Volkswagen is bringing more than a dash of sports style to the MPV class with the announcement of the new Touran R-Line.

The brand’s latest award-winning seven-seater – most recently named ‘Best MPV’ by respected automotive publishing brand What Car? – is now available to order in stylish R-Line guise for the first time.

The R-Line trim level is Volkswagen’s most overtly sporty mainstream equipment grade and provides a raft of exterior and interior styling enhancements, all carefully calculated to dial up kerb appeal, cabin style and on-road attitude. 

The range-topping new Touran R-Line is available with a selection of potent yet frugal turbocharged petrol or diesel engines ranging in capacity from 1.4-litre TSI to 2.0-litre TDI, and with outputs of between 150 PS and 190 PS.  These are mated to a similarly broad selection of transmissions which, depending on engine choice, comprise either six-speed manual or six- or seven-speed DSG.

Of course all the new Touran R-Line models also feature a selection of Volkswagen’s BlueMotion technologies such as Start/Stop, brake energy recuperation and low rolling resistance tyres, meaning economy is maximised.  Combined fuel consumption* ranges from 49.6 mpg for the 1.4-litre TSI 150 PS six-speed manual, to 62.8 mpg for the 2.0-litre TDI 150 PS six-speed manual.

Outstanding R-Line is styled to stand out   

Instantly recognisable outside, the new Touran R-Line benefits from a selection of exterior design enhancements including unique front and rear bumpers, radiator grille, and side skirts; plus chrome mouldings for the rear bumper, and 18-inch ‘Marseille’ alloy wheels.  Unique R-Line badging completes the external additions.

Inside, the sporty new Touran adds ‘Black Lead Grey’ decorative inserts in the dash, centre console and front doors; a black roof lining and grey stitching on the leather-trimmed three-spoke multifunction steering wheel, which also includes aluminium inserts and R-Line logo.

The seating, meanwhile, includes contrasting microfibre side bolsters and front seats with R-Line logo on the rear backrests.  Completing the stylish upgrades are stainless steel pedals, and unique R-Line sill protectors.

Practicality that’s highly-praised

Praising the new Touran in its recent awards issue, What Car? said: “This new Volkswagen is great to drive, classy-feeling inside and has better safety credentials than most of its rivals.”

The judges added: “There are cheaper and bigger MPVs, but none that so brilliantly balances all of the things that matter to big families.  Crucially, Volkswagen’s latest seven-seater is more practical than all of its similarly priced rivals.”

Now, with the addition of this stylish new range-topping trim level, the Touran offers this renowned practicality in its most eye-catching form. 

The new Touran R-Line is available to order from Volkswagen Retailers now, with prices starting at £27,740 RRP for the Touran R-Line 1.4-litre TSI six-speed manual.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk

Wolfsburg / Brussels (B), 20 January 2016 – The new Touranhas been acclaimed by the European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) as the best compact MPV. The Touran is thus one of the most crash-resistant vehicles of 2015.

The latest generation of the popular family MPV passed the demanding series of Euro NCAP crash tests in September and gained the highest rating of five stars. The rating takes account of the results from four sub-sections: occupant protection for children and adults, pedestrian protection and driver assistance systems.

The NCAP test specifications were toughened in 2015. The introduction in particular of an additional head-on collision of the entire front of the vehicle into a solid obstacle saw increased significance placed on occupant safety. The Touran showed itself to be well equipped to cope: thanks to its optimised vehicle body structure and standard systems such as Electronic Stability Control (ESC) with countersteer assistance, including ABS and Automatic Post-Collision Braking, it is one of Europe’s safest cars.

The Pre-Crash proactive occupant protection system also plays a special role. It activates ahead of any crash in order to minimise its severity by taking preventative measures. In addition to automatic tautening of the safety belts, the system recognises if the vehicle is in danger of skidding and automatically closes the windows and sliding sunroof. The best possible support of the head and side airbags is thus guaranteed.

