2017 Volkswagen Touran review popularity is a fickle Beast a few years ago MPVs were seen as the main car of choice for big families on the move few other cars could match them for outright

practicality and with models available at every budget they were a common sight on UK roads times and attitudes change though and in recent years MPV sales

worldwide have taken a big hit as more people looked at SUVs both large and small for their family moving needs that said if you’re not a fan of SUVs or

you don’t want a high set driving position then an MB V could still be right for you and there are plenty to choose from two cars in this class

2017 Volkswagen Touran review

include the Citroen c4 Picasso and Grand c4 Picasso say I tell ham robots or Saphira and Ford s-max and galaxy all firm family favorites and then there’salso this the Volkswagen Touran it is

one of the more expensive MPVs on sale but like all cars in this class it’s party trick is practicality it is in effect a high set hatchback but inside

there’s seven usable seats and enough space for the family and all their luggage and there’s a bonus it promises good on-road manners as well

there are five engines to choose from in the Turan and as you might expect the emphasis is on diesels there are 1.6 and 2-liter TDI units to

choose from alongside 1.2 and 1.4 lite petrels let’s start with the diesel units and the 1.6 liter TDI which we’ve got in this car offers adequate

performance it can feel a little lackluster at times though and many of the Tehran’s rivals will be faster that said it offers good fuel economy and

it’s ultimately the engine we woulrecommend onto the 2-liter diesels then and the 148 brake horsepower version offers a fine blend between performance

and fuel economy if you do find yourself in need of more power then there’s also a 187 brake horsepower version on offer and this is worth looking at especially

if you plan on towing a caravan or if you plan on having all seven seats filled for most of the time on the petrol side the smallest 1.2 liter

engine is smooth and offers good fuel economy but it can feel a bit gutless and you’ll struggle to keep pace with faster moving traffic the 1.4 liter

option is a better bet but it’s an expensive choice the 1.6 litre diesel which we’ve got in this car generates some noise but it’s never intrusive and

the larger 2-liter diesel is only a little bit smoother and quieter there’s also hardly any wind or road noise in here when it comes to ride

comfort the Teran is comfortable over most surfaces it softens all but the very worst bumps in the road and even on larger alloy wheels it’s never

uncomfortable that said we’d recommend sticking with the standard 17-inch alloys adaptive dampers can be had at a fair cost but again we’d recommend

saving your money because it around rides perfectly well on its standard suspension sports suspension is on the option list as well but again it’s not

really worth the upgrade the two round steering is predictable and wel weighted and there’s plenty of grip and because this isn’t an SUV and therefore

isn’t very tall it’s hardly any body roll either let’s be honest the Terron doesn’t feel particularly exciting or involving to drive but then again no MPV

really does and for a car of this size it hides its bulk on the road pretty well in fact it feels like a much smaller car to drive

it’s easy to get comfortable inside the Teran thanks to this height adjustable driver’s seat this steering wheel will adjust for height as well as reach and

also this front armrest and on this SE trim cart we’ve also got lumbar supports for the driver’s seat meaning you’ll be comfortable over along the journeys if

you’re looking for a fully electric seat then it’s on the options list for all but the most basic Teran models elsewhere this dashboard is well laid

out with these clear buttons sitting either side of the 6.5 inch touchscreen infotainment system visibility around the car is very good too and the turan’s fairly boxy shape makes it easy to park

you also get front and rear parkingsensors as standard on SE trim and above and if you really want to take the stress out of parking than a self

parking system and a reversing camera both feature on the options list there’s a good array of standard equipment on offer in the Teran but our preferred se

specification gets you extras like a USB input down here for as well as automatic lights and wipers like other Volkswagen products the build quality in

here is also very good every Teran gets this 6.5 inch touchscreen infotainment system a standard it’s really well laid out and

these shortcuts on either side of the screen work really well in fact this is one of the most user-friendly systems in this class as standing to get all the

