10th Mar 2005, 14:01
Just received my 2005 spec Touran SE 7 seater, the practicality of the car is second to none with plenty of room all round even with the back seat up. However I find the lack of a spare wheel disappointing with a bit of thought a space saver could have been included.
What were VW thinking about when they designed the windscreen wiper control? the wash wipe cleans the screen well, but then it wipes again after 5 seconds and smears the screen, also I had an intresting moment when pulling up a difficult junction in the rain only to find that the wipers switched to intermittent as the vehicle stopped, I then had to sort the wipers out before I could attempt the junction.
Other observations include the six speed gear box ratios are too close, lots of gear changes when driving around town and seventh speed would be good for the motorway. The dash board illumination of blue with red for the multi function computer is not ideal, dim the lights to tone down the radio display and you then struggle to see the clocks on the dash for the bright red computer display.
Given that it is a 2005 model it's a shame the CD player won't play MP3 disc's.
Once I get used to these issues and buy a spare wheel I think the Touran will be an ideal car for a growing family.
9th Aug 2005, 13:58
Re: the wipers going to intermittent at standstill, I believe this is a design feature, but not desperately useful. I totally agree about the delayed last wipe, but if you do it manually, immediately after the sequence, it's a lot better.
27th Nov 2006, 03:48
This is the original author again. The car is now 2.5 years old and due to new job will be going back to the leasing company in 2 weeks. Over the last year or so more faults -almost too many to list - have happened. These include... accelerator pedal braking off at 70mph, diesel fumes entering car despite so called mod from dealer, central locking failing numerous times, juddering rear seats when unoccupied (not a steering geometry problem) premature wearing of internal plastics, faults on cd player (constantly ejecting discs for no reason) bulbs blowing regularly, rattles everywhere, faulty window seal, windows opening by themselves. This is not an exhaustive list and I could go on. VW have rested on their laurels too long and need to look seriously at quality and reliability issues now. I still think the Touran has potential to be a great car, but not at present. I would seriously warn people away from these if they don't want trouble. I feel sorry for whoever ends up with ours - my advice is don't go near these cars unless you have plenty of warranty and time on your hands to visit the dealer. You have been warned!
22nd Jan 2016, 13:20
I am driving a 2004 Touran 2.0 FSI. It is comfortable and spacious.
Fault: It has started giving me trouble at 70 000km with the engine light on, and it over revs, especially when it slows down in a traffic jam. The speed sensor was replaced to try and solve the problem, but the problem persists.
This is a nice car; I like it despite this problem.
25th Jan 2016, 20:43
Somebody else experiencing that "legendary VW reliability " myth.
They were when others were poor in that respect, but nowadays the rest have caught a VW that is going backward - like everything else, they are built for the benefit of the accountants' profit and loss spreadsheets - old VeeDubs were engineered and built by engineers, so were much more reliable than their peers.
23rd Feb 2005, 05:51
My rear hatch takes a good firm slam to get it to lock properly too. I think has something to do with the air pressure in the car not escaping fast enough and cushioning the hatch as you close it. I seem to remember a similar problem with 60s/70s Beetles, weren't they air tight?