The Touareg shares a platform with the Porsche Cayenne, and they were produced as part of the same engineering project. These cars come standard with all wheel drive and have the option to use an air suspension to increase height and make them more capable offroad.

The most popular engine choices for the Volkswagen Touareg are the V6 and the V8. In 2004, Volkswagen offered the Touareg with a V10 diesel. There were some environmental concerns with this engine and it was pulled from the market. It made a return in the United States for 2006 and 2007, but they are only made in limited numbers. The retail price on these V10 Touaregs is around $60,000.

For those looking for a lot of performance from their SUV, there is an even rarer limited edition Touareg that was sold with a W12 twelve cylinder engine. It was never sold in the United States, and over half of the 500 that were made went to those rich princes and oil barons in Saudi Arabia.

Although the Touareg has received some great reviews and awards from the automotive press, it also received the accolade of dirtiest car in America by one environmental group. That award was specifically for the V10 diesel model.

I've seen VW Touaregs start to pop up on the used SUV market lately. The easiest place to find a good deal on one is on eBay, where you'll be paying the market price or less more often than not, and you can avoid that pesky dealer markup.