[tallman85]

Hello all, I am a 30yrs old and by profession I am an engineer. I in a point in life were I need a larger vehicle and I will be going for an SUV, being 6'3" tall, I find it that these are the best vehicles for me.

I loved the Touareg from the first day I saw it and in my opinion it looks the business. Not many around were I live since they were very expensive when new. I always had a soft spot for the V10 TDi although a V6 TDi would be nice as well. I happen to find a 2004 V10 TDi for sale, below the 80K km on the clock and in very good condition - fully loaded, not cheap but affordable.

I read many reviews and posts, however many seem to name the V10 as unreliable and very expensive to keep and run as a daily driver. I will be doing around 13k km per year. I would like to buy it but all the posts seems to say otherwise. The fact that the engine needs to be removed to replace some parts that are prone to fail scares me a bit as this means a huge bill...but who many times do you need to take it out?

I would like to have some honest feedback from people who owns such vehicles especially if you owned a V10. How expensive is it to run and reliability? any mileage that should make you walk away? and what about the MPG? Should I opt for a V6?

There is a saying that says if you cannot afford it new, don't buy it second hand ... might be true for some cars.

I thank you in advance

Regards
D.

 

[noobytoogy]

If you have deep pockets and can take a hit or two if you buy a dud, buy a V10.

If you don't and can't, then perhaps even a V6 isn't for you.

All Touaregs are expensive to fix, the V10 more so under the bonnet, and as they age your saying - if you cannot afford it new, don't buy it second hand - becomes ever more appropriate.

 

[tallman85]

Thank you for your input. Well in reality modern cars need much more expensive fixes than old cars....but maybe some more than others.

When you say deep pockets, you mean around Euro 3,000 maintenance per year? because that would not be so worth it after all. I think the V10 is more a dream rather than a must have as I am sure the V6 will do the job. The thing is that I always wanted a bit engine with lots of torque.

 

[Ebg18t]

Thank you for your input. Well in reality modern cars need much more expensive fixes than old cars....but maybe some more than others. When you say deep pockets, you mean around Euro 3,000 maintenance per year? because that would not be so worth it after all. I think the V10 is more a dream rather than a must have as I am sure the V6 will do the job. The thing is that I always wanted a bit engine with lots of torque.

Drive both. You may find the v6 much smoother than the v10.

On the v10 many repairs require the whole engine to be removed. This is one of the reasons that the v10 is so expensive to repair.

 

[noobytoogy]

Thank you for your input. Well in reality modern cars need much more expensive fixes than old cars....but maybe some more than others.

When you say deep pockets, you mean around Euro 3,000 maintenance per year? because that would not be so worth it after all. I think the V10 is more a dream rather than a must have as I am sure the V6 will do the job. The thing is that I always wanted a bit engine with lots of torque.

Regular maintenance is not too bad - it's the big repairs that can make you wish you'd bought something a lot newer, a lot cheaper and a lot simpler!

If things go really tits up and you are having to pay a dealer, these are the numbers you are looking at:

V10 engine 20,000 Euros.

All Toureg diffs 5,000 E

All Touareg gearboxes 8,000 E

Prop shaft 1200 E

And so on.

Just be aware, the bill can quickly end with three noughts!

 

[tallman85]

Ehmm...that is indeed scary stuff Well this one that I am looking has done 90,000 km, one owner from new and owner claims that none of the above parts were replaced and engine was never removed so far. Was always serviced on time with good oil...etc and only one set of tires was change and a battery.

This scares me a bit since it means that things might start to go wrong, although this sounds to be a very carefully and loving owner, so I am sure that this Touareg was not abused at all.

1. From experience what might starting to fail at about 100,000 KM (60K miles) ?
2. Do gearboxes, shafts, turbos..etc...fail because of abuse? I means I see some owners on youtube doing off-roading and tractor pulling and all kind of madness... they cannot complain if the shafts or gearbox fails correct?

Thank you once again, all help appreciated,
Regards
D.

 

[lml999]

The V10 is not a good choice for someone with no prior Touareg experience, unless you have a very good private mechanic, nearly unlimited funds, and another car to drive.

*Anything* requiring the motor to be removed will cost you more than what you paid for the Touareg originally.

You will need $10-$15K set aside for maintenance. And by the way, once you spend that, it could happen again. These cars are that spendy.

In other words...don't.

 

[tallman85]

Well, I do have an honest private mechanic and labor rate is very low, I can help with the repairs as well being an engineer myself. I dont plan to service or repair at main dealers, here they will eat you alive with the labour rate...etc...etc...

Unlimited funds is were I hit the wall Unfortunately I don't and with the plan to extend my family, funds will be more limited I guess.

 

[lml999]

Well, I do have an honest private mechanic and labor rate is very low, I can help with the repairs as well being an engineer myself. I dont plan to service or repair at main dealers, here they will eat you alive with the labour rate...etc...etc...

Unlimited funds is were I hit the wall Unfortunately I don't and with the plan to extend my family, funds will be more limited I guess.

Your engineering background will hurt rather than help, unfortunately. In fixing these beasts, the challenge is in determining root cause rather than in swapping parts. And good root cause analysis requires a lot of prior experience...otherwise you'll spend a fortune on replacing parts that aren't broken. These cars are complex.

Good judgement comes from experience.

Experience comes from bad judgement.

 

[tallman85]

Hehe, good one!

 

[FSJ Guy]

After reading ability maintenance issues here, I passed on a "killer" deal for a V10 Touareg. I think there was a reason it was priced so low... :- /

 

[noobytoogy]

Well, I do have an honest private mechanic and labor rate is very low, I can help with the repairs as well being an engineer myself. I dont plan to service or repair at main dealers, here they will eat you alive with the labour rate...etc...etc...

Unlimited funds is were I hit the wall Unfortunately I don't and with the plan to extend my family, funds will be more limited I guess.

If you have a limited family budget then a used Touareg - and that is any model Touareg - is not for you.

Rethink the whole car purchase thing and buy something as new as possible, preferably still with some manufacturer's warranty.

 

[tallman85]

Well, still very tempting right, that power with luxury is not something that is found eveyday. Pity its not that reliable