Euro NCAP publishes a list of the top-ranking vehicles each year. In 2015, a total of 40 models from a range of manufacturers were subjected to the demanding series of NCAP tests.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk

Nobility, sporting personalities, actors and TV presenters – to mark the start of Rally Monte Carlo, top international stars took a seat next to the world rally champions from Volkswagen. ‘Taxi rides’ around the Grand Prix circuit in Monaco in the Polo R WRC, the world championship-winning car from 2013, 2014 and 2015, gave them an impression of the driving skills of Sébastien Ogier (F), Jari-Matti Latvala (FIN) and Andreas Mikkelsen (N).

Among the passengers in the rally Polo: actor Mikael Nyqvist, noted for his performances in many Swedish TV productions, particularly the adaptation of Stieg Larsson’s “Millennium” trilogy; Pierre Casiraghi, seventh in line to the throne of Monaco; former footballer Thomas Helmer, a European Championship winner with Germany in 1996; Danish tennis star Caroline Wozniacki, who topped the world rankings for 67 weeks; European Footballer of the Year 1991, Jean-Pierre Papin, who played for AC Milan, Bayern Munich, Marseille and Bordeaux; Finland’s most-capped footballer, Jari Litmanen; French rugby star Damien Chouly; and Allan McNish, former Formula 1 driver and three-time overall winner of the Le Mans 24-hour race.

“Wow! That was a real adrenalin rush. I did sit next to Pierce Brosnan in a car during filming one time – but Seb really knows what he is doing!” said Mikael Nyqvist after his drive with Sébastien Ogier. Caroline Wozniacki enjoyed a swift city tour with the three-time world champion and added: “I live here in Monaco – and this fast taxi ride was a great new experience for me. I felt really safe sitting next to Sébastien Ogier.”

The ceremonial start for Rally Monte Carlo also welcomed the German TV presenter Kai Pflaume, dancer Katrina Patchett and the world record holder in race walking, Yohann Diniz.

After the VIP rides and the ceremonial start in Monaco in the evening were finished, Rally Monte Carlo also marked the official launch of the 2016 FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) season, with 14 rallies on four continents taking place on ice and snow, asphalt and gravel.

Volkswagen is defending all the world championship titles – in the Manufacturer, Driver and Co-Driver categories – for the third time in a row.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk

Wolfsburg / Las Vegas, January 8, 2016 – The 'V-Charge' research project wins the Auto Bild / Computer Bild 2015 Connected Car Award. Participants in the 'V-Charge' project in addition to Volkswagen Group Research are the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, the Technical University of Braunschweig, Robert Bosch GmbH, the University of Parma and Oxford University. The award was presented to Dr. Volkmar Tanneberger, Volkswagen Brand Head of Electrical and Electronic Development and Prof. Dr. Thomas Form, Volkswagen Group Research Head of Electronic and Vehicle Research, representing all the partners, at CES in Las Vegas. 

'V-Charge' stands for Valet Charge and is pointing the way to the intelligent future of automated parking and electric vehicle charging.

In the USA especially valet parking is very popular: at your destination you hand your car over to a valet, who parks it for you. If required, the valet also brings it round later and hands it back to you. There's no time-wasting search for somewhere to park.

The 'V-Charge' project picks up on this idea, focusing on automated searching for a parking space and charging of the electric vehicle. The really clever feature being that the vehicle automatically looks for a vacant parking space that has the necessary charging infrastructure and inductively charges its battery. Once the charging process is finished, it frees up the charging bay for another electric vehicle and looks of its own accord for a conventional parking space. Pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles get recognized by the cameras and ultrasound sensors integrated within the vehicle, allowing it to move about in 'mixed mode traffic'.

The Connected Car Award covers all aspects of automotive connectivity and has been awarded by Auto Bild and Computer Bild since 2013. Experts from both magazines had pre-selected a shortlist, from which the readers were able to determine their favorites in nine categories via online voting.

Article source: www.volkswagen.co.uk