The VW Touareg V10 TDI experience

On an early saturday morning, we had the opportunity to be the first few to test drive the new VW Touareg. Now, this Touareg is not your usual run-of-the-mill SUV. This Touareg has the letters "TDI" attached to it.

And these are some very special words. So special that any petrolhead will go jelly in the knees when they hear them.

Allow me to explain. The "TDI" stands for Turbocharged Direct Injection and is VW's acronym for all their turbocharged diesel engine. Yes....this monster is a diesel. Now, for those of you who know enough to differentiate between a car and a truck, you will immediately know that diesel-based cars have more low-end torque compared to their petrol counterparts. But this increase comes with the sacrifice of high-end power, noted by the 4.5k rev-limit on diesel engines.

What makes this Touareg so special is that it doesn't sacrifice on high-end power and that is why petrolheads will go weak in their knees. This Toureg has all the benefits of a diesel and none of it's drawbacks. The R50 contains a 5-litre, V10 turbocharged engine giving 850NM at a low 2000rpm and 350bhp at 3500rpm which will power the behemoth from 0-100km in 6.7 seconds and all the way to the 235km/h limit. All it takes is for you to floor the accelerator and you will be in warp speed the very next moment. Or a hefty speeding fine.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the luxury of testing the car extensively but from the short 10-min drive, it was enough for me to peg the $298,000 asking price as emotionally worthwhile. You just have to listen to the engine note and exhaust burble. Nothing like the clittery-clap of diesels!

It is not often that you can have so much power in your hands. Or in something this huge.