The History Of Volkswagen Touran

The Volkswagen Touran is a compact MPV based on a vertically-stretched fifth generation Volkswagen Golf Mk5, and sold in Europe and other select markets. It was launched in 2003 to fill a gap in Volkswagen's model lineup, below the Sharan large MPV. The vehicle was originally delivered in five- or seven-seat versions, but the five seat version is no longer available in some markets. It can be considered an extended version of the Golf Plus, since their front ends are similar in size, while the Touran's rear overhang is 200mm (7.87in) longer (and therefore a seven-seater, while the Golf Plus is a five-seater). In some regions, such as Japan, the car is called Golf Touran.

Of interest, a Hulk-inspired Touran was featured in The Fast And The Furious: Tokyo Drift, driven by Bow Wow's character, Twinkie.

The name 'Touran' derives from the combination of 'Tour' and 'Sharan', the bigger MPV by VW.[citation needed] Despite the similarity of their names, the Touran is not related to the North American-market Volkswagen Routan.

The Touran received a facelift at the 2006 Paris Motor Show.

ParkAssist

The 2007MY Touran was the first production vehicle in the Volkswagen Group to be released with the new ParkAssist technology. ParkAssist parallel parks the car for the driver. First, ParkAssist uses sensors to determine whether the Touran will fit in the parallel parking position. Then the driver lets go of the steering wheel, selects Reverse on the transmission, then presses the accelerator and brakes accordingly and lets ParkAssist steer it into the final parking position.

CrossTouran

At the 2006 Bologna Motor Show, Volkswagen released the third Cross vehicle designed by Volkswagen Individual GmbH.

The CrossTouran is distinguished from a standard Touran by its 17inch alloy wheels, redesigned plastic guards which ape a crossover vehicle, and a 15mm (0.59in) higher supension/ chassis setup that is optional for standard Tourans in Europe.

All CrossTouran engines are EU4 compliant.

Petrol engines

• 1.6 with 75 kW / 102 hp
• 1.4 TSI with 103 kW / 140 hp
• 1.4 TSI with 125 kW / 170 hp

Diesel engines

• 1.9 TDI with 77 kW / 105 hp
• 2.0 TDI with 103 kW / 140 hp
• 2.0 TDI with 125 kW / 170 hp

The Touran is available with petrol, diesel and compressed natural gas (CNG) engines.

• 1.4 TSI — 140PS (138hp/ 103kW) / 170PS (168hp/ 125kW) (with a twincharger - delivered from summer 2006)
• 1.6 — 102PS (101hp/ 75kW) (not delivered after summer 2006)
• 1.6 FSI — 115PS (113hp/ 85kW)
• 2.0 FSI — 150PS (148hp/ 110kW) (not delivered after summer 2006)
• 1.9 TDI — 90PS (89hp/ 66kW) or 105PS (104hp/ 77kW) (Diesel)
• 2.0 TDI — 136PS (134hp/ 100kW) / 140PS (138hp/ 103kW) / 170PS (168hp/ 125kW) (Diesel)
• 2.0 TDI — 140PS (138hp/ 103kW) (Common Rail Diesel) (for 2009-model)
• 2.0 EcoFuel — 109PS (108hp/ 80kW) (CNG)

The diesel models of the Touran offer significantly higher readings for miles per gallon. Given the proper conditions, it is possible to achieve 60mpg[clarification needed] in a diesel Touran. The car is delivered with a five- (1.6 only) and six-speed manual transmissions, Tiptronic six-speed automatic transmission (in 1.6, 1.6 FSI and 2.0 FSI (2003-2006 only)) or the DSG twin-clutch automatic transmission; the 1.4 TSI, the 1.6 FSI from 2003-2006, the 1.9 TDI from 2003-2006 and the 2.0 TDI use the six-speed version, and the 1.9 TDI since 2006 uses the seven-speed dry-clutch version.

As for the 2009-model, an updated version of the 2.0 TDI engine will be delivered, this using Common Rail technology. The engine was introduced in the Volkswagen Tiguan and Audi A4 for the 2008-models.

The Touran Hy Motion is Volkswagen's Hydrogen Development concept. It has a nickel-metal hybrid battery which produces 80kW (107hp), it does the 0-100km/ h (0-62mph) sprint in 14 seconds and has a top speed of 140km/ h (87mph).

In 2008, Shanghai-Volkswagen with Tongji University will release a Touran Hybrid as part of the lead up to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

A prototype of the Touran Hybrid was shown with a 20kW (27hp) electric motor in conjunction with a 110kW (148hp) petrol engine, the transmission will most likely be Volkswagen's Direct-Shift Gearbox (DSG).

The Touran's basic design was used as the basis for the new generation of the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Caddy.

• The Touran won What Car?'s 2005 Compact Van of the Year award.
• The Touran scored a maximum 5-star EuroNCAP crash safety rating.