New here and considering a Touareg

• How reliable is the final year Touareg? (All of my VWs have been dead reliable except my '07 GTI that had camshaft issues)
• Being a Sport w/Tech, will I be missing a ton of nice features? I know it doesn't have the pan roof which is fine as my wife never opens the sunroof in her car.
• The first gen Touaregs were notorious for going through tires quickly based on some posts, how is this latest generation? The XC70 can easily go 40k with a set of tires.
• How's the base stereo?
• I hear conflicting info on fuel requirement - ranging from the Touareg V6 can use 87 to it absolutely needs 93. What's the real take?
• Does the final year Touareg have apple carplay? According to this site (https://www.joeheidt.com/blog/which-volkswagen-models-have-carplay/) it does for 2017.
• Anything I should be looking for before buying?

1. How reliable…
   1. No issues of any kind to report as of 40k miles.
2. Being a Sport w/Tech…
   1. There are many version. My sport version has a sunroof. No driver assists though except for backup cam. For me, this tech is not a requirement.
3. The first gen Touaregs were notorious for going through tires ….
   1. Brakes are still fine. Tires are due for a change, but these were the factory issue so not expected to live long. Also, in the first year, did a 10k mile road trip with the RV trailer (drove to east coast and back).
   2. Also driving style….With the transmission auto downshifting, my brakes don’t work that hard.
4. How's the base stereo?
   1. Its &%$#! That being said, I’m a bit of an audiophile and have already performed upgrades. The VCDS hack helped a little.
      1. Amplifier install
      2. Subwoofers
5. I hear conflicting info on fuel …
   1. n/c. With the diesel I get about 24mpg in the city, ~ 29 highway.
6. Does the final year Touareg have apple carplay....
   1. My version does not.
7. Anything I should be looking for..
   1. The usual = Ensure its professionally inspected. All service receipts provided, etc.
   2. It’s a complex vehicle. I’m able to save some money and do some high cost services myself (eg: F/R/C diff fluids, brake bleed, inspections). I also have trust issues.
   3. Oil changes are done at the vendor as I can’t source the special oil for less than they charge. When that transmission fluid swap come due – it’s going to be a dealer job.

2016TRegTdiSport said:

Those are good questions and you are bout to get a lot of good answers.
May responses are based on my ownership of a 2016 Teg TDI Sport <-- last year available in Canada.

1. How reliable…
   1. No issues of any kind to report as of 40k miles.
2. Being a Sport w/Tech…
   1. There are many version. My sport version has a sunroof. No driver assists though except for backup cam. For me, this tech is not a requirement.
3. The first gen Touaregs were notorious for going through tires ….
   1. Brakes are still fine. Tires are due for a change, but these were the factory issue so not expected to live long. Also, in the first year, did a 10k mile road trip with the RV trailer (drove to east coast and back).
   2. Also driving style….With the transmission auto downshifting, my brakes don’t work that hard.
4. How's the base stereo?
   1. Its &%$#! That being said, I’m a bit of an audiophile and have already performed upgrades. The VCDS hack helped a little.
      1. Amplifier install
      2. Subwoofers
5. I hear conflicting info on fuel …
   1. n/c. With the diesel I get about 24mpg in the city, ~ 29 highway.
6. Does the final year Touareg have apple carplay....
   1. My version does not.
7. Anything I should be looking for..
   1. The usual = Ensure its professionally inspected. All service receipts provided, etc.
   2. It’s a complex vehicle. I’m able to save some money and do some high cost services myself (eg: F/R/C diff fluids, brake bleed, inspections). I also have trust issues.
   3. Oil changes are done at the vendor as I can’t source the special oil for less than they charge. When that transmission fluid swap come due – it’s going to be a dealer job.

PS: My research indicated for the Teg, “the cost of ownership is high”. I have not noticed that yet. I am of mechanical background and able to perform some/most maintenance on my own.
But its been a fantastic vehicle to have. Highway driving is a dream and if I’m not towing our RV trailer, I have about a 700 mile range. Winter driving is also good, this vehicle is well balanced and handles very well.
Cheers,

Click to expand...

Golf Wang said:

that warranty you’re referencing would only apply to the Touareg TDI. And it’s 10 year/120K miles, or 4 years/48K miles after the”fix” was performed ( so if fix performed @ 100K Miles, you’d be good until 148K miles. If fix was performed at 70K miles, you’re good till 120).

