Please Please go take a look at our forum better yet the link is below. You will not find us trashing the 4 Runner there and actually even trying to compare the 2 the way you guys have here. The vehicles arent even close to the same which i have stated numerous times here but the individuals of this forum have theirs heads so far up their @$$ they cant seem to grasp that concept. But its good to read a person who actually has a clear train of thought! I wasnt here to bash the 4 Runner which i stated numerous times as well and wasnt here to try to convert Christians into Mormons just staed flaws of the 4 Runner and posted evidence of which but at the same time even stated that the Touareg has its own flaws. Yes they cost a lot to repair but wtf do you expect its a german vehicle!?
The issues with the VW are electrical they were not engineered for the climates in North America, the electrical systems get over heated. Toyota uses cheap parts which is why they run into mechanical issues more so towards the suspension and cooling. They both have their trade offs but when the ignorance of these ppl try to say that a Touareg is trash and cant off road even though there are tons of Youtube videos of it tearing hills and creeks apart that just doesnt seem to meet the standards of Toyota owners. More so sad when these Touaregs are doing it sometimes stock with little to no modifications and still holding their own with
Hummers and Land Rovers
Link:
Club Touareg Forums - Search Results
as you can see you guys dont even come up in our search!
The climate for North America is as varied as Europe's Climate... when they design a vehicle its designed for a large swath of climates. I find it very very hard to believe the exacting Germans or any car manufacturer for that matter would have the lack of foresight to not design a vehicle for various temperatures and humidities.
Toyota uses as many "cheap" parts as any other manufactuer does. The quality of the materials used is often pretty damn good, but its the design that is often rather silly or damaging. i.e. Toyota (like many others INCLUDING VW/Audi) use composite water pump impellers. Is it a cheaper product than the stamped steel ones? No, its actually a little better, does it make them sensitive to the types of coolant used? Oh yes, Try running a VW with pre-G11 or G12 coolant and watch those impellers disintegrate. The same thing happens with Toyotas and other vehicles.
The majority of all the issues that everyone has brought up in terms of the VW in an offroad situation is that it is far too "luxurious" a vehicle for the off-road scene. The ridiculous amounts of electronics and networking required to repair these vehicles is just not practical away from a fully equipped shop. (hell you can't even use a handheld datastream tool, because unless you know your addresses, you won't be able to navigate the literally expansive computer diagnostic system on these vehicles. Its something that VW did amazingly well, IF you have the knowledge and the proper tooling to navigate it.) An air suspension is great for on-road and mild off-roading, but in serious trail conditions you're gonna risk tearing a bag. You can't just duct tape those either, not to mention that your spare folds in on itself to store away compactly. I gaurentee you that your VW's are as fragile if not more fragile than the V8's All-Time 4WD when it comes to mismatched tire sizes. I'm absoultely pooch ****ed if I blow one of my 33's because the stock fullsized spare is a stock tire and will just damage the drivetrain if I put it on. I could barely see a person using a space saver spare (cool design by the way, its awesome to inflate and deflate!
Reall neat idea) on a off-road tire Touareg. The lack of articulation from an IFS & IRS is abysmal compared to the 4Runner (hell, even the 3-5th gens have some of this inherent lack of articulation due to having an IFS)
Not to mention, active dampening systems, electronically controlled differentials, ect. These are all systems that cannot be field serviced, or if you are lucky enough to physically repair them, you need to either relearn or reprogram the vehicle. I don't know about you, but I don't carry a TechStream in my 4Runner at all times and I doubt VW owners keep a VAGCOM in theirs. The 4Runner has its own issues with electrical gremlins and field servicability, but in comparison to the Touareg, it is far simplier and that is a PLUS in the off-road community.
The Touareg, reliability, electrical, and mechanical issues aside; is a nice, comfortable, luxury cross-over SUV that lets the people who can afford it, play in the dirt while having the luxury of a on-road cruiser. They are designed primarily as Luxury Vehicles, while the 4Runner is a Truck-Based SUV first with some luxury sprinkled in.
Post Note- Anything is better than a Tahoe based Hummer... (HUMVEE or Bust baby!) Also, Land Rovers are in the same boat as the Touareg, they have far too much luxury, other than the Defender, there isn't a solidly Off-Road focused Land Rover, which is okay. They have the Defender for that market.
Oh and FYI to all the 4 Runner guys who say they dont make skid plate and wench kits for the Touareg and they arent off road capable and yada yada yada....
Skid Plates from VW Touareg EXPEDITION Edition? - Club Touareg Forums
Seriously guys can you do a little, i mean just a little research, google is a great place to start before you decide to post total crap on your own forums?
I did search and I found skid plates and winch mounts. But my question wasn't about those components. You could get those for a Audi A4 or even a Honda Civic for that matter.
I've found pictures of some mean looking Touaregs sporting mud tires, light covers, winches, skid plates, all the simple things. But I hardly saw one with a substantial lift kit or a full metal front bumper that bolts to the frame (anyone can get bull bars from a JC Whittney catalog, no offense to you guys who own them.), or a rear tire carrier for a full sized spare tire (see above about the space saver spare and issues it could cause). These are common mods not just for the 4Runner but any other vehicle that is serious about expedition, rock-crawling, trail riding, or any other form of off-road.
We're asking about these modifications (at least I am) because that is the first thing I think of when building a off-road vehicle. Same when I bought my 4Runner, first thing was, "okay, how do I build this thing into a tank..." and that'd be my same question withe Touareg, but honestly... the research I have seen, really doesn't offer much in the way of that.
hahahaha
