Chrysler said the electric 500 will use an "advanced" lithium ion battery pack but did not give any technical specifications of the car, which will be sold as a Fiat model. The company said the car's pricing will be announced closer to launch and will be competitive with similar electric vehicles in the market. 16,000 covered the cost of the batteries. Chrysler said all powertrain engineering and vehicle development for the 500EV will take place at the company headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Chrysler is the vehicle electrification center of competence for both Chrysler Group and Fiat Group. Scott Kunselman, Chrysler's senior vice president of engineering, said the alliance with Fiat presented opportunities to merge Chrysler engineering knowledge with new platforms from Fiat. “The Fiat 500EV is an outstanding example of our efforts: the Fiat 500 is a small, lightweight platform perfect for integrating electric-vehicle technology,” Kunselman said in a statement. Chrysler will launch U.S. Fiat 500 powered by a 1.4-liter gasoline engine in December. The car will be built in Mexico for the North American market. Fiat's rivals in Europe, Peugeot and Citroen, will begin selling electric cars in European markets by the end of the year.
Parking Assist - Front and rear parking sensors. Should be standard in a car of this size / segment in my opinion. Rear View Camera - Good addition to the parking sensors and comes with parking pilot that can help steer the car into the parking space. Not quite as advanced as some of the competitors but helps people that can’t park very well. Adaptive suspension with roll-stabilizing - makes the Touareg less shy of corners and makes the ride a lot more comfortable thanks to air suspension and adaptive dampers. More and more countries are switching to digital radio so DAB is a must for high quality digital radio. Innovision cockpit - digital cockpit that can display anything from the navigation map to old school tacho and speedometer. Keyless Access - Leave the key in your pocket to lock and unlock the car and start with the start button. Front seats with massage and cooling - comfortable seats with 8 different massage programs and seat cooling. What about the competition? The Volkswagen Touareg is up against some stiff competition with the Audi Q7, BMW X5, Mercedes-Benz GLE and Range Rover Sport to name a few.
Design is a matter of taste but for me it is one of the most attractive cars in the segment. In terms of interior and infotainment it is one of the most state of the art cars on offer today. The new BMW X5 has a lot more traditional styling and the GLE is running towards the end of it’s life cycle. Some competitors offer a third seating row which Volkswagen doesn’t. The only car that can match the Touareg in terms of interior and equipment at the moment is the Q7. Volkswagen closed the gap to the premium segment very well but some of the competitors use slightly better and more exclusive materials. In exchange the Touareg is a bit cheaper though. The new Volkswagen Touareg represents a big step forward for Volkswagen. The gap to the premium manufacturers has never been so small and in terms of styling and equipment it beats some of the more expensive competitors hands down. The V6 TDI diesel engine fits very well to this SUV and provides plenty of torque and range to make for a comfortable daily driver and travel car. However the typical diesel sound could have been masked a bit better.
This is it. The all-new 2019 Volkswagen Touareg large SUV. It makes its debut in Beijing following a long teaser campaign. Volkswagen selected China for the debut as it is its largest market. The new model is based on the latest MLB Evo platform, with external dimensions growing in width and length. Volkswagen says the extra length in particular provides a lot more cargo space, which grows from 697L to 810L. Back there there’s also a new electric blind that can cover precious cargo. Under the bonnet, Volkswagen will initially launch the third-gen model with two V6 turbo-diesel engines. Buyers will get the option of a 170kW version and a 210kW version. Some markets will also be offered a 250kW petrol model, and a turbo-diesel V8 that churns out a whopping 310kW. Plans for a plug-in hybrid with 270kW are also in the works for China and potentially Europe. Aussie specs are yet to be confirmed. Inside, Volkswagen has implemented a new philosophy called ‘Innovision Cockpit’, which promises to bring together the assistance, handling and comfort systems to adapt to their personal tastes. In front of the driver is a 12-inch digital instrument cluster, while the dash showcases a 15-inch screen for the media functions. Safety has been significantly boosted, with available Night Vision assistance, Roadwork Lane Assist with semi-autonomous steering and braking under 60km/h, front cross-traffic alert, and available LED matrix headlights with adaptive beams. Head-up display has also been added.
