Seven people fit in the minivan

Dhe seven is a magic number. God rested on the seventh day, a week has seven days, and fairy tales tell of seven little kids. And then there are the seven dwarves, which can be crammed into some larger SUVs if necessary. If you want to give your loved ones more space but don’t want to buy a bus, you should look for a minivan. For example the VW Touran, which started 20 years ago.

Its boxy shape will hardly pass for chic, but it offers excellent use of space. VW has managed to accommodate a third row with two seats over a length of 4.53 meters, on which people up to about 1.75 meters tall can be accommodated surprisingly comfortably, and thanks to the sliding row of seats in front of them, they even have enough knee room. The front is really airy, with large windows giving the occupants a good sense of space.

The Touran started the 2023 model year with a few subtle changes. The digital cockpit immediately catches the eye, but we cannot count the callous sliders for heating control as progress. Added to this are some perfectly functioning driving assistants. The engines are well-known, in addition to the diesel with 2.0 liter displacement and 150 hp working in the test car, there is a petrol engine with the same output.

The self-igniter starts after a short delay with a somewhat rough noise, and almost only good things can be said about it. The Touran TDI is flexible and powerful, it harmonises splendidly with the 7-speed dual clutch transmission. Its short switching delay is not particularly noticeable, despite the good driving performance, sportiness is not the core competence of the minivan. If necessary, however, it runs at 206 km/h, the speedometer then shows 220. Speed ​​drives consumption up, because of a high share of the motorway we ended up with an average of over seven liters, with a quieter driving style it can be six.

Otherwise, we are pleased with equipment details: seats with massage function, infotainment with nine speakers, adaptive chassis, heated windscreen and fold-out trailer hitch, to name just a few. The test car had the upscale Highline equipment, but all the fine things are only available for an extra charge. In the end, the basic price of a moderate 46,000 euros turns into 61,500 euros.