Review
I have started taking our long-term Volkswagen Touran for granted.
You might think this suggests it’s a car that achieves such monumental heights of dullness that it barely registers when you drive or use it.
But that couldn’t be further from the truth.
The Touran has fitted in because it is delivering exactly what I need, to a high standard.
As a home to work cruiser, it is perfectly quiet, with no diesel death rattle in the morning, lots of torque for lazy acceleration, a light gearbox for easy gearchanges and a good, comfortable driving position.
As a business mileage basher on the motorway, it is frugal, smooth, quiet at speed, powerful for overtaking and has plenty of in-car gadgets to keep you calm when traffic halts your progress.
The only glitch is the infuriating stupidity of some of the touch-screen satellite-navigation’s decisions (anyone fancy a shortcut through the centre of Bradford, adding 25 minutes to a 15-minute journey?).
At least the excellent brakes make sure you don’t park the Touran in the boot of the car in front while shouting at the screen.
In the city, as an urban kid carrier, it couldn’t be better, soaking up Britain’s fast-breeding potholes exceptionally well, sailing over with a solid thump.
In the rear, the two rows of seats have accommodated four children aged from four to seven without fuss and the tables in the back of the front seats (see picture) are a constant source of amusement – and food – to young ones.
So the Touran is doing an excellent job and now I don’t expect anything less.
And this is also the case with the back-up from the manufacturer.
Recently Volkswagen UK’s fleet team was given the European Fleet Award 2007 by its parent company in Germany.
The award was based on the evaluation of criteria including growth rate, position in the fleet and rental market and the transparency and planning quality for the UK business.
Hans Andree, head of Volkswagen Fleet Europe, said: ‘This strong performance throughout all criteria was the foundation of the UK Fleet Services team’s success.’
However, in the spirit of taking things for granted and knowing how the team has performed in the past year, I wouldn’t expect anything less.