functions you’d expect including a DAV radio and a media player as well if you’ve connected your phone vibluetooth and on this car we’ve also

gone for satellite navigation one of the other features is Volkswagens carnet app Connect system and that unlocks the features of apple carplay and android

auto now if we connect our phone to this USB cable like that we get a message on the screen saying it’s launching apple carplay now if when we’ve unlocked the

phone here we are on the screen with the full array of phone apps available to use via the car zone touchscreen and this means we can keep our hands on the

wheel rather than using our phone while driving this satellite navigation system isn’t the most graphically rich in this class but it is easy to use you can

either use a touchscreen to select your destination or you can use some controls like these rotary dials here now to select a destination we’ll go to new

destination and we’re going to head to our offices in Twickenham so if I just type in that here using this touchscreen it’s very

easy to respond select Twickenham and if we go to go for the centre of the town start there we go it’s going to offer me

three routes one will be the most economical one would be the fastest and one will be the shortest I’m going to choose the fastest there we go and there

we go the route is all set satellite navigation is a pricey extra on s and SE trim levels if you do want a larger screen than an 8-inch screen with

more advanced now than other options can be had but be warned that it’s an expensive upgrade on to space and practicality then and of course this is

where MP V’s like the Teran really shine up here in the front there’s plenty of space and there’s also plenty of space for all your different odds and ends

each of these door pockets will hold a large drinks bottle and there’s a large cubby space down here at the base the dashboard as well and there’s two

cupholders here behind the gearstick if you want even more space and you don’t need to look too far because there’s a large box here under the centre armrest

there’s more space here on top of the dashboard and of course you’ve got a big glove box as well moving to the back of the Teran and there’s more space back

here than you’ll find in most of the cars rivals to adults will be fine on this middle bench even over longer distances as will three children there’s

also more storage space each of these door pockets will hold a large drinks bottle and you also get some clever touches like these picnic tables whichfold up from the front seats one word of

warning though they can be a little bit flimsy if you plan on filling all seven and the Teran seats then you’ll be pleased to know that even adults will be

fine on that third row access is among the best in this class as well because all of these middle seats slide forwards individually you can also fold them down

using these toggles at the side and lifting them back up is a one-man job and wade access into the rear even more you can pull the seats forward entirely

using these toggles on the sid so to the boot the tehran’s is one of the best in this class it’s deep and wide and it has a low loading lips and

that makes loading bulky items quite easy so you can load things like this suitcase without breaking into a sweat and it also has room for things like

this pram provided that you lay them otheir side there’s also a smidgen more storage space than you might think because there’s a little bit extra here

under the floor and when the Tehran’s rear seats are in place you can use that space to store this load cover this load cover is also very clever because one

touch will send it folding back half way and that makes it easy to reach in and get your items while a second touch retracts it fully it’s hard to ignore

that on paper at least the Teran is a very expensive choice and there are plenty of other MPVs on the market which have similar talents and which in some

cases cost a lot less but let’s look into that in a little bit more detail because if you’re buying the Turan outright than there are plenty of

discounts available and if you’re buying on Finance and its monthly cost actually works out on par for this class low insurance costs and good resale values

only sweeten the deal too it’s good news when it comes to safety with it around as well because when this car was tested by Euro endcap in 2015 it received the

full 5 stars every car gets 7 airbags our standard and automatic emergency braking is optional across the range in terms of specification the entry-level s

cars are best avoided as they are fairly basic but as we’ve already mentioned our favoured SE trim gets you most of the kits you’re likely to want now if you do

run too really splash out of the new Turan then the higher trim levels get you access to luxuries like satellite navigation and a panoramic glass roof

while the top-end our line cars get 18-inch alloy wheels a sporty body kits and Alcantara seats if you’ve already looked at the family

SUV market and decided those cars aren’t for you then the Turan definitely deserves a place on your new car shortlist now for plenty more on the

Volkswagen surround including our full online review.