The Volkswagen Touareg celebrated its 20th anniversary last year with a special edition model. Now it's time for the third-generation model to receive a facelift, though Volkswagen isn’t ready to unveil it yet. However, we have new spy photos showing three almost fully undisguised prototypes testing on the northern regions of Europe.
The first vehicle in the gallery attached below provides a good amount of information regarding the design changes of the refreshed Touareg. Not everything you see is final as the front fascia features some clever camouflage covering the area around the edges of the bumper. We know from previous spy photos the bumper that the grille and headlights could be tweaked a little to give the large SUV a more modern appearance.
Gallery: VW Touareg facelift new spy photos
Not much seems to be under development for the sides but at the back, we expect the Touareg with a mid-cycle refresh to gain taillights with new internal graphics. It is unclear for now whether the clusters will be reshaped as the lights on these three prototypes are covered with smart camouflage foil that keeps their actual shape away from our eyes.
The silver prototype has an eHybrid badge on the boot lid, which hints at its plug-in hybrid powertrain under the hood. This doesn’t seem to be a Touareg R trial vehicle and we can’t confirm what exactly is hiding under the hood. The most powerful version of the SUV has a 3.0-liter turbocharged engine supported by an electric motor for a peak output of 456 horsepower (340 kilowatts) and 516 pound-feet (700 Newton-meters) of torque.
We’ve seen Volkswagen testing the facelifted Toureag with a dynamometer, which could mean changes under the hood are in the cards. More electrification seems likely at this point, though nothing is official yet. We know the German SUV will retain its 4Motion all-wheel-drive capability with Torsen center differential lock and its eight-speed automatic gearbox from the torque converter type.
