Comparison advice requested: D4 v Touareg

[jc109]

Hello,

I'm a very satisfied Defender owner and have no vested interest in this, but I have a mate who's tossing up between a few new vehicles and I was wondering if you had any words of advice for or against a D4 when compared with the following:

Touareg (his wife likes this one)
Volvo (don't recall model)
Amarok (his preference from these)

They've looked at a RR Evoque and quite liked it. I suggested they try a D4 when they look at the RR again next week.

Do you guys have anything I might offer him as advice, or should I just let the cars do the talking?

Thanks,

James

[CaverD3]

IMHO

Toerag:- Good value, nice engine. Cargo space too small.

VoVo:- poor value and dated, smaller than Toerag or D4.

Anorak: Best of the utes.

Evoque:- Great looking head turner. But RR badge makes it exe.

D4 :- Lots of space, good value but doesn't handle as well as the others.

[discotwinturbo]

I have both, and still do, use both to tow a 3.5 tonne triple axle horse float.

We bought the D4 to take over the towing duties but also for touring (patrol swapped, so had to go for the 3.0 as the touareg was a great tow vehicle). The vw toaureg now has more options such as Bullbar, rear wheel carrier, top full length roof rack system, and 2 inch lift kit.....but.....I love my vw for day to day work so could not take it off road, but I have on one occasion in the sand dunes in Jurien....it was a weapon.

Towing, vw uses close the 1.5 lp 100 less than the disco, and with the wdh (which is no longer recommended by vw on the 2012 touareg) is a smoother tow than the D4. The D4 with air makes hitching a breeze. The wife loves the new hitch method, but even the wife noticed that you do feel the heavy trailer more with the D4......but we use the D4 for 90% of the heavy duty towing (only when I go bush does she use the vw).

The trade off is still worth the D4 for the overall things it can do, and the greater accessories options. I hope that in four years time it has performed faultlessly like the vw.

The vw has given me 4 years of perfect motoring, with sensational economy. The D4 on average is about 1.5 lp 100 more to run but it is much heavier, and it really is an arm chair on wheels, where the vw is more fun in its handling.

Just the other day we put them both side by side in a drag, both without sport mode and both with sport mode. The D4 beat the vw to 70 on both occasions, but then the vw wound up and shot past the D4 at 120 when the D4 just hit 100....not scientific but really surprised me that the D4 was that quick!

I love having both, but we are seriously considering swapping the vw for a vw passat cc....we really can work it out so we don't need two heavy duty tow vehicles.

Brett....

[elsey]

jc109, your mate is not really comparing apples with apples with the varied range of vehicles on his list except for the Touareg and the D4. And to an extent that depends on which model Touareg he considers as only one model, the V6 TDI 4XMOTION, has low range now.

He needs to decide what he wants/needs, an SUV, a ute or a 4WD. Once he decides a test drive will convince him which to choose.

I did consider a Touareg and still think that is is a very nice well built vehicle but, in my case, the D4 won out.

CaverD3's summation is pretty much spot on.

Discotwinturbo has given you a frank and unbiased appraisal of both vehicles so you have plenty of good info for you mate to help him decide.

Lou...

[Tinto]

What is their planned / expected use for it?
And what vehicle are they coming from now?
I want to get some perspective on their expectations :)

As a "VW guy" I struggle to get past the Touareg's looks (even the new ones), but on paper it is certainly comparable to a Disco. Aftermarket support is average / minimal which is what swayed me towards Land Rover.
I test drove an Amarok a while back - aside from being 20% bigger than I thought it would be (it's no hilux), that was a really pleasant and familiar cabin style. Even though the manual was a nice drive it needs to have an auto to compete in this class. (I believe it's coming)

Bottom line is I wasn't prepared to be a guinea pig for VW (twin turbo 2.0 diesel in the Amarok) on such a large investment for my family. The Touareg is a bit more of a known quantity but I still feel like they are in the mode of 'getting it right'. The D4 is an evolution of a design that has been around for a while now.
I should add I had the twin charged 1.4 engine and a dual clutch gearbox in one of of my Golfs (personal cars, not family cars), as new releases and they were flawless. I trust the VW brand and believe that in a few more years they will be a force in every class of vehicle.

Until then I'll let others be the guinea pig for me.... So maybe your mate should get the touareg. ;)

[jc109]

That's fantastic guys. Thanks so much for your help.

[jc109]

Tinto, I think they own a Golf Gti and a Passat. I may be off, but that's pretty close. I've just sent him a link to this thread so he may chime in and correct me.

