Volkswagen Touareg V8 2004

The VW Touareg V8 is no bush basher.

It makes the hairs on the back of my neck sit up and pay attention just thinking of the big luxury VW brushing up against lantana as its Bridgestone paws step over rocky terrain.

No, this is a big luxury SUV wagon for the well-heeled.

Despite cresting $100,000 on the road, it is good value when you size it up with its natural big-bore luxury competitors: Lexus LX470 ($118,500); BMW X5 4.4i ($111,800); and Porsche Cayenne S ($129,900).

And to these eyes and the many who cast admiring glances its way, it is the sweetest-looking big SUV on the market.

Rally-style brushed aluminium abounds on the dash and on the truck-sized brake pedal and throttle.

It's macho, but it's also stylish. That's the V8 Touareg all over.

Sitting in the cockpit there is a feast of instruments and knobs for the technophile...some may call it overkill and others may even be scared by the control options available.

The jumble of controls is a little daunting at first, but most fall easily to hand and are logical.

And some of the gimmicks are time savers such as the clever transponder in the key which allows the driver to fire up without inserting the key or zapping a remote.

That big old steering wheel seems a little truck-like, yet the steering is light and the handling nimble.

Rally style is further emphasised by the quick-shifting large sequential paddles mounted behind the steering wheel. They work well if you shuffle your hands, but not if you favour racing-style.

The ride is plush and quiet with a fair amount of body language in the tight stuff.

All the same, the 18-inch wheels with 255mm-wide rubber stay planted to the road without slip or objection, no matter how awkwardly you handle the tiller.

That is thanks to VW's 4XMotion system with a 50:50 torque split and 100 per cent to any axle in need of a little help when the wheels start to slip.

It's smooth and subtle.

Together with a sophisticated air suspension boasting continuous damping control (CDC) in three settings (automatic, sport and comfort), it's a sure-footed, comfortable ride.

There is also speed-sensitive ride height adjustment from 160mm to 190mm, with a selectable 300mm for good clearance over the chunky bits.

A howling V8 pours on plenty of power – 230kW at 6200rpm. More importantly, it will pull most anything you've got with its massive 410Nm of torque at a puttering 3000rpm.

All this takes more than a squirt of fuel. VW quotes 14.8 litres of premium to 100km, but with a 100-litre tank, at least there is good range. About 675km, which will get you half way from Brisbane to Townsville.

And the crew in the back won't moan as they bury into soft leather with plenty of head, shoulder, hip and leg room.