Road Test: Volkswagen Touareg R50

Review by Feann Torr - 30/July/2008

Rising 12-feet tall, measuring twice as long as a bunyip and able to scale vertical walls on a whim, the Volkswagen R50 is a titan.

Well, perhaps that's exaggerating a bit. It's not 12-feet tall...

Adding to its growing garage of 'R' sports cars, the Volkswagen Touareg R50 joins the Golf R32 and Passat R36 and is one of the most imposing vehicles you're likely to see stuck in peak hour traffic.

Taking the already potent and rather large Touareg V10 turbo diesel model, Volkswagen made a number of changes to increase its visual, performance and luxury appeal, and the result is staggering.

This 10-cylinder performance 4x4 can accelerate to 100km/h in the same time it takes a terrified pedestrian to scream out a couple of curses, and unlike almost every other SUV out there it can actually go round corners at decent speeds without tipping over.

If you want an SUV with power and prestige, there are a few options available to you - most of them are German - but does the huge outlay translate to good value?

I have never quite figured out what compels people buy SUVs, but I think I'm starting to understand.

There's definitely a sense of safety and security, and being able to view everything around you and rarely have your line of sight impeded (not to mentioned being able to look down upon other road users) provides the driver with sense of authority.

Add a storming V10 engine into the equation, not to mention a healthy dose of Autobahn bling, and the experience is almost intoxicating.

Nailing the throttle in Volkswagen's R50 luxury sports SUV results in a surge of power that feels as though it'll shift mountains, yet still remains civilised.

Indeed, the acceleration in this vehicle is incredibly strong, but not in a conventional way. It's a smooth buildup of power and torque that shifts the Touareg R50's considerable bulk with ease, like an errant bull sliding across a frozen lake.

It is true that 258 kilowatts of power is not to be baulked at, yet it's the massive 850Nm @ 2000rpm that will really make headlines, starting off subtly at low revs and developing into a cosmic conflagration the sort of which usually only occurs when a red giant collapses when the revs rise.

The 5.0-litre 10-cylinder donk features only 2-valves per cylinder, but it's the twin intercooled and turbocharged system plumbed into the intake manifold that makes this thing so ferocious.

Overtaking is fairly rapid thanks to the quick thinking 6-speed automatic gearbox and 100km/h comes up very quickly - in about 6.8 seconds according to the manufacturer.

The Touareg R50 speeds along as though its considerable 2.6 tonne bulk was no more than an illusion, able to get up and go like only a few other SUVs on the market.

As someone who usually pays out on SUVs, it's a unique experience to watch the arrogance slowly drain away from the faces of sports car drivers as the overblown R50 demoralises them with 10-cylinder diesel-power.

As strange as it feels to type this, I felt good driving around in this vehicle. Even when you're not blasting away from traffic lights or flooring the throttle, it's a well behaved vehicle and pleasant to drive.

It's not bad as a commuter - you get a good view when the air-suspension is jacked up - but parking it can be difficult. 

Though it's not the longest SUV in the world at 4.75 metres, it is one of the widest. It's 1.92 metre width makes tight car parks very dicey.

I'm often the first to point out that heavy, fuel thirsty SUVs are not the most socially responsible vehicles on the planet, but as it turned out the VW Touareg R50 can return respectable and relatively pain-free fuel consumption figures thanks to its diesel power core.

Ultimately I think the Touareg R50 is for the driver who desires immense power, but doesn't necessarily plan on exercising it at every moment.

While this vehicle can race away from standing starts as rapidly as a sports coupe, or even tow a house, it can also be remarkably fuel efficient.

During our 780km+ sojourn that took us from the city to the snowy peaks of the mountains and to many places inbetween, this diesel vehicle returned an overall figure of 10.8L/100km. 

While we probably only pushed the car to its limits along one hundred or so of those 780 kilometres (the rest mainly highway cruising and a touch of city driving) remember that this is a 10-cylinder twin turbo engine. The claimed figure of 12.6L/100km - for once - actually appears to reflect real world driving.

Almost everything in the car is automated too. There's the automatic transmission, automatic dimming mirror, automatic climate control, and even an automatic air-suspension system.

With three clearly marked dials near the gear lever - controlling ride height, shock absorption rate, and 4WD mode - the VW Touareg R50 can change from a relaxed, comfortable highway cruiser to a low slung and responsive sports wagon in seconds.

This adaptability is very useful when weather conditions and road surfaces change, and is also a good way to impress colleagues.

While the vehicle has a remarkably supple ride when using the 'comfort' shock absorber settings, it can also be a fairly good steer when switched to 'sport' mode.

Like most 2.5+ tonne 4WDs the R50 heaves itself through corners with the gait of an airliner, but it has less body roll, more grip and more precision than most of its rivals, making it one of the more composed SUVs in terms of handling.

The electronic stability programme (ESP) comes in handy in wet conditions, and the 4Motion all-wheel drive system gives you touch more confidence to push the R50 just a little further through each corner.

The one factor that plays against the VW R50 is it's weight: making 2642kg of tightly packed aluminium, steel and plastic respond like a true performance vehicle through a corner is an engineering nightmare.

