The Volkswagen Touareg launched in 2002, and a second generation appeared for 2011, before taking its exit after the 2017 model year. While VW replaced the Touareg in the U.S. with the larger Atlas, elsewhere the model went on to a third generation, which has been out since 2018. We recently got a chance to see what's become of VW's ambitious SUV.

The third-gen Touareg is longer, lower, and wider than its predecessor, but it is still nowhere near as large as the bus-like, three-row Atlas, which is more than seven inches longer and three inches taller. It remains strictly a five-seater, although the rear seats slide fore and aft and recline. The commodious luggage compartment includes a power-operated cargo cover.

We drove the Touareg in the U.K., where VW offers five engine options, all turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6s backed by eight-speed automatic transmissions. There's a standard gasoline version, two TDI diesels (still!), and a gas-burning plug-in hybrid available in two states of tune. The latter ones are of the most interest.

The interior is more upscale than those in VW's U.S. offerings. The design doesn't particularly wow us, but the materials are far superior to what we get in the U.S. A 12.0-inch digital instrument cluster is about on par with what our Volkswagens get, but the 15.0-inch infotainment display appears billboard size and is canted toward the driver. Unfortunately, physical knobs and buttons are all but eliminated, making this a not-so-user-friendly setup.

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