Volkswagen
Touareg R50: World Wide Debut In Oz
Motoring Channel Staff - 16/October/2007
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Volkswagen Touareg R50
The interior is beginning to look dated,
but it's good to see the 'R' spec pedals
The new sports body kit gives the Touareg a
far more menacing look, especially the exhausts
Sitting on 21-inch wheels, the R50 is not shy
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Sydney,
Australia —
The Australian International Motor Show (AIMS) landed another world
first after Volkswagen took the covers off the new Touareg
R50 in
Sydney. Powered by a twin turbo 5.0-litre, V10 diesel engine,
the Touareg R50 outputs a lot more power and torque than the
current V10 model's 230kW of power and 750Nm of torque, which
was already enough twist to shift a 747 Jumbo Jet (155 tonnes). The
new model launched in Sydney over the weekend outputs 258kW of
power and a staggering 850Nm of torque, up 100Nm on the standard V10
models. All of this power comes from the Touareg R50's 5.0-litre V10
bi-turbo diesel (TDI) engine, and it will be priced at $129,990, just $8,000 more than the normal V10 model.
Suffice to say, the new R50 is be a real
sledgehammer, and Volkswagen is already touting it as the most powerful
SUV in the world. The Porsche Cayenne Turbo may have something to say
about that. The Volkswagen R50 super SUV can achieve combined city/highway fuel economy of 12.6L/100km. With
its 850Nm of torque, the SUV accelerates to 100 km/h in just 6.8
seconds, compared to the standard 7.4 seconds for the V10. Its top
speed is 235 km/h, and it rides on 21-inch alloy wheels shod with
295/35 R21 tyres. It also getsblue brake calipers. The
performance design aero package includes a rear roof spoiler, front and
rear bumpers in sports design with honeycomb inserts, and side
skirt sills and wheel arch extensions. There's also twin chrome
exhaust pipes, chrome roof rails, a radiator grille in double ribbed
style with matt chrome ribs, and R50 vehicle lettering at the front and rear. Inside,
Napa leather sports seats with R50 logo for the front head restraints
are standard, as are individually heated front and rear seats.
Some of the other standard comfort features are as follows:  4-zone dual climate control air conditioning system
Bi-xenon headlights with cornering lights, cleaning system and automatic self levelling
Sound package - 8 channel amplifier with luggage area 6 disc CD changer and 11 speakers
Parking distance sensors, front and rear
Automatic dimming rear-view and driver's side exterior mirror
Rain sensing windscreen wipers
Keyless access system
Anti-theft alarm system
Tyre pressure monitoring system
The
Volkswagen Touareg R50 performance SUV also gets air sports suspension
with Continuous Damping Control (CDC), 4XMOTION permanent
four-wheel-drive, a 6-speed automatic with tiptronic mode and atransfer box with low off-road ratio.
The new Volkswagen Touareg R50 made its
exclusive world wide debut in Sydney, which could be seen as Frankfurt
spillover, or that Australia's reputation as an automotive leader is improving. We
prefer the latter.
The new SUV will be the 'performance' model in
the Touareg line-up
and like the VW Golf R32 and VW Passat R36, the
new R50 uses the German
brands' high octane 'R' badging. Volkswagen will adorn the new SUV with a number of
performance parts, including new 21-inch wheels, a sports body kit like the
Golf R32 and revised suspension to suit its athletic spirit. As well as
the new look exterior, the interior is expected to be given a
once-over, featuring sports seats and other suitable extras. Related
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Volkswagen Golf R32 (Road Test)
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Volkswagen
Passat R36
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