Volkswagen has applied some refreshers to the Touareg SUV in order to keep it relevant in its very tough marketplace, and has shown the 'new' version to the world at the Beijing Auto Show.
Exterior
This is one of those 'look hard, now' overhauls where the devil is all in the detail. Taking the lead from the Golf-esque corporate face on all Volkswagens, the Touareg has larger, bi-Xenon headlights, a deeper radiator grille with four instead of two horizontal slats and a re-profiled bumper. The rear bumper has also been correspondingly redesigned, with a new diffuser between the twin tailpipes and LED fog lights integrated into the lower corners of the car. Some new colours, alloy wheel designs and fresh mirror caps round off the external polishing.
Interior
In terms of interior design, very little has changed - there are extra leather hues, a few new accents and some different lighting, but that's it. However, on the tech front there's a bit more to report. All models will feature an automatic pre-collision braking system and a coasting function on the eight-speed automatic gearbox, which can be overridden if necessary. The optional automatic distance cruise control (ADC) has been enhanced to incorporate a city emergency braking function too, plus it can automatically pull away from standstill in stop-start traffic.
Mechanicals
First up is the news that the V8 diesel and Hybrid Touaregs are gone, never to be seen again in Ireland (not that we ever saw them anyway). That leaves you with just two 3.0-litre V6 diesels, the entry version making the same 204hp it always has but the top variant boosted from 245- to 258hp.
Emissions and economy have been improved on both, thanks to low rolling resistance tyres, stop-start functionality, an SCR-DPF catalytic converter with AdBlue and battery regeneration systems, all of which mean the Touareg is EU6 compliant. The 204hp model uses 6.6 litres/100km and 174g/km CO2, which betters the old car's 7.0 litres/100km and 184g/km figures, while the 258hp Volkswagen offers 6.8 litres/100km and 178g/km, compared to 7.1 litres/100km and 189g/km previously.
Anything else?
The revised Volkswagen Touareg is expected to open for ordering in Ireland in August/September, with first deliveries arriving around 151 plate time in January 2015.