VW Powers ahead with 12-cylinder Touareg

By Feann Torr - 19/10/04

Just when you thought VW had been harbouring doubts about its W-range of engines - where two V4s or V6s are joined and share the same crankshaft - the German marque comes out firing with a high performance 4x4 powered by a W12 engine.

On sale in October 2004 in Germany and France, with other world markets to follow, the new VW was designed to take on the likes of the Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5 4.8iS and Mercedes ML 55 AMG.

The Volkswagen Touareg W12 Sport gets all the goodies you'd expect of vehicles in this performance-prestige class, including big wheels, a sports-themed luxury leather interior and of course heart-pounding AWD acceleration.

Consider that the Touareg W12 Sport's aforementioned rivals are all powered by V8 engines, and immediately the Volkswagen sets itself apart with its unique W12-cylinder engine.

As well as having four cylinders more than its rivals, it also displaces 6.0-litres, which puts it at the top of the German SUV performance tree in terms of engine capacity, while still attaining classification under the EU4 standard.

Volkswagen chose a durable 6-speed automatic transmission with tiptronic override to transfer the engine's power to the ground.

Pumping out a stomach-churning 331kW, or 450 horses in the old money, the naturally aspirated 6.0-litre engine powers the heavy 4x4 to an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h and will race from 0-100km/h in under six seconds - 5.9 seconds in fact.

This incredibly rapid take off is due to the engine's latent torque reserves which give it plenty of grunt, with 600Nm peaking @ an undisclosed engine revolutions per minute (rpm).

The engine's W configuration lends itself to a massive torque output, and if you compare the twin vee engine to HSV's new LS2 V8 engine, also displacing 6.0-litres, it betters it by a margin of 70Nm.

More appropriately though, compare it to its closest Germanic rivals and the new VW Touareg beats out long-time contenders from Mercedes and BMW by a healthy margin, and still gives Porsche's seemingly untouchable twin-turbo Cayenne something to think about:

While the Cayenne Turbo and Touareg Sport output identical amounts of power, the turbocharged Porsche takes the torque honours by 20Nm, but consider that the VW is naturally aspirated - that is, non turbocharged or supercharged - and it stands up well, even when you take into account its extra 1.5-litre capacity.

Porsche claims a 5.6 second 0-100km/h sprint, which is 3 tenths of a second better than the Touareg's, but when Cayenne makes 620Nm @ a low 2500rpm, this sort of figure is more than understandable.

At the time of writing, Volkswagen Australia could not confirm a price for the Touareg W12 Sport, or if it will even be coming to Australia, but the popularity and solid sales of the Cayenne, ML-Class and X5 Series here will definitely play a part in the decision.

At this stage, only Germany and France have been rubber stamped for availability, where the go-fast Touareg will be available in October.

First seen at the '04 Paris Motor Show, Volkswagen's new sporty SUV makes a clear statement to both BMW and Mercedes, if not exotic carmaker Porsche as well, that if it's a power war you want, it's a power war you've got.

But more than just offering the biggest, baddest engine in its range-topping 4x4, VW has also outfitted it with all the features that have taken the market segment from a one-horse race when Land Rover was king, to one that may even challenge luxury saloon sales in the years to come.

Air-suspension has been integrated into the chassis, allowing the car to hunker down when road speed increases to improve aerodynamics and henceforth fuel consumption, or to jack up the ride height when fording bodies of water.

The interior also gets a sportier, but no less luxurious fit out, with individual leather bucket seats complete with Alcantara inlays, which you can see in the photographs.

The wide ribbing on the seat backs is a sporty design cue that suits the 4x4 to a tee, and the lateral seat supports will keep occupants from rolling out of their pews during hard cornering.

Splashes of aluminium all over the shop help to accentuate the Touareg's athletic character and there's also "W12 Sport" lettering both inside and out.

The Touareg Sport has also been given a bolder look to coincide with its upgraded powerplant, where giant 20-inch alloy wheels shod with wide 275/40 tyres will be the first clue as to the vehicle's heightened performance.

Newly designed front and rear bumpers, darkened windows, a roof-mounted spoiler and flared wheel arches give it a more purposeful look when compared to other Touareg models, and two chromium-plated double exhaust pipes finish off the W12 Sport's exterior updates nicely.

The new Touareg W12 Sport will make a big impact on the existing status quo in the performance-prestige 4x4 market segment, and top stuff too, I say. The Porsche outdoes the Beemer and the Merc in terms of real world performance, but Volkswagen has pegged the Porker back, and now the market segment is much more competitive place as a result.

BMW and Mercedes will both have to come up with some very special models in the mid-term to combat the Cayenne and Touareg Sport, which look to have - at least on paper - a very considerable power advantage.