Looking at getting a VW Touareg for a winter car, am I nuts?

[vonsmog]

I need a new SUV that I can let rot away from the all of the salt they use here in western NY in the winter time. I have been driving Jeep Grand Cherokee's the past twenty years, but now I am thinking of getting a VW Touareg. Don't want to spend a ton, under $15k. thinking of going down south and picking up a 2004-2007. This way the rust will be next to nil, until it gets up here for a few winters. Anyone have the Touareg with the V6 motor? and is it any good? I do need to be able to tow my car trailer every once in a while.
Thanks, Von

[andrew15]

You should get a Unimog!
Now only if you knew someone with some Unimog experience....

[kundensport]

i had 3,
one with the v8 and two v6
liked the v6 more, fuel consumption is better. they tow very nice.

[Rick V]

Originally Posted by andrew15

You should get a Unimog!
Now only if you knew someone with some Unimog experience....

I was thinking this was an ironic thread.

[PabloX]

They can be nightmares if you get the wrong one.

[Dan J]

get an 05 or newer with a v8 they're great cars. Lower mileage and no stories is best

[speeder]

I was driving an '08 V8 for a while last spring, gorgeous suv IMO but the worst mpg of anything I've ever driven with the exception of a Jeep Grand Wagoneer I once had that consumed its entire value every month in fuel.

[Monza_dh]

Getting 24-26 hwy mpg on my 3.0ltr X5.......just saying......

[Racerbvd]

Saw this, just sharing..


2005 Volkswagen Touareg 4dr V8 - Sporty & Extremely Nice - We Finance

[aigel]

Coworker has an early one. Electrical gremlin galore.

Why not a Toyota Sequoia or 4runner? Much better rep.

George

[A930Rocket]

Ran into a guy I used to with with. He just sold his V10 Toureg for $80k to some guy who was going to race it. Few made and hard to fund he said.

[porsche4life]

Buyer was a moron then...

Three on ebay, this being the most expensive
Volkswagen : Touareg | eBay

[bkreigsr]

just got one to tow my car to the track & back - 05-V6 - first tank was 18.3mpg - (and $84) - so far, so good.
I had a deposit on a Dakota, but saw that the egg was rated at 7,800 lbs and had no open bed - done deal.
the towing downside is that the tow bar is $670-750 from the dealers, installation is another $550, and it can only be done (correctly) at the VW dealers, as they have to flash the onboard computers.
Bill K

see also 'clubtouareg.com' for a bunch of interesting stuff,
also, there's a touareg forum on vortex.com

[kaisen]

Von,

You're a smart guy and a true enthusiast. You love all German vehicles, I'd guess. And that's exactly who buys Touaregs.

But if you really look at need, versus expense and complexity, you wouldn't buy a Touareg. So assign some factor for "I think having a German-branded SUV is much cooler than one with an American brand"

When it comes to towing, nothing beats a V8 truck/SUV from the big three. Especially when factoring purchase price, repair costs, depreciation, and fuel costs. You can buy a whole lotta Tahoe or Suburban for $15K, and it will out-tow a V6 Touareg any day of the week.

That said, enjoy your new Touareg!

[Fritter]

I probably would never get a used Touareg, especially without a warranty. We bought an 05 V6 new. Great looking and driving car and great interior. Tows great. But maintenance, woah the maintenance....

Brake job is north of $2K (DIY around $600). Brakes wear out quickly.
Xenon headlights $800/pr (DIY around $100)
Power steering pump crapped out on ours, fixed under warranty, north of $1K
I had to replace both horns
Tires wear out quicker, can find good ones for fairly cheap though.

Basically the only way I'd get a used one is if I planned on DIYing everything, and even then, plan on spending some coin on the parts.

[onewhippedpuppy]

I looked at them pretty hard recently, they're cheap enough used that it's hard to ignore. But my research was enough to scare me off, like most VAG products they seem to have serious electrical gremlins. To frame the comment, I ended up buying a Land Rover Discovery 1 which didn't scare me nearly as much. Simple = less to break.

In the $15k range take a good look at the 4th generation 4Runner, 100 Series Land Cruiser, and 2005+ Xterra. Or just spend 1/3 of your budget and get an old Land Rover.

[vonsmog]

Thanks guys for all of your help, with all of the research I have done in the last day or so, I think I am just going to get a 04 Jeep grand cherokee. It is the last year of the straight 6 and can pull 5000lbs. Plus they are cheap enough, as a real good one can be had for about $9k. It is only going to rust away up here in the winter anyway, so why spend the money on a nice truck. That is the one reason I don't drive a Unimog in the winter around here. It is hard to put in all of that $$ and time restoring one, and then watch the salt just eat it right up!

[onewhippedpuppy]

Von, for the money you can get a very nice 3rd gen 4Runner. It will be much nicer to drive and more reliable than the Jeep, and should do much better on gas than the notoriously thirsty 4.0L straight six. If you've never driven one it might be worth a look.

[Steve Carlton]

In my experience, the 4.7L V8 is about equal to the 4.0L I6 in fuel economy on the Grand Cherokees.

[aigel]

Yes, my buddy has that small V8 in a 2001 or 2002 Grand Cherokee and I have witnessed over 20 mpg on a road trip we took together. You can't go much over 70 mph to get that but that was impressive IMHO, especially considering the power on tap when needed.

George