There is much to like about Volkswagen’s Touareg writes Geraldine Herbert What is it?  The new Volkswagen Touareg first appeared in 2002 and was updated in 2010. For 2015 it offers more equipment and smarter styling  for a lower price tag. Who is it aimed at?  With only five seats the Touareg  is best suited to a small family who want an SUV that’s good to drive both on and off road. Styling? Compared to many rivals the Volkswagen Touareg is positively discreet, so appropriately the latest version is a subtle refresh. Apart from some minor design tweaks front and rear and a reworked four-bar grille, it looks pretty much the same as the previous version outside but inside it’s even more up-market, with lots of soft-touch materials and electronic wizardry. Under the Bonnet? Powering the Touareg is a 3.0 litre diesel engine that ranges in output from 204bhp to 262bhp. Our test car was the lower powered version, it is punchy but smooth and it comes with an eight-speed automatic transmission that shifts gears seamlessly. What about inside? Inside it is familiar VW territory and all the controls are logically laid out and the quality throughout is good but there is no denying a certain sombre solemnity to it all. The high seating position gives great visibility though this elevated view of the world is just as likely to be obscured by another SUV or crossover in the adjacent lane. The boot is well shaped and a decent size at 580 litres – extending to 1,642 litres with the rear seats folded but while space is good throughout and there is plenty of legroom front and rear, the Touareg is a five-seater only without a seven seat option. On the Road? Behind the wheel, the Touareg feels much more like a beefy Golf than a full-size SUV. At slow speeds, it is absorbent and plush and barely swayed through corners. The changes to the steel-sprung suspension are evident and the car is more agile than before. The steering response is quick, it grips the road very nicely and on motorways it swept silently along. The 4MOTION all-wheel-drive system sets the car up for on or off road conditions with the simple turn of a knob. A trip around Mondello’s off-road course proved that it is more than capable of surmounting...