Test drive VW Cross-Touran: Welcome to the clothes
After the Polo and Golf, VW has given its Touran the tried-and-tested "cross-therapy" effect, offering its customers new optics, bigger wheels and more ground clearance, combined with richer equipment. And all this at a high price...
The Cross differs from the standard Touran by only a few millimeters of additional ground clearance, and the all-wheel drive system familiar from the Golf is not to be found here even in the list of accessories. The engineers' argument in favor of the absence of a dual transmission is not without logic - this would reduce the maximum cargo volume to 1990 liters and make the compact MPV not only impractical, but also heavier and more voracious in terms of fuel. Add to that the fact that most owners of the model are unlikely to ever use it off-road, having only a simple front-wheel drive really starts to look quite reasonable, and the brand's experience so far with such models shows that attractive optics are acceptable. excellent from the hall, despite the high price.
Rigid suspension and direct steering
The combination of wide tires and long front and rear track successfully ensures that the Cross-Touran shows almost no understeer tendencies even in extreme driving style. On bad roads, the comfort is slightly worse than that of the standard model, but there can be no question of excessive driving rigidity. The steering is light and straight, but setting the wide front wheels in the right direction sometimes requires a little more effort on the part of the driver.
The 140 horsepower 3000-liter turbo diesel is definitely the best choice for the car. A perfectly tuned automatic dual-clutch transmission (DSG) also works very well in every way. However, the surcharge compared to the standard version of the model is salty and amounts to about 0,1 leva. In addition, due to slightly less favorable aerodynamics, fuel consumption increased by 0,2–100 liters per XNUMX kilometers. But as can be seen from the sales of VW cross-models so far presented, the different and attractive "packaging" of this type of car and the adventurous spirit that it carries, sell well, despite their high price.
Text: Eberhard Kitler
Photo: Beate Jeske
2020-08-29
