model with the 340 HP V8, the Tourag’s V8 was a 306 HP 4.2 V8. The Cayenne 450 HP TT was really a rocketship for the times, never drove one but others who drove it were impressed.
It is interesting how the VW badge holds back sales on a luxury SUV that sold much better under the Audi and Porsche badge, although Porsche did get different and more powerful engines than VW did. The brand makes the difference for many upscale buyers, status is more important than the fact the vehicles themselves are so similar. Phaeton is another example of this.
…the Touareg has effectively been replaced in North America by the larger and more value-oriented Atlas, a car whose success is yet to be determined.
Remains to be seen whether the Atlas will have staying power in the US, but, 2018 through February, the Atlas trails the traditional US best seller Jetta by only 29 units. The new run away best seller is the new Tiguan, ringing up sales 50% above the Jetta.
It could be argued that the Atlas and Tiguan are cannibalizing Jetta and Passat sales as their sales are cratering, but sedan sales are cratering for several brands. Overall, VW has been managing sales gains the last few months while the big three have been having difficulty getting sales out of the red.
VW typically advertises only it’s best seller on TV. For years, the only models I have seen advertised were the Jetta, with the odd Passat ad tossed in here and there.
During the past winter months, the ad I saw the most was one featuring all of their AWD models, including the first gen Tiguan, now called the “Tiguan Limited” and the Golf wagon based Alltrack.
The spring ad I am seeing now shows the Atlas and Tiguan. Showing the mob that VW actually does produce competitive SUVs will probably generate even more sales in the coming months.
About a month ago I took the Passat to the VW dealer for an oil change. I had received an offer of a free oil change if I talked to a salesman and took a test drive.
It was still early in the morning so I talked to the salesman. Told him I’m not buying but my parents (ages 71 and 74, with multiple stainless steel joints) needed something different. He showed me a new Tiguan before I drove it.
The Tiguan was quite nice and he said they are selling as quickly as they show up. Sales are decent enough that people really aren’t even too picky about trim as long as they can find one.
I figure even if one subtracts the anticipated amount of BS from that statement it still shows something good is going on at VW showrooms.
The new Atlas might be the best SUV yet for VW. It has caught the attention of my daughters who say it’s just the rig for their growing families. I’ve never heard the girls ever say anything positive about an SUV or Crossover. Maybe Volkswagen has a winner in this segment?
They should, but here’s what VW’s up against. In the midsize SUV segment, by Corporation, YTD thru Feb ’18
*source: goodcarbadcar.net
1. FCA (Grand Cherokee/Durango/Wrangler) 71,820 units
2. GM (Traverse/Acadia/Enclave) 47,1824
3. Ford (Explorer/Flex) 42,2399
4. Toyota (Highlander) 31,444
5. Subaru Outback 27,300
VW delivered 9,060 Atlas’s in this period, which isn’t a bad showing at all. I’ll be interested to see how/if the Subaru Ascent scrambles the numbers. I picked Corporate totals as opposed to individual models because segment market share is really the number that counts.
Even more astounding is the fact that the Touareg’s own far more costly platform mate, the Porsche Cayenne, began outselling the Touareg in the United States in 2006, and has done so every year since.
Let me modify that:
Predictably, the Touareg’s own far more costly platform mate, the Porsche Cayenne, began outselling the Touareg in the United States in 2006, and has done so every year since.
A Porsche badge trumps a VW badge by a huge margin, especially in the neighborhoods these are typically seen.
You are exactly right. Also, someone who is used to Jettas, Golfs and Passats in their driveway may keep it in the family and somehow find the big coin (relatively) for a Touareg if they really want another VW but someone who already has one or more Porsches and wants/needs an SUV is generally happy and capable to pay whatever the asking price is for a Cayenne. It doesn’t hurt that by 2006 they were offering Cayennes with over 500hp (Turbo S) which could more or less keep up with the rest of the stable, albeit at an over 6-figure cost of entry.
The big VW grille badge is missing from the photo car. That says it all.
On the other hand, a couple of eGolfs showed up at work this month. They’re attractive electrics with 125 mile range that suit the classic VW brand image of economy and engineering very well.
It’s not so much as missing, but as if it was never there in the first place. Is that an aftermarket grill? In any case, the clean look is an improvement.
The Toureg’s issues were pretty simple. 1. No third seat. 2. Notoriously unreliable, and horrifically expensive to repair when the inevitable mechanical or electrical catastrophe occurred. Combined with the high purchase price and the lack of a prestige name, it was the worst of all worlds all rolled into one.
Correct me if I’m wrong, wasn’t the Touareg’s other problem was that it also had some pretty big problems in terms of reliability? I read somewhere that for several consecutive years, the Touareg was the lowest scoring car in its class compared to others, according to Consumer Reports results and surveys. Now, even though I take CR with a grain of salt, I still think that’s rather damning evidence in and of itself.
I also think it another problem, was paradigm shifts. This idea of making an upscale car from a company that wasn’t upscale had its roots in the past, the Ford Thunderbird is what immediately springs to mind. That had rather strong sales and was considered a somewhat upscale product, but the fact is, this wasn’t the 50s and 60s anymore, this was 2004. With so many brands becoming top luxury players, and the wide range of products that they were coming out with meant that something that didn’t pass the badge smell test didn’t have a chance, no matter how comparable it was. Same problem the Phaeton had, even though I think the Phaeton wasn’t necessarily bad.
IIRC, Automobile magazine had to change the engine in their V10 long term car after the block cracked. Maybe VW should have just sold this car as the Porsche Cayenne and the Audi Q7 rather than keeping one for themselves. They should have taken a lesson from the Phaeton disaster a couple of years before.
