Currently in a 06 touareg V8 that I thought I would like more than a CTT, but having severe buyers remorse at this point. The steering is so numb and over boosted that coming out of a corner on pavement, and I have to manually move the steering wheel back to center. It handles pretty good (not CTT good), but it's very planted in sport mode. The audi sourced V8 is bomb proof and dirt simple to work on - but I need more power. Especially since I'm in Denver.

When I researched the touaregs, the 04's had serious issues. The TSB list is quite extensive - everything from software updates for the ECU, tranny ECU, tranny valve bodies, transfer case recalls, transfer case stepper motors, random electrical issues, and on and on. 05 was better, and 06 had almost no TSB's, and most report pretty solid cars.

Wondering why the touareg's list of problems in the driveline are so extensive - but it seems that many have reported the 04 cayennes to be pretty solid cars. I drove a CTT yesterday (04) and noticed it had the -A part number on the stepper motor, which was eventually replaced by the -C version (which is on my treg).

Also - the 04 treg's had corrosion issues around the suspension body where the air hose connected to it, and the air hoses would break off during maintenance. They eventually went to a different style in 05 that fixed this. Now, if you have an 04 treg with one shock that fails, you either have to replace the whole air suspension system to the new style, or source one from a junk yard. Probably not so much of an issue for people that live outside the salt states. Is this also how it works on the cayenne's?

I'm trying to find a reason to narrow my search to 06 MY, but in reading here on rennlist, I'm just not finding any reason to do that. Seems condition, records, recalls complied with, and the rest of the normal things (coolant pipes, cardan shaft, control arms) - those are all things that span 04-06. Two are recurring and one of those is just a 1-time fix.

 

AFAIK - the driveline was identical, and if you search a bit deeper, you'll find the '03 and '04 P!Gs were known to have the same sort of driveline problems. It got better in '05, and the problems are fairly non-existent in the '06.

 

All the highest mileage CTTs are 04s. The problems are actually pretty rare. The Cayenne got a different torque split in the TCase so that may make a difference right there. Motor mounts are probably different for the different engine and maybe stiffer transmission/TCase mount in the Cayenne?! All things that could lead to fewer issue than the touring egg had with the drivetrain early on.

 

+1... If you really want to avoid these issues, why not try to step in a higher mileage 07/08? Most of these issues were addressed (sans DS bushing) in the facelift model.

 

I've owned both and had zero problems in Denver (or the mountains) with a V8 Touareg or Cayenne S. More power is not needed - although it may be desired. The two vehicles are about 90% identical and the engines were developed by VW for VW and Porsche. Any issues you have with your Touareg can be seen in a Cayenne. I would suggest getting the T fixed properly and enjoy it as it is a wonderful vehicle.

 

To be accurate, The V8 engine in the Cayenne was developed and built by Porsche.

Porsche was also commissioned to develop the chassis platform that is also used by VW and Audi in their comparable SUV product range.