Volkswagen Touareg 3.2 V6 auto

As part of the package for buying a Touareg, Volkswagen is offering buyers a day's off-road training to better understand what their new purchase can do when the going gets muddy.

That's all well and good and I'm sure the Touareg will cut the mustard off-road but that's not the car's raison d'etre. As with all such vehicles, the Touareg will spend the vast majority of its time on the road and it is here that the big Volkswagen is most impressive.

Despite having the traditional off-roader attributes of big chunky tyres and a high centre of gravity, the Touareg rides and handles so well that it feels more like a conventional saloon than a big 4x4. In fact the only clue you have that you're not driving a saloon is the fact you can peer over roadside hedges.

On main roads the ride is very smooth and the high seating position affords a panoramic view. When the roads get more twisty you would expect the Touareg to feel like a fish out of water, as most off-road vehicles do.

But it is here the Volkswagen springs a surprise. It is fairly easy to maintain a decent turn of speed on B-roads because the handling is so good. There is no pitch and roll when entering a corner, meaning a sea-sickness bag is not a pre-requisite. In many ways it shouldn't be a surprise that the Touareg is so good on the road because it was developed in conjunction with Porsche's new Cayenne, which has staggered those who have driven it with its handling.

Our test model, a 3.2-litre V6, was fitted with an optional six-speed automatic gearbox which provides seamless shifts but using the steering wheel-mounted paddles allows you to change gear manually and this improves acceleration.

With 220bhp, the Touareg is the least powerful car of our test quartet, out-gunned by the BMW X5 (231bhp), Mercedes-Benz ML350 (232bhp) and the Volvo with a healthy 272bhp from its turbocharged engine.

But it doesn't feel particularly slow. Part of my drive home involves accelerating on to the fast-moving A1 from a standstill along a very short sliproad and the Touareg easily gets up to cruising speed quickly.

Once at motorway speed the Touareg rides confidently and noise levels are well suppressed, which is surprising as you would expect a high, wide off-roader to generate plenty of wind noise.

What must help is the smooth lines of the Touareg's styling, which manage to disguise the car's bulk. Surprisingly, the Touareg is taller than the BMW X5 but the extra few millimetres of width it has make it appear far more squat.

However, there is an awful lot of air between the tops of the wheels and the wheelarches (a trade-off for off-road ability where wheel articulation is important), which gives it the impression of being on stilts.

And while we're talking minus points, the cabin is not especially roomy. While shoulder room is fine, rear seat leg-room is pretty poor for a vehicle of this size. To give the Touareg a more mean look, the optional air suspension may be worth investigating. This lowers the body for on-road driving and improves ride and handling. However, on roads that are not particularly smooth, it impacts on ride quality.

Since its launch the BMW X5 has been hailed as the best compromise between off-road ability and on-road comfort in this price bracket. But the Touareg can rightly claim to match it and even better it, despite having a badge that would count against it when compared with prestige models in any other sector.

Volkswagen Touareg 3.2 V6 auto

Delivered price, standard car (P11D value): £30,545
CO2 emissions (g/km): 331
BIK % of P11D in 2003/04: 35%
Graduated VED rate: £160
Insurance group: 16
Combined mpg: 20.5
CAP Monitor residual value: £13,650/45%
Depreciation (26.90 pence per mile x 60,000): £16,140
Maintenance (3.50 pence per mile x 60,000): £2,100
Fuel (18.62 pence per mile x 60,000): £11,172
Wholelife cost (49.02 pence per mile x 60,000): £29,412
Typical contract hire rate: £639 per month