The rumors were true – the Touareg’s days are numbered. Volkswagen has confirmed its flagship SUV will retire next year. After 1.2 million units sold since its 2002 debut, the so-called “poor man’s” Audi Q7 will bow out in late March 2026, when order books officially close. Before it leaves, the luxobarge will be offered in a Final Edition.
Truth be told, there’s nothing particularly thrilling about the Touareg’s swan song. Available across all trim levels, the Final Edition can be recognized by laser-engraved lettering at the base of the C-pillars. The same motif appears inside, where “Final Edition” is embossed in the leather covering the gear lever.
The ambient lighting has also been tweaked to display the phrase on the passenger side of the dashboard, while the illuminated side sill plates carry the same message. Exciting stuff, I know. It seems VW wasn’t too interested in giving the Touareg the proper sendoff it deserves, considering its significance in Wolfsburg’s history.
In its home market, VW is charging €75,025 before options for the final Touareg. Once it’s gone, it’s gone for good. Or is it? A line in the press release suggests the nameplate might return one day. The company specifically notes it’s the end of the “Touareg combustion engine model.”
Photo by: Volkswagen
Since there’s no fully electric Touareg yet, VW didn’t really need to clarify that. Even the press release’s headline mentions “current Touareg,” suggesting a replacement may already be on the way. Perhaps it’s hinting that the name will live on as an EV. With the upcoming ID. Polo, VW has already said future electric models will pair the “ID” prefix with traditional names, so an ID. Touareg could be on the horizon.
The original Touareg launched the same year Ferdinand Piëch stepped down after nearly a decade of running VW with an iron fist. Along with the Phaeton, it was part of an ambitious push to move the brand upmarket without treading on Audi’s turf while throwing a diesel V-10 and a gas W-12 into the mix. While the Phaeton bowed out after a single generation (a successor was canceled), the Touareg endured through three generations, the latest introduced in 2018 as a forbidden fruit for Americans.
All of the Touareg’s platform mates are sticking around. Porsche has confirmed the gas-powered Cayenne will survive into the 2030s. Audi is readying an all-new Q7, and Bentley is certainly not discontinuing the Bentayga, its money-printing machine. Likewise, Lamborghini will keep the Urus alive, with a second generation featuring a plug-in hybrid powertrain arriving in 2029.
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Source: Volkswagen
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