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Anthony Kilner took VW's latest top-of-the-range V10 turbo-diesel on a wild Outback ride from Melbourne to Halls Creek
Words and photography by
Anthony Kilner
ENGINE AND PERFORMANCE
The V10 twin-turbo (VW calls it a bi-turbo) oiler produces 750Nm of grunt at just 2000rpm, while the 230kW of power kicks in by 4000rpm. Fuel is squirted directly into the pots via a Bosch system, and of course, everything is electronically controlled.
Performance-wise, this engine kicks arse. It's smooth, apart from the poor throttle response mentioned, and it delivers excellent fuel economy to boot. VW states that the V10 will do 0-100km/h in just 7.8 seconds, and while my stopwatch ran out of batteries, our guessing put it somewhere around this figure.
Bolted to the V10 is a fully electronic six-speed auto box. This can be operated in three ways. First, as a normal ‘pull it into D and go’ mode; second, as the Tiptronic mode, also done via the gear lever; and third, by the you-beaut wanker F1 race paddles on the steering column. I didn’t really like using the race paddles, but having talked with a few other journos and fourby drivers who have spent time in the VW, they reckon the paddles are okay - just!
One good thing about the electronic management of the gearbox is that it’s hard to over-rev the engine as it will sense it and change gear if you’re too slow. This could save people some big bucks by not having to replace a blown box.
4WD ABILITY
Getting power to the wheels and providing traction are done via VW’s 4XMotion system. In normal mode, the power is directed fore and aft at a 50/50 ratio. When wheel slip is detected, it can redirect power accordingly to gain traction. Another feature for traction and vehicle stability is the electronic stability system incorporated into the package.
For the purist, 4WD can be manually operated by a centre-console-mounted dial switch. The V10 features a centre diff lock to drive equal power out of the box to the front and rear wheels. There’s low-range at around 2.7:1 reduction, and, for the serious off-roader, a rear diff lock as well. Theoretically, this VW is more capable than many 4WD soft-roader types on the road and extremely more so in the bush.
I found low-range to work well with everything electronically controlled via hill descent and hill-holding assistance. The VW communicates by telling you what to do, and when, courtesy of the dash/instrument pack mounted screen. The whole kit and caboodle is very easy to drive, compensating for many bush-driving skills it usually takes years to learn. But hey, I can’t see too many Touaregs heading into hardcore situations; it’s really a touring fourby with some extra off-road capability.
SUSPENSION RISING
As a part of the ultimate 4WD experience provided by the Touareg, the air suspension can be raised or lowered via a centre-console-mounted switch. There are several modes to choose from that vary the height of the VW from loading level at 166mm to the Xtra off-road level at 300mm.
The load level allows easy loading of passengers and gear; then there are two street-driving levels that are automatically controlled depending on the speed and driving conditions. Next is the off-road level, which we used mostly on the Tanami. Xtra high level gives greater ground clearance for slow off-road work.
A suspension lock button disables the ride height adjustment to keep the vehicle at a predetermined height when required. I worked this out after putting the VW into Xtra off-road and driving it up a 30 degree ramp. Without using the lock button, the VW tried to level itself out and dropped the body onto the ramp, making it very awkward to get it off without damaging the front panel. Talk about embarrassing!
ELECTRICAL MOD CONS
What is an electrical nightmare for some people, could be an extreme turn-on for others.
This is in no way a comprehensive list of features (the manual is inches thick!) but rather a selection of the gadgets I liked. For example, at Halls Creek, I watched the Olympic Torch Relay and Video Hits on the TV. For safety reasons, once the speed gets to around 8km/h the screen goes blank, but you can still hear the sound and catch a glimpse or two at the lights.
The mapping software supplied is groovy, and a lovely, though sometimes irritating, voice tells you (politely!) where to go once you’ve entered the address. I found several streets around Melbourne that weren’t listed, so the software needs updating, but overall it’s a good feature and doesn’t stop music played from the six-stacker in the boot or the radio.
The steering wheel boasts a bunch of controls that lets you know what’s what and allows you to change channels and the information shown on the instrument panel display.
One excellent feature on the V10 is the tyre-monitoring system. We stopped at the start of the Tanami to drop tyre pressures to around 30psi, then drove a couple of hundred metres and the flat-tyre warning came on. After a quick check to ensure nothing was flat, it was out with the manual again! We discovered that the system can be reset to monitor any tyre pressure, and once you’ve registered your preference it will let you know if the pressure drops below it.
The whole interior of the Touareg lights up like an aeroplane cockpit at night, but one of the most amusing things I found was accessing the handbrake release button in the lower section of the dash on the right-hand side. The foot-controlled handbrake is easy, but try to find the release in the dark!
There is a host of other features in the V10, including full seat adjustments and memory settings for each driver, a cruise control system that is one of the smoothest on the market, individual climate controls for everyone in the car, front seat heating, electronically adjusted seatbelt mounts, mobile-phone mountings (can be plugged in through the stereo system) and a compressor for pumping up the yucky space-saving spare tyre.
VW DISASTERS
By now most of you will have picked up that the VW is an electrical person’s dream vehicle. The technology used is astounding, and the results excellent. Over the course of our trip, however, the electricals caused basic problems that resulted in a few phone calls back to VW Australia, its tech department and VW Assist.
An hour or two out of Melbourne, the suspension warning light came on. With no manual (we didn’t find it until much later), we stopped the VW and checked to make sure everything looked and worked okay and that nothing had fallen off. A call was made to VW and we were advised that the problem could’ve been caused by an electrical spike, possibly due to the fridge. The light continued to come on virtually everyday but the VW performed with no problems at all.
The second drama was a beauty and saw us spending a night in a motel in Alice, after a meal at a restaurant, because we couldn’t open the rear wheel carrier or the rear door to access our food and cooking gear! That was without stripping the car completely. There is a manual override for the electronic tailgate but I believe some dirt from the Tanami clogged a few components. After a clean at the carwash and a long drying drive, it came good, but the tailgate still wouldn’t open.
This made the trip home rather a pain. After yet another clean, I found the problem in the electrical connection from the car to the rear wheel carrier. Playing with the wiring connection got things working again and it went back to the dealer with a pointed note about poor connections!
Apart from these dramas, the VW preformed brilliantly for the terrain we exposed it to and the unexpected rainy conditions.
FUEL FIGURES
One awesome discovery was the fuel economy the VW delivered on this trip. Having some excellent gearing meant the revs stayed low most of the time and the VW just loped easily along the highway.
The run from Kulgera to Alice Springs, with a high average speed and a couple of blurts over 200km/h, saw a fuel consumption of just 17.24L/100km. Heading back from Alice to Kulgera, at a lower speed, resulted in only 14.16L/100km, which was damn good overall.
The average highway run cruising around the 110km/h mark delivered 11.33L to 12.21L/100km. On the dirt, 11.23 to 13.24L/100km meant we could travel the length of the Tanami with just one 20L jerry can and a top-up of 20-odd litres at Balgo to ensure we got to Halls Creek. Pretty awesome figures for a fourby with that amount of grunt.
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