Touareg expedition mods

by Steve
(Perth)

fridge on drawer unit

loaded for camping

loaded

lowered to loading mode

This is my 2004 Touareg V10 TDI, after years of suffering an old Holden Rodeo crew cab for many years, we wanted something with a bit more comfort and capability.

New this machine would be way out of our price range, however this was affordable and in great condition. out of the box it is an incredibly capable unit as it has adjustable air suspension and factory locking diff's rear and centre as well as traction control etc.

Not that the std V10 is a slouch this one has had the engine chipped and tuned to R50 spec with 258kW and 850Nm of torque. up from 230kW and 750Nm.

We fitted:
an Ironman roof rack with landcruiser brackets and fittings.
Some Titan drawers from 4wdsupacentre.
The smallest rims that will fit are 18" and they have General Grabber AT2 255/65x18

The wife and I are planning to do Karijini Gorge and the Gibb River rd plus weekends away whenever we can get away.

Not only does this car go very well off road with over 300mm of clearance but with the suspension lowered to highway mode it handles like a sports car with incredible overtaking ability to boot.

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Feb 10, 2022
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Touareg Setup
by: Gustavo Sessa

Amazing Rig Steve. Just bought one and would love to see your to get some ideas. I'm living in Perth as well. I'm on the Facebook groups if you want to find me.
cheers

Feb 07, 2021
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tyre carrier
by: Steve

the Spare tyre carrier was OEM factory option for the Touareg. the price I don't know the cost but probably a lot...

Feb 06, 2021
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Spare wheel
by: Anonymous

Hi Steve, where did u get the rear spare tyre assembly and what did it cost?

Oct 22, 2020
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toureg tyre sizes
by: Anonymous

I'm running 265/65 on my standard 17" rims, 2 sizes up on standard
Transformed handling on road and bit more bush clearance

May 25, 2020
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Rack
by: Steve

Hi Sean, the rack is an "Iron man" to fit a toyota Prado with track mount system.
Its a bit noisy, I'd like to change it for a Ali flat rack.

May 24, 2020
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What rack and how?
by: Sean

Hey Steve, awesome build. I’ve recently got hold of the v6 TDI and also planning to do some trips. Question I had was how did you do the roof rack? Can you upload some pics of the brackets and model you used?

Treg flat racks like that are rare here!

Cheers Sean

Aug 27, 2017
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GRR
by: Steve

Just completed a 4 week Kimberly tour including Gibb River Road including Mitchell Falls.
We towed our MDC hardfloor camper @ 1750kg loaded up. The big touareg performed amazingly it didn't miss a beat on the 8150km journey.

It averaged 16.2L/100km. Very impressed with a 12 year old car with original suspension, drive shafts and wheel bearings.

Apr 30, 2017
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Hi Paul
by: Steve

Sorry the wings came with he drawers but they don't fit. There is only a few cm each side of drawer clearance.

Apr 30, 2017
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drawers
by: Steve

Hi Paul, I used the 1070 drawers, I didn't think the 900 drawers would fit without having the rear seats folded down. I mounted the drawers on some unistruts bolted to the rear tie down points. after folding the seat down we figured it would give us a lot more room if we took the rear seat out completely. So now When we fit the drawers I remove the rear seat and fit a shelve and cargo barrier. It takes about an hour to change it over. its usually just the 2 of us so it works fine.

Apr 28, 2017
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Touareg drawers
by: Paul

Hi Steve,
Nice article. We have a 2014 Touareg that I'm looking to set up for long distance travel. How'd you go with the Titan drawers - what size did you go for, did you get the wings, and what was the fitment into the Treg like?
Cheers
Paul

Apr 25, 2017
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Hi Robert
by: Steve

The rims are common to all Touareg (except R5),porsche and Audi, there are lots of Porsche rims on gumtree and fleabay. lots of Porsche came with 18" rims

Apr 25, 2017
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Touareg
by: RobertAnonymous

Very impressed with your article Steve. I have had Land Rovers, Nissans and Toyotas - all with there benefits.

We recently bought new Touareg V6I.A wonderfully underrated and not promoted by VW. Towed a 22 feet van to WA from Vic - no problems apart from tyres. They are 20 inch and low profile tyres. Had two failures on gravel roads up around Sandstone. Fortunately we carried a 20 inch replacement tyre/rim. Space savers - enough said!

I have searched high and low for a 17 /18 ring with same offsets and stud pattern. I would be very keen to learn how you tackled the tyre/rim issue.

Perhaps you could contact 4 wheeling in WA - they have my details so we could communicate.

Dec 25, 2016
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nice
by: Shane

Good to see many more alternatives to the Toyota/Nissan getting out and about. If only more diesels where available with stonking engines like the V10.

Sep 13, 2016
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hi Frank
by: Steve

Touareg is a great vehicle for touring, very comfortable and so far quite reliable but the early models are a bit high maintenance.
The only issue is the wheel size mine can only accommodate 31" tyres. if you have 18" rims the very common 265/60R18 tyres are a good option.

Sep 13, 2016
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Touareg Travel
by: Frank

Hallo, I´m from Germany an I want to use a touareg for my trip to the gold fields etc. Is this car great and relayable for such trips?
What would you change/add after buying an normal touareg?
Which machine?

Best regards
Frank

Jun 30, 2016
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Awesome VW
by: Anonymous

Hi Steve Great to hear about your Touareg people really underestimate VW's and I think you said it well. Happy 4 wheeling.

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Touareg expedition mods

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