Click to expand...

2016TRegTdiSport said:

Those are good questions and you are bout to get a lot of good answers.
May responses are based on my ownership of a 2016 Teg TDI Sport <-- last year available in Canada.

1. How reliable…
   1. No issues of any kind to report as of 40k miles.
2. Being a Sport w/Tech…
   1. There are many version. My sport version has a sunroof. No driver assists though except for backup cam. For me, this tech is not a requirement.
3. The first gen Touaregs were notorious for going through tires ….
   1. Brakes are still fine. Tires are due for a change, but these were the factory issue so not expected to live long. Also, in the first year, did a 10k mile road trip with the RV trailer (drove to east coast and back).
   2. Also driving style….With the transmission auto downshifting, my brakes don’t work that hard.
4. How's the base stereo?
   1. Its &%$#! That being said, I’m a bit of an audiophile and have already performed upgrades. The VCDS hack helped a little.
      1. Amplifier install
      2. Subwoofers
5. I hear conflicting info on fuel …
   1. n/c. With the diesel I get about 24mpg in the city, ~ 29 highway.
6. Does the final year Touareg have apple carplay....
   1. My version does not.
7. Anything I should be looking for..
   1. The usual = Ensure its professionally inspected. All service receipts provided, etc.
   2. It’s a complex vehicle. I’m able to save some money and do some high cost services myself (eg: F/R/C diff fluids, brake bleed, inspections). I also have trust issues.
   3. Oil changes are done at the vendor as I can’t source the special oil for less than they charge. When that transmission fluid swap come due – it’s going to be a dealer job.

PS: My research indicated for the Teg, “the cost of ownership is high”. I have not noticed that yet. I am of mechanical background and able to perform some/most maintenance on my own.
But its been a fantastic vehicle to have. Highway driving is a dream and if I’m not towing our RV trailer, I have about a 700 mile range. Winter driving is also good, this vehicle is well balanced and handles very well.
Cheers,

Click to expand...

Golf Wang said:

that warranty you’re referencing would only apply to the Touareg TDI. And it’s 10 year/120K miles, or 4 years/48K miles after the”fix” was performed ( so if fix performed @ 100K Miles, you’d be good until 148K miles. If fix was performed at 70K miles, you’re good till 120).

Click to expand...

volkswagens-for-life said:

Great post very accurate


Wrong, every single late model Touareg got the 10/120 000

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SwissInTexas said:

I'm new to the forum but not new to the VW/Audi family. I've driven some sort of Golf GTI or Golf R since the MkV generation was released in the States in 2006 with my current weekend toy being a Mk7 R.
My wife is currently driving a 2013 Volvo XC70 which we bought new and it's still an amazing car at 100k miles and could probably go another 100k without issues but we've been looking on upgrading her car as her Volvo doesn't have a backup camera or blind sport monitoring. Now is also a good time getting out of the car due to used car prices going crazy and the sudden new found want by overland enthusiasts to modify XC70s. Her car that would have been a $7k car at best last year is now close to a $12k car this year. She has been test driving a ton of cars from Q5, Atlas, all the way to the new Volvos and she hated each an every one. She doesn't like the digital cockpits and the huge screens. She wants an analog car, that feels solid, and has a backup camera.
I've been looking for low mileage XC70s (2016 was the last year) and they're priced way too high with low mileage (high 30s) and then I came across a low mileage (8k miles) 2017 Touareg Sport with Tech here locally sold by a private party.
Here are my questions:

• How reliable is the final year Touareg? (All of my VWs have been dead reliable except my '07 GTI that had camshaft issues)
• Being a Sport w/Tech, will I be missing a ton of nice features? I know it doesn't have the pan roof which is fine as my wife never opens the sunroof in her car.
• The first gen Touaregs were notorious for going through tires quickly based on some posts, how is this latest generation? The XC70 can easily go 40k with a set of tires.
• How's the base stereo?
• I hear conflicting info on fuel requirement - ranging from the Touareg V6 can use 87 to it absolutely needs 93. What's the real take?
• Does the final year Touareg have apple carplay? According to this site (https://www.joeheidt.com/blog/which-volkswagen-models-have-carplay/) it does for 2017.
• Anything I should be looking for before buying?

Click to expand...