Volkswagen Touareg goes diesel-only for 2013 update

The $62,990 entry-level Volkswagen Touareg 150TDI now includes as standard a rear view camera, upgraded Vienna leather seat upholstery, 12-way electrically adjustable driver and front passenger seats with electro-pneumatically adjustable backrest side bolsters and new "safety optimised" front head restraints.

These are joined by exterior tweaks of bi-xenon headlights, LED daytime running lights and bigger Karakum 18-inch alloy wheels. The 150kW/400Nm 3.0-litre turbo diesel V6 TDI tied to the Touareg's range-wide eight-speed automatic transmission remains.

Both 180kW/550Nm variants of the large Volkswagen SUV, the $78,990 Touareg V6 TDI and $83,990 range-topping Touareg V6 TDI 4XMOTION, come at a $1000 premium over 2012 model year prices but receive the same rear view camera and headlight upgrades as the base Touareg along with the addition of 20-inch Pikes Peak alloy wheels and air suspension with adaptive dampening control as standard.

The Touareg V6 TDI 4XMOTION has also been visually pulled into line with the exterior of the other variants with body coloured trim, chrome mouldings and dual chrome triangular exhaust tips being incorporated in favour of the previous, more rugged looking, grey and silver trims and oval chrome exhaust tips. For those buyers who prefer the tougher style, it remains available as a no-cost option.

All models across the updated 2013 Touareg range also benefit from Volkswagen's BlueMotion tehnologies and driver fatigue system as standard – the latter being a program that detects driver concentration levels and warns drivers to take a break accordingly.

A city emergency braking function that activates below 30km/h and automatically initiates the vehicles brakes in order to avoid a collision, is now also part of the optional driver assistance package.

While the first 2013 model year vehicles are expected to start arriving in September, the petrol-powered Touareg V6 FSI will not be one of them, being discontinued from the range all together due to low sales volume.

Volkswagen Touareg manufacturer's list price: