Comments on: AutoRoute: Volkswagen Touareg R50 from Perth to Esperance

By: Karl Peskett

Karl Peskett — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:55:55 +0000

Guys, so you’re aware, there was no gas in the bottle. We were prepared to fill it down there if necessary, however we didn’t have to, as our friends in the Jayco cooked for us. It was there as a backup – always be prepared, I say.

By: Neo Utopia

Neo Utopia — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 23:48:52 +0000

A good read and some good photos. I would like to go travel over there, its quite different to the east coast. A beautiful landscape in its own right.

Yeah the gas bottle thing, a story about that from me. On the way back from a camp on Cooloola Beach with a couple of mates we smelt a slight gas smell inside the car, mean while one of my friends had been smoking in the front passenger seat. We had all the windows down but still I think we were a bit lucky to not to have an ignition. Lesson learnt, alway travel with your gas bottle outside the car, if you have to keep it inside the car then tightly secure or protect the valve!

My thoughts about the car: attractive, desirable, could have a slightly larger luggage compartment, could do the same trip in a Touareg worth almost half as much (V6 TDI), probably expensive to service (being a V10 and a 4WD).

By: Cupid Stunt

Cupid Stunt — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:07:16 +0000

Is that roof load just resting on the steel? Yep picked up on the Gas bottle.
Great Read – One thing I miss bout Australia is the open spaces. You cannot travel far here (UK) without bunping into someone.
Good Read too. As for the R50 – expensive to run but the V6 is a worthy alternative apparently.

By: Adam

Adam — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 13:06:35 +0000

I have a NXR number plate too!

By: Andrew

Andrew — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 09:40:48 +0000

Gas bottle under the baby! How much weight was that on the roof? You checked the roof weight limit in the manual didn’t you and weighed everything you put up there?

By: Jason

Jason — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 08:06:28 +0000

Crikey!

A gas bottle stored beneath a baby seat (could be interesting in a crash) and a boot load of unsecured luggage?! I thought Caradvice wrote a series of articles on holiday road safety?

Maybe its a case of “do as I say and not as I do”?

By: FRUGAL-ONE

FRUGAL-ONE — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 03:50:11 +0000

MORE “PR”/Flag-Waving for VW Group…:-)

I would LOVE to do that trip, but my wife wont do the camping/tent thing [unless she can pitch it inside a room of the Hilton/Hyatt!]

Rather a bog stock Toyota Prado Grande VX, every bit as good if not better, MUCH more dealer back up [not that your going to need it with BigT] AND supplied std. with 180L twin tanks, 2000km anybody?

Seems that VW still need to learn to make a hard-core 4×4, but this is at least a start.

The BEST 4×4 on the planet, in the past, now and in the future is the RangeRover, End-Of-Story

Cheers

F-0

By: Sam

Sam — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 03:29:22 +0000

Great article. Esperance is now on my shortlist of places to visit. I had to laugh at the VP commodore comment. I took my Corolla up Noosa North Shore Camping once with a few mates who had a Landcruiser. Lots of surprised looks. Soft sand was dealt with using plenty of speed! We only got bogged once, hopelessly, right at the end of the trip, where no amount of speed was going to save me. It was only then that I realised that I had done the whole trip with 32psi in the tyres, oops! The things you do when youre 18!

By: Alan

Alan — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 03:24:17 +0000

Good read Karl. Drove that beach myself last year, as part of our journey from Melb up thru Alice, the Kimberley, Broome, Perth, Albany, Esperance, Adelaide, home. Driving my Touareg V6 TDI……a very worthy traveller – handles the rough stuff, endured considerable badly corrugated road on the Tanami track, was superb on the black-top, and practically bullet-proof.
Your holiday yarn had me fondly remeniscing.

By: Bavarian Missile (.)(.)

Bavarian Missile (.)(.) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 03:04:17 +0000

Just looking at the stuff stacked next to the car seat and under his/her feet,all done that before.Not sure the gas bottle in the cabin is a good idea though.

Portable DVD player strapped to the back head rest ,a must when taking kids on any long trip.