VW Targets China with Next-Gen Touareg SUV

Volkswagen AG’s all-new Touareg midsize crossover vehicle will serve as the brand’s flagship model in China when it’s launched later this year.

The carmaker, which will take the wraps off the third-generation Touareg next month in Beijing, expects China’s C-segment crossover/SUV market to double in size by 2023. VW has sold about 1 million Touaregs worldwide since launching the first-generation model in 2002.

There are no plans to sell the vehicle in North America. VW sold just 1,600 Touaregs in the U.S. in the first half of 2017 before dropping the vehicle from its American lineup with the launch of the 2018 model.

The carmaker will focus its attention in the U.S. on the Atlas crossover, which is about the same size as the Touareg but costs about $20,000 less. VW also plans to launch at least two other crossovers in the U.S. in coming years.

The new Touareg will ride on Volkswagen Group’s rear-wheel-drive MLB platform, which also carries the Audi Q7, Bentley Bentayga, Lamborghini Urus and Porsche Cayenne. The Atlas shares the front-drive MQB platform with the Polo and other high-volume cars and crossover vehicles.

Many of the upscale features from the other MLB vehicles are expected to be used in the Touareg. This includes an advanced air suspension unit, rear-wheel steering, roll stabilization and a host of driver-assist systems.

The Touareg also will usher in VW’s new “Innovision” cockpit, highlighted by a large digital instrument cluster. VW also touts unspecified connected vehicle technologies for the new crossover.