Volkswagen Touareg

Five Non-Luxe Car Brands Hoping To Graduate To Luxe Status

In the early and mid 1990s, the line dividing luxury cars from non-luxury was simple: $30,000. Today, most people would say it was $40,000, but they would get an argument.

After all, when a loaded Chrysler Town and Country or Honda Odyssey minivan crests $40K, can we really use that pricing standard? A luxury minivan?

Then, there is the discussion about brands. BMW is a luxury brand. Volkswagen and Hyundai aren't. Right? Not so fast. A Volkswagen Touareg SUV starts at $44,000 and climbs North with options to above $60K for the Hybrid version. Hyundai's new Equus sedan starts at $58,000.

Here are five brands seeking credibility with luxury car buyers and the products they are reaching with:

Chrysler: As Italian automaker Fiat restructures the Chrysler brands it has acquired after the U.S. automaker went through bankruptcy in 2009, it is hoping to position Chrysler as a kind of "value luxury brand." The Chrysler 300 sedan is the linchpin in the effort. While the base model starts below $28,000, the two other trim levels, Limited and 300C, easily reach between $44K and $48K when the technology, safety and luxury option packages are checked. "The 300 is for the successful person who doesn't forget whey they came from," is the way Chrysler brand CEO Olivier Francois puts it.

The new 300 is the second generation design of the car that captured the attention of the hip-hop community when it first came out in 2004. Snoop Dog and Jay Z were among those who praised the "gangsta" design of the car. That has been toned down in the new design in part to try and reach a broader audience--let's say, more the Black Eyed Peas and Linkin Park crowd than P Diddy and Cee Lo Green.

Tags: buick lacrosse, BuickEnclave, Chrysler 300, hyundai equus, Hyundai Genesis, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Jeep Overland, luxury cars, Volkswagen Touareg

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Volkswagen Touareg Gold Edition & Race Touareg 3 Qatar

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Volkswagen Touareg Gold Edition & Race Touareg 3 Qatar

Luxury SUVs like the Volkswagen Touareg are very popular in the Persian Gulf, where all-terrain mobility is as vital as pampering luxury and fuel costs are no object. No wonder then that Volkswagen is coming to the Qatar Motor Show with not one, but two concept versions of the Touareg.

The Gold Edition is outfitted specifically for Middle Eastern tastes, with 24-karat gold replacing the chrome on the exterior as well as the cabin. The shiny stuff coats the 22-inch wheels, roof rails, window frames, door mirrors, grille surround and more. Meanwhile the interior is also distinguished by gold trim, complimenting the Luna trim color, Alcantara roofliner, Nappa leather seats, natural brown leather and Walnut Burr veneers.

More enticing to enthusiasts, however, is the Race Touareg 3 Qatar. Envisioned as a street-legal version of the racing machine that recently claimed its third consecutive victory in the formidable Dakar rally, the Qatar version is just as tough, but benefits from an upgraded cabin trimmed in Nubuk and perforated Nappa leather.

Gallery: Volkswagen Touareg Gold Edition

Gallery: Volkswagen Race Touareg 3 Qatar

Tags: qatar, qatar motor show, Race Touareg 3, Touareg, Volkswagen, Volkswagen Race Touareg 3, Volkswagen Race Touareg 3 Qatar, Volkswagen Touareg, Volkswagen Touareg Gold Edition

Luxist Drives the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid, Loves the Silent Sound of It

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

The Volkswagen Touareg has always lived on the wrong side of the tracks in America: it was a big, expensive Volkswagen. Notice, we can't just say it was a big, expensive car, because those are almost as much the norm as anything else – we must qualify the descriptor with the word "Volkswagen." Yet its Cayenne sibling was reversing Porsche's fortunes, and it's Q7 sibling was luring customers Audi had been forsaking when it had no SUV. But the only splash the Touareg could make in the U.S. was in puddles.

No more. The new 2011 Touareg bigger, roomier, and nicer. Much nicer. It is also much lighter, allowing for more power while delivering better gas mileage. That is how we like our VWs. There's a new flavor, too: Hybrid. Luxist spent a few hours in Italy to find out what a Touareg reset looks like. Our first impressions: so good, this is what the first Touareg should have looked like.

Gallery: Luxist Drives the 2011 Volkswagen Touareg Hybrid

Tags: 2011 volkswagen touareg, 2011 volkswagen touareg hybrid, volkswagen, Volkswagen Touareg, volkswagen touareg hybrid, Wheelman

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2010 Geneva Motor Show: Ze Germans

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Germany is the very epicenter of the European automotive industry, playing host to several of the world's largest and most significant automakers. But with the Frankfurt expo forced to alternate with the Paris salon, Geneva is the closest to a home turf international auto show these companies have.

Ever keen to demonstrate the latest cutting-edge automotive innovations and show the world their newest developments, Germany's automakers crossed the border into Switzerland this year with a virtually unprecedented array of new vehicles. Follow the jump to read and see what they brought.

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