He wants a fourby but isn't interested in anything too severe. Lives in Margaret River. Will do some beach time. Probably regular but easy beach time, with a board or two and some light gear.

They want something nice. I suspect comfort would be at the top of any list of priorities.

Mind you, once this gap is filled I think his wife will be after a new BMW, so this may not have to cover all bases.

[Stuart02]

Yeah for my wife and I, space and offroad capability won out between the D4 and the Toureg, but although you get more metal for your money around the $80k mark with the D4, there's a lot of the nice stuff you don't get - keyless entry, power fold mirrors, power tailgate etc, oh and that sweet 3.0l engine which remaps a treat :D

[gghaggis]

If it's light duties and their not worried about space or off-road mods, then the Evoque would be a better buy than the D4. More economical, and more of a "luxury sports car" feel, but will still do beaches and dunes with ease. We're taking ours to the Margaret River beaches at the end of the month!

Cheers,

Gordon

[niobe]

Hello,

Touareg (his wife likes this one)
Volvo (don't recall model)
Amarok (his preference from these)

They've looked at a RR Evoque and quite liked it. I suggested they try a D4 when they look at the RR again next week.



Hi All,

First post here. I am at this stage a wannabee D4 owner, still shopping :D

As it happens I drove a Toureg, D4 and both Volvos the other day. Not familiar with Amarok.

The Toureg is a brilliant car. Very very tidy inside, well put together and good standard options. I don't agree the cargo space is too small. It's at least class average, but the rear passenger space is better than average. Flawless interior. To compare with D4 you need to compare with the Toureg 4xmotion which puts the price right up there. But it's hard to go past the D4 - for the same or better price you get a bit more of a rugged 4WD and one of the only good 7+ seaters.

Very much depends which Volvo, XC90 was truly awful handling and underpowered. The XC60 is the same engine block but a totally different, all round a good car and a 'decent' price, but only 5 seats. If I was considering this though I would also consider saving another 20k and buying a Santa Fe or Sorento. More off-road capability, better warranty, similar quality barring a few interior touches. They both have 7 seats, bigger than say an X5, but still not good for adults.

Evoque styling is great but it didn't impress as much in the flesh - the centre dial is actually a bit plasticky, and the need to option will push up the price a lot, make it of lesser value than other mid-sized SUVs. It's smaller than a Toureg. I did not drive the Evoque.

All round I'd say if you were after a luxury SUV, Toureg. Something close but much less expensive a Sorento, and a 7-seater or more serious off-roader a D4.

[jc109]

Awesome! Thank you guys. I'll pass all this on to him.

[CaverD3]

Hi All,................................
I don't agree the cargo space is too small. It's at least class average, but the rear passenger space is better than average.

Depends what you need to fit. ;)

If you have one these:


https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/07/966.jpg

They won't fit in the Toerag. :Rolling:

Agree it is very good value handles well and is well put together. If it wasn't for the space issue I may have bought one.

[discotwinturbo]

Depends what you need to fit. ;)

If you have one these:

They won't fit in the Toerag. :Rolling:

Agree it is very good value handles well and is well put together. If it wasn't for the space issue I may have bought one.

You could fit it in. Either tie it up and have two big blokes push it in, or fold the seats down and let it slobber over the leather and passengers LOL Maybe an amarok would be better for that size pooch.

The D4 is big in the back....bigger than my old patrol. It's noticeably longer, but not quite as wide, but at expense of the rear seat passengers. Leg room in the D4 is not as roomy as my touareg or the old patrol, but still very comfortable.

Brett....

[33chinacars]

Also depends if you need High & Low range. Some of the cars you are looking at are only high range . Not that that is a biggy with some of them.

Gary

[33chinacars]

Double post

Gary

[Celtoid]

I just drove a brand new XC90 for 3 weeks in the UK (4000+ miles).

I own a 3.0L D4 with the Satnav option.

The XC was a nice car, comfortable, largely smooth, pretty well appointed and appeared to be well made. However, it was seriously underpowered except in the cruise and noisy too (compared to my D4). Taking off hard from a standing start was pretty ungainly, with the steering wheel pulling around in your hands.

The windscreen angle also creates a dangerous blindspot, which made parking and manoeuvring the thing at low speed difficult, especially in the rediculously small and tight UK car parks.

It's turning circled appeared to be pretty bad also.

It has no low range and couldn't be used as a serious 4X4...but even if you didn't have that in mind, I'd take the D4 over it anyday.

Cheers,

Kev.