[UPDATE, March 5] Live images from the 2019 Geneva Motor Show have been added at the beginning of the gallery, below.
This week is the week of Volkswagen’s performance high-riding vehicles. After launching the new T-Roc R yesterday, today the brand from Wolfsburg is introducing its most powerful vehicle on production. Meet the Touareg V8 TDI which will make its public debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week.
Let’s get straight to the point – what’s under the hood. There's a 4.0-liter turbodiesel with 416 horsepower (310 kilowatts) and 664 pound-feet (900 Newton-meters) of torque. These numbers ensure the large SUV is impressively quick off the line – just 4.9 seconds from a standstill to 62 miles per hour (0-100 kilometers per hour), while max speed is electronically governed at 155 mph (250 kph). The V8 TDI motor meets Europe’s latest 6d-TEMP emissions standards.
Update:
Gallery: VW Touareg V8 TDI at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show
While Volkswagen claims this is “the most powerful SUV with a diesel engine from a German manufacturer,” that’s not entirely true. Depending on the market, you may still be able to buy a brand new Audi SQ7 TDI (with which the Touareg V8 TDI shares its engine), which is actually a bit more powerful at 429 hp (320 kW). It’s not even the most powerful Touareg do date having in mind the first generation of the model had a 12-cylinder variant with 444 hp (331 kW).
Customers ordering the new range-topping SUV of Volkswagen will have the option to choose between two distinctive design packages. The first one is called Elegance and stands for a more minimalistic and simplified interior design approach dominated by metal and cool color tones. The second one, Atmosphere, is “a warm interior environment where wood and natural tones prevail.”
As a part of the standard equipment, the Touareg V8 TDI comes with air suspension, power boot lid, stainless steel pedals, 19-inch wheels, and the Light and Sight package with automatically dimming exterior mirrors and automatic headlights. Sales of the model will begin in May this year.
Source: Volkswagen
Volkswagen is celebrating the world premiere of the new Touareg V8 TDI at the Geneva International Motor Show (7–17 March). Its output of 310 kW / 421 PS makes it the most powerful SUV with a diesel engine from a German manufacturer. The maximum torque of the high tech turbo diesel engine reaches the level of a super sports car: 900 newton metres. Whether cruising at low speeds, moving fast or going off-road – this power provides superior drive characteristics. The new flagship vehicle will come on the market at the end of May.
The 250 km/h-fast Touareg V8 TDI demonstrates the potential of its dynamics as it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.9 seconds. Like all Touareg models, the new V8 version also complies with the Euro 6d-TEMP emission standard. Those purchasing the top model will have the choice between the standard Elegance design package or the Atmosphere package. Elegance stands for a technical interior design dominated by metal and cool colour tones; Atmosphere is a warm interior environment where wood and natural tones prevail.
The seat system and door trims of both versions have a leather finish (“Vienna” type) as standard. The interior of the Touareg V8 TDI thus creates both an exclusive and an avant-garde comfort zone. The screens of the Innovision Cockpit (digitised display and controls) with their glass covered surfaces, tanned leathers and aluminium and chrome details allow the extraordinarily high quality of the Touareg V8 TDI to be seen and felt. The wood applications are particularly elegant. An example of the Atmosphere design package: a narrow wing made of “curved beam wood” extends over the entire width of the dash panel here – a wood application curved as one part and made of ash that follows the shape of the dash panel.
Compared to the models with V6-engines, the Touareg V8 TDI additionally includes air suspension, a boot lid that opens and closes electrically, comfort seats, an anti-theft alarm system, stainless steel pedals and the “Light & Sight” package (including automatically dimming exterior mirrors and automatic headlights) as standard. The Touareg V8 TDI also comes with 19-inch Tirano alloy wheels instead of 18-inch wheels.
The equipment range also includes state-of-the-art driver assist and running gear systems. Some of the features that increase safety include “Night Vision” (detects people and animals in the dark using a thermal imaging camera), “Traffic Jam and Roadwork Lane Assist” (partly automated steering and lane departure warning, acceleration and braking, up to 60 km/h) and “Front Cross Traffic Assist” (responds to cross traffic in front of the Touareg). Technologies like the active all-wheel steering system (makes the Touareg as easy to handle as a compact car) and a roll stabilisation system with electromechanically controlled anti-roll bars further perfect handling and comfort. One of the best lighting systems in the world provides additional safety and comfort at night: the interactive “IQ.Light – LED matrix headlight”.