Volkswagen Offers First Tease Of 2019 Touareg

Volkswagen has started counting down to the reveal of its third-generation Touareg SUV, with an official design sketch of the new large SUV.

The German brand also confirms that the new Touareg will be available with rear wheel steering, air suspension, and a new Innovision Cockpit, which “opens up a new type of infotainment environment” and promises to be one of the largest digital instrument displays in its class.

Other than that, Volkswagen is playing its cards close to its chest, though it’s already known that the new car will utilise the Volkswagen Group’s MLB Evo platform as used beneath the Audi Q7, Porsche Cayenne, Bentley Bentayga, and Lamborghini Urus.

From the official teaser sketch it’s clear that styling follows the example set by the Arteon with an enlarged one-piece grille and headlight arrangement, subtly blistered guards, and a small front guard vent that leads into the body side feature line.

Volkswagen previewed the new Touareg in 2016 with the T Prime GTE concept, which showed an almost production-ready body but a slightly more futuristic interior, albeit with a 12-inch instrument and 15-inch gesture-controlled infotainment system previewing what to expect from the Innovision Cockpit system.

Despite its size, the Touareg is expected to stick to a five-seat layout with overseas markets catered for by the cheaper seven-seat Atlas/Terramont while Australia will make do with a seven-seat version of the smaller-still Tiguan, called the Tiguan XL.

The Toureg is expected to retain a version of the current generation’s 3.0-litre turbo diesel V6 and eight-speed automatic, with a plug-in hybrid version set to be added after initial release.

Full detail of the new Touareg will become available when Volkswagen officially reveals the 2019 model at the Beijing auto show this March.

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