In production, for 2 decades the Volkswagen Touareg has sat at the top of the brand's lineup for the majority of that time. Only beaten by the Phaeton. The Touareg saw much success, balancing luxury and price. The model provides competition to BMW and Mercedes offerings in the segment. Although it remains more subtle. The Touareg gave birth to the lineup of SUVs that Volkswagen now produces including the Tiguan and T-Roc. But the large SUV has not been sold in the United States since 2018. Pulled from the market after declining sales those that want a Touareg have limited options.
Available across three generations the Touareg's most notable vehicles are the current Touareg R model, Volkswagen's first hybrid R branded vehicle, and the R50 a diesel performance SUV. Most significantly comes the rarest model, the W12 Touareg. Built on the first generation of car the W12 sold from 2005 to 2010. A true oddity in the brand's lineup. Never seeing a true replacement as the second generation's car saw the top-of-the-line model use a 4.2-liter FSI branded V8 or hybrid V6 depending on the vehicle's market. Both units achieved similar acceleration but not the same quality feel.
With the engine from a Bentley, this VW will take all your money.
How Much Does The W12 Touareg Cost?
Looking at the current crop of W12 engined SUVs, meaning the Bentley Bentayga any gearhead would expect the W12 Touareg to carry a massive asking price. But this wasn't always true the W12 Touareg sold in Europe for around $52,000 but in today's money, this equates to around $76,000. Sitting at the top of the Volkswagen product tree the car does come with a more luxurious interior than a contemporary Golf. Some examples have rudimentary sat nav systems but there is a more modest luxury which includes wood paneling and on occasion an analog dashboard clock.
According to Classic, an aggregator of used and classic car prices the Touareg saw massive depreciation. The average Touareg of this generation sells for only $16,851. High mileage examples sell for less than $10,000. Whereas the rarer and more exciting W12 model moves on the higher end of the market at $38,000. The W12 originally launched as a limited edition car with only 500 examples to leave the Wolfsburg-based marque's factories. Production exceeded this initial 500 number, but the model is still much rarer than the 5.0 liter V10 diesel engine.
Luxury SUVs sell in nearly every price bracket. But for less than $40,000 the options get incredibly limited and rather mundane. These include the Cadillac XT4, BMW X2, and Lexus NX. Small, boring, and essentially hatchbacks on big wheels the case for the Touareg seems strong.
How Is This W12 Touareg Special?
The first-generation Touareg launched in 2002. One of the Volkswagen group's newest models alongside the Audi TT it ushered in the age of the shared platform. The early Touareg used the same platform as the Porsche Cayenne. This means that the Touareg certainly put the sport in sport utility vehicle. The Cayenne Turbo S was considerably faster than the W12 Touareg. But the Touareg's W12 motor featured in the Volkswagen Group's most luxurious models. This includes the ultra-rare Phaeton and Bentley models. For $38,000 the W12 Touareg certainly seems incredibly appealing.
The old adage that there ain't no replacement for displacement means that this 6.0-liter engine produces plenty of power. With 450 horsepower and 600-newton meters of torque, this large SUV could accelerate to 60mph in a shade under 6 seconds. Highly powered luxury SUVs seem pretty common these days, be that the Jaguar Land Rover SVR models, BMW XM range, or even the mighty Lamborghini Urus. But the W12 Touareg helped set the trend launching four years before the first X5 M model from BMW.
The W12 Touareg also comes with an extended body kit. Subtly sporting, unlike contemporary performance models. This includes larger air ducts and lower front bumpers. Exterior sills and excessive amounts of chrome look different from current sports SUVs that opt for black exterior trim. Importantly the car uses quad tailpipes.
How Expensive Is It To Run A W12 Touareg?
When buying an older car sensible individuals keep a rainy day fund with money for repairs. The cars suffer drive shaft and transmission problems. The Touareg after all is a very large car and large parts get expensive quickly. According to Car Figures, Volkswagen sold 52,884 examples of Touareg between 2005 and 2010, while not all of these are the W12 model there are plenty of spare parts floating around be that on other cars or warehouse shelves. A look through the classifieds finds plenty of used examples of the car and its Porsche stablemate. Both are a testament to their reliability and their sales success.
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In regards to everyday expected expenses, the car has 20-inch wheels thus big tires, 275/40R-20 to be exact. After shopping around four new tires comes to just shy of $1000. Fuel consumption isn't better either. With a combined 15mpg expect to make plenty of painful trips to the gas pump. The gas tank holds 26.4 gallons and this gives a total range of 390 miles. So while the W12 Touareg certainly makes an appealing luxury offering keeping it going will get expensive quickly.