The massive 21-inch alloy wheels give the R50 an imposing look, but they're not just for show. Big rubber = big grip, and shod with 295/35 R21 Michelin Latitude Sport tyres helps provide the Super-luxo-power-tank (as one passenger called it) with impressive grip for a car of this size and weight.

How does it go off-road? Well, with the kind of tyres you'd expect to see on a Porsche 911 Carrera, not so good. And replacing tyres isn't cheap either...

The German car maker has added paddle shifters behind the steering wheel, but we found them to be of little use because the of engine's broad spread of torque. Just nail the throttle away you go.

The brakes are adequate in everyday situations but relying on them to hastily wash off speed, corner after corner, begins to take its toll and you end up having to jump on the anchors early and pump them hard. 

It's no light weight sportster.

As a luxury SUV, the Touareg R50 is more successful in some ways than it is as a performance vehicle, offering premium amenities that are more often associated with Volkswagen's sister company, Audi.

There's a lavish feel to the interior, which is built on the back of napa leather leather absolutely everywhere and trendy aluminium accents that fill the spaces along the dashboard, between the driver and passenger, and along the doors.

On top of things like keyless entry and engine start, fully adjustable electric sports seats with lumbar adjust, electric steering wheel and electric seatbelt adjust, tri-zone climate control, an excellent 11-speaker stereo system and proximity parking sensors, the side mirrors are gracious enough to dip down when you reverse the big VW, giving the driver a perfect view of the kerb (and to avoid scratching the 21-inch rims).

There's also the excellent RNS 510 touch screen system, which is also available on the Touareg's little brother Tiguan.

One of the best touch-screen systems around, it's clear, intuitive and very powerful, featuring a hard drive and SD card slots for all sorts of multimedia shenanigans. It also has excellent satellite navigational instructions.

Getting up at the sparrow's fart, we took the Volkswagen R50 up to Mt Buller for a day of skiing, and after punching in the destination it offered up three different routes which was a nice surprise, indicating how many kilometres each route covered (we chose the shortest route) and also the estimated travel time. Not bad that.

The heated seats and mirrors also come in handy when the temperature drops below zero degrees.

And it's not just the front passengers who get all the goodies either.

The rear seats are also covered in napa leather, they are heated like the front seats, plus there's air vents near the floor and even in the B-pillars which can be set at different temperatures than the front vents. Tri-zone climate control is a good thing.

By and large the interior is well designed, functional, and very plush. It's finds a happy medium between luxury and sports and you do feel as though you're driving a $130,000 car.

But I do have to nitpick...

For one, there's no 'off' button for the heater/air-conditioner, which means you have to turn the fan down to zero to switch it off.

The foot operated park brake is also a bit old-hat, and doesn't compare well with Volkswagen's Passat models that get electronic push-button park brake systems as standard.

Also, I thought the steering wheel was a bit big and the steering wheel controls, while useful, look dated.

These are not deal breaking issues, but there were noticed in day-to-day driving.

Interior space is fairly good: there's plenty of room for five adults in this vehicle and the boot has an accommodating 500 litres of space, which extends to 1525 litres with the rear seats down -- plenty of room for a couple of snowboards if you don't want to put them on the roof.

It can tow braked trailers with payloads of up 3500kg, and unbraked trailers of up to 750kg and has no trouble whatsoever with a full load of luggage and passengers.

Volkswagen even proved that the V10 Touareg can tow 155 tonne Boeing airliners, so if you've got a big boat or tow floats or large caravans, this vehicle can handle them all.

One of the most surprising aspects of the R50 is it's look. Step outside the car and you'll not want to look away.

Though I'm no SUV fanatic, I quite liked the look of this hulking sports utility vehicle.

Striking onlookers with the image of an oversized sport wagon, the Volkswagen R50 cuts an athletic figure thanks to its sporty 21-inch alloy wheels, which mimic the rim design seen on the Golf R32.

There's also a striking sports body kit that comprises deep front and rear fascias which plenty of polished chrome and side skirts to match (I think Porsche called - it wants it's SUV back).

Flared wheel arches shelter the huge alloy wheels and give the vehicle a muscular stance, and a pair of large rectangular trumpet-like exhaust pipes at the rear of the big Volkswagen are neatly integrated into a moulded rear apron.

Overall: 3.5/5

A true leviathan of the automotive world, the Volkswagen Touareg R50 is modelled on a seemingly preposterous idea.

Take a 2.5+ tonne German tank, slot the biggest, baddest engine you can find under its bonnet, then add mammoth wheels, sports air-suspension, big brakes and more luxury than a Rolls Royce.

Oddly enough, the end result works well thanks in large part to some clever engineering solutions, and for $130,000 you do in fact get decent value for money. If, unlike the author, you're an SUV aficionado you could probably add another half a wombat to that final score.

The Volkswagen R50 is a juggernaut, a titan, a behemoth, a motoring colossus, and though it's not my cup of tea, it still made a big impression. Armed to the hilt with high performance features, luxury appointments and plenty of auto gadgetry, and it's hard not to be impressed with what Volkswagen has done here.