Volkswagen first launched the Touareg back in 2003, at roughly the same time as Audi and Porsche brought out the closely related Q7 and Cayenne. The Touareg's most recent update happened in 2014, and involved a mild facelift along with a few equipment changes.
The SE tested here might be described as the "entry-level" Touareg, though at £43,420 it's hardly a cheap option. The range is in fact quite narrow (the most expensive version costs £4,800 more than this one) and the only alternative to the test car's 201bhp 3-litre V6 diesel engine is a very similar unit producing 258bhp.
Like all other Touareg specs, this one has four-wheel drive, dual-zone climate control air-conditioning, cruise control, satellite navigation, DAB digital radio, leather upholstery and heated front seats. The more expensive R-Line has more equipment, but most of it (body styling, alloy-look pedals, a sunroof and so on) is nice rather than important to have.
If you want to do any serious off-roading, you might want to give the SE a miss and choose the Escape instead, since that has a more sophisticated four-wheel drive system. For more leisurely operation away from the tarmac, the SE will be perfectly adequate.
The 201bhp engine is strong enough for the job, and I never felt the need for the extra 57bhp Volkswagen can supply. It pulls well, with 78bhp available from the astonishingly low speed of 1250rpm, and it's mostly very quiet, becoming vocal in a pleasantly V6-ish sort of way only when you start accelerating hard.
0-62mph takes 8.7 seconds, as opposed to 7.3 for the more powerful cars, or 7.6 in the case of the Escape. Again, while the extra performance would be pleasant, I don't feel it's necessary. The 201bhp engine provides marginally the best official fuel economy in the range of 42.8mpg, while the 173g/km CO2 rating equates to £205. The 258bhp cars have almost exactly the same green figures but will probably use diesel at a significantly greater rate in real life.
The SE has the softer of two suspension set-ups in the range. The R-Line is stiffer, rides an inch lower and has larger wheels and lower-profile tyres, but I don't see a need for any of that. With the SE you get a very smooth ride, even on quite challenging road surfaces, and although there's inevitably a fair bit of body movement I've experienced worse in much smaller SUVs.
Like other manufacturers, Volkswagen often produces its best cars at the lower end of their respective model ranges. My favourite Golfs and Polos have always been the slower, cheaper ones, and while slow and cheap are not terms that sit easily with the Touareg the same basic principle applies here. If I were to buy a Touareg, it would probably be this one.