Is it just me but without the VW badge on the nose does the toureg Brendan photographed look a bit like a narrow first gen Chrysler Pacifica?
Yes, I had that thought too. After finding a picture I’m sure of it.
Wrong image and the site’s broken so I can’t delete the comment, sorry. Here’s the stock Pacifica. It does look a lot like the Touareg.
One of my friends leased a first-year Touareg. He like to play around leasing cars and had gotten really bored with his Lexus. His theory was that it was really a Porsche without all the ego so why pay extra?
He only kept it a year. He had lots of problems – I remember VW replacing the whole dash, and the driver’s seat; I also seem to remember it ate brakes and tires at something crazy like 10K miles.
My friend didn’t mind the problems themselves so much, but he came to hate the VW dealer. He had been leasing luxury cars for years and expected luxury car treatment. Instead he had to wait in line at the counter and then drink cold coffee and read old magazines. Then the Dealership would never remember he was (as a Touareg buyer) entitled to a loaner. It was a trip to see the manager every time. Then they would try to give him a stripper Jetta or something.
Of course, since the cars were new the local techs had no idea how to work on them and didn’t want to because the book might say 3 hours pay for a repair but it might take a mechanic 6 hours to figure it out so the car sat till some mechanic was forced into working on it. So three weeks later, his car would be fixed… but that was three weeks of driving a Jetta at Touareg prices.
So – the lack of sales wasn’t only about status or even quality – it was about customer service too
How funny, Brendan: I saw a first-gen Touareg in my neighbourhood yesterday but I didn’t bother taking any photos of it because I saw your article scheduled and I knew you’d tell this car’s story well.
Your points about VW’s brand image in Europe are thought-provoking. I suppose I never connected the dots but you’re right, in Germany there are plenty of low-end Audis, BMWs and Benzes (hell, a lot are used as taxis). Furthermore, the VW Golf is seen as a kind of “class-less” car that is suitable for anyone from any income bracket, which is a fascinating concept to an Australian. I mean, the only mainstream brand cars that have that kind of class-less nature are very, very expensive mainstream brand cars (e.g. Toyota Land Cruiser).
I’ve always liked the Touareg – I like it even more now, knowing there was a W12 option! – but Lokki and the others hit the nail on the head. Who would want to pay luxury car prices and not get the luxury car service experience? Hell, at least Hyundai started to offer special service to Genesis and Equus owners before those cars got rolled into their own brand. Then there’s the fact VW already had luxury brands in its stable… Really, just what was the point of the Touareg?
Thanks, but I would have taken a Cayenne.
A friend had a Toureg, she traded it for an Amarok which she still has, the Toureg didnt last very long in her driveway the Amarok has.
Touareg was upscale? Who knew?
I remember the Phaeton and always SMH’ed over its $75k price tag especially when there’s Audi.
IMO, VW failed because they reached so far beyond their station; it would be like Chevy attempting to outdo Cadillac with their Impala. Although I see no problem with Chevy/Cadillac expanding to the point where Buick/GMC becomes redundant and therefore disposable.
But VW has no similar “Buick/GMC” dynamic. Next step up is Audi, a strong brand premium enough to give VW plenty of room to manuever below. Although V-Dub’s current path of decontenting pretty much guarantees they’ll continue to play to the lower end of the room.
That’s all right, only a few brands get to play in the “all things to most people” space. Ford, Chevy and Toyota pretty much take all the air in that room.
Given the stupid Toe-rag name, (named for a nomadic North African Berber tribe… really? what marketing genius came up with that idiocy?) the typical German propensity for over-complicated engineering and consequent lousy reliability record of all VW-Audi group vehicles, plus the overpricing, no wonder it failed to sell. They never seem to learn.
For those that ascribe the Touareg’s slow sales to a mainstream badge on the grille, please explains as to why this snob factor doesn’t apply to the pickup truck segment. Attempts to sell Lincoln and Cadillac pickup trucks fell flat, but many buyers will happily pony up almost six figures for a Ford F-150 Platinum Titanium King Ranch Edition or whatever the high-trimmed models are called. Lexus has sold several body-on-frame SUVs, and in some markets minivans, but won’t touch pickup trucks. Neither will Audi (Mercedes-Benz is the outlier, but even they don’t try to sell them in the US).
The badge-snob factor never stopped Golf R’s from selling well in America for Audi-level coin, despite looking like a basic Golf that sells for less than half the price.
The Phaeton and Touareg were the most obvious indicators of VW’s upscale push during the Piëch era, but there were several other more subtle ones, like an 8-cylinder Passat in a segment where the competition offered only fours and sometimes a V6. My favorite from this period was the Mk5 Jetta with the “package 3” option group which turned the Jetta into a serious luxury car, featuring dual front 12-way power leather seats with driver side memory, real wood interior trim, dual-zone HVAC, HID/xenon headlamps, power sunshades, downlights on the outside mirrors, high-spec audio and tech features, and other such fancy stuff usually relegated to luxury brands. Along with the upscale feature set was a choice of engines (2.0T four or 2.5 five, both with either auto or manual gearbox. The luxury options were phased out over the next several years, replaced with Wolfsburg Edition value packages.
Never could warm up to these. Maybe it was the styling, the weird name or seeming expensive for what you got. Much prefer the Atlas which is a very solidly executed product. (The Cross Sport is essentially the Touraeg successor).
Another friend has one of these with 104KW turbo diesel so not a performance offering and even some of their larger diesel efforts arent very inspiring, the trans will fail for sure and it will cost the earth to repair 5.5k for a Golf trans rebuild so a toerag will be more.