VW Touareg R50 is The Ultimate Diesel SUV

It’s time for the Touareg to be pumped up to the degree of R!


The 5.0-liter V10 TDI is the range topping engine for high-end Volkswagens like the Touareg and in Europe, the Phaeton. Rich in both power and torque, it makes for a truly unique flagship engine. The 310 horsepower and 553 lb-ft of torque it produces might be enough to satisfy most, but for the performance SUV connoisseur, this is more sufficient than sublime. Volkswagen’s engineers have cured this “problem” in the new performance Touareg R50 by tweaking the engine to up its horsepower and torque outputs. These gains equate to 35 horsepower and 73 lb-ft of torque, bringing the total up to 345 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque, which should help things out for this hauling ‘ute.

The enhanced engine allows the Touareg R50 to sprint to 60 mph in 6.6 seconds, which is a concerted improvement over the regular V10 TDI’s 7.3 second time. That’s well off the pace of its high-performance rivals from Porsche and Land Rover, but the payoff will be in its flexibility. The V10’s massive torque should make it supremely quick when on the move, such as when passing or accelerating from 50 to 70 mph. What really makes the R50 unique is that it’s actually a fairly thrifty vehicle for its performance and its size. It uses just 25 mpg on the highway, and has an overall average of 19 mpg, which incidentally is identical to that of the regular V10 TDI. These numbers also make it the most fuel efficient Touareg when compared to the 3.6-liter V6 FSI and the 4.2-liter V8 FSI sold in North America!

The R50 is the most powerful R-Series car to be produced, and it does it in a rather interesting way, but make note that this isn’t the most powerful Touareg ever made. That honor goes to the very limited Touareg W12, which features none other than the unique 6.0-liter W12 engine from the Phaeton and A8.

In addition to the pumped up TDI engine, Volkswagen has beefed up the R50’s suspension to include a new high-performance sport mode. It further lowers the suspension by 0.8 inches, and firms up the air dampers to give the sensation of a firmly sprung sports car for improved body control.

As you’d expect from an R-series Volkswagen, other changes have been made to its exterior and interior. The SUV sports a unique body kit that gives it a handsome but sporty appearance, as do the new 21-inch alloy wheels, and buyers can choose from a variety of different colors including the trademark bright blue paint first seen on the first R32 Golf. White, gray, silver and black are also offered. The R50 also features blue-painted calipers, flared wheel arches and a matte chrome front grille, items that are common amongst R-series cars.

It’s highly unlikely that the R50 will make it to North America, though if it did it would become an instant collectible. The vehicle’s price in Europe is 88,260 euros, the equivalent of about 125,000 dollars.