2009 Volkswagen Touareg TDI. Click image to enlarge

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2009 Volkswagen Touareg TDI

Muskoka, Ontario – It’s very quiet in Ontario’s “cottage country,” an area of many lakes, much forest, and relatively few people. And it’s also very quiet inside a Volkswagen Touareg TDI, despite the long-held opinion many people hold, that of diesels being noisy, smelly and considerably associated with sooty exhaust.

The TDI now joins the gasoline-only, 3.6-litre V6 Touareg – Volkswagen says it has dropped the “Touareg 2” name it previously used – as a 2009 model. A 4.2-litre V8 used in 2008 has been discontinued; it has also carried a diesel before, a mighty V10 version last seen for 2005.

But this one is not just any diesel; it’s Volkswagen’s Clean Diesel, a new system that meets strict North American emissions standards, including fifty-state compliance in the U.S. It joins the Jetta TDI and the upcoming Golf VI TDI. It’s part of Volkswagen’s blanket BlueMotion Technologies initiative, which will eventually also expand to include hybrids and other fuel- and emission-efficient technologies. Already in place in Europe, the BlueMotion initiative was introduced at the Vancouver Auto Show earlier this year, part of Volkswagen’s strategy to have Canada at the forefront in North America.

2009 Volkswagen Touareg TDI. Click image to enlarge

It’s smart thinking, given that Canadians have traditionally been more open to diesels than most American buyers. In Canada, diesel engines account for 62 per cent of all Jetta sales, 77 per cent of Jetta Wagon sales, and 23 per cent of all Volkswagen sales combined. While the Touareg isn’t traditionally a huge seller in Canada, the company is hoping to change that with this new model, which offers improved fuel economy and longer range to a tank of fuel. It will launch on June 1, 2009, with 200 units available at initial sale.

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