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2004 Volkswagen Touareg Urban Edition - “Pimp” My SUV By: Kimatni D. Rawlins, 08.05.04 We got the call from Volkswagen this past winter saying that it was on for a year. Yeah, the German brand gave us extended “rights of passage” to their tribal Touareg (pronounced Tour-egg) sport-ute. Touareg represents a group of Nomadic travelers in the Sahara Desert known for their ability to traverse any terrain. But not only did we challenge the Touareg’s dominating off-road capabilities; we also dressed it up in some of the latest SUV fashion. The soft customization project is a group effort between Volkswagen, AutomotiveRhythms.com and VWVortex.com , our V-dub mentors. To understand the Touareg’s current state of mind, you have to take note of where it has been, and what it has been through. The Touareg mixes pure luxury with durability and strength. Last year VW invited us out to explore Moab, Utah -- the Mecca of automotive hiking. I know most of you will never take the path of an Ape and bumrush the jungle with your wheels, but just knowing it is all the way live in that respect is a gratifying feeling! You should have seen how its air suspension with high and low modes rose to the occasion, allowing the Touareg to scale stone walls. In hindsight, both your Escalade and Navigator would be stuck and out of luck in comparable conditions. Back in the city, our $53,000 “Offroad Gray” Touareg was just as joyful. It’s loaded! The Touareg is blessed with a 4.2-liter 310-horsepower V8, a high-tech cabin, and has a $7600 Premium Plus Package; $600 winter Package, and a $1200 4-Zone Climatronic air conditioner. However, there is nothing wrong with a little overload. So we called upon some of the top suppliers in the business to help spice up our nomad even more.     All of the customization work was done in College Park, Maryland by Motorheads Performance and Tuning (301.441.9797). Victor and Jason Joseph, both import tuning gurus, did their thing with this project. To set it off right, we started with the wheels, and mounted a set of TSW 22”x 9” “Exclusives” with a +38mm offset (www.TSW.com). With the air suspension you could actually go bigger, but for what? You don’t want the Touareg looking clumsy. The rubber was provided by top-notch tire experts Michelin (www.michelin-us.com). To toughen up the body, Landspeed (www.landspeedusa.com) donated a Touareg specific “Caractere” kit consisting of front and rear bumper spoilers, roof spoiler, rear hatch blend, stainless steel side skirts, and wheel arch extensions. And of course we had to paint the pieces ourselves. This led to a call to PPG Industries Inc. (www.ppgrefinish.com), a world leading manufacturer of automotive paints. They supplied more than $500 worth of the Global Refinish System via their local distributor, FinishMaster, Inc. (www.finishmaster.com), in College Park, MD. The paint matched up perfectly! VW also contributed to the cause. Their accessory catalogue is full of Touareg enhancers. We ordered a set of quad exhaust tips, step bars, heavy-duty floor mats, and a Gorilla Gear cargo liner and organizer. The standard roof rack also had to go. Now our Touareg is street worthy. So far, it has been shown off at Waterfest and Funk Master Flex’s Celebrity Car show. Keep your eye out for our “Urban Edition” Touareg because you may just need us to “pimp” your SUV.