Although many of the Autotrader Find vehicles I feature are exotics or weird cars with wide-ranging appeal, here’s one for us car geeks. This is a 2006 Volkswagen Touareg V10 TDI — the holy grail of Volkswagen weirdness — and it’s offered for sale for just $9,995. Yes, you can get the ultimate Volkswagen SUV for less than the price of a new Mitsubishi Mirage.
I’ll start from the beginning. The original Volkswagen Touareg came out for 2003, and it offered two versions — a V6 and a V8, like a normal SUV. Beginning in 2004, Volkswagen upped their game, adding a third model to the range: A turbodiesel V10-powered version of the thing, with 310 horsepower and a monstrous 554 lb-ft of torque. In a harbinger of things to come, this vehicle was immediately banned in California due to its emissions.
As a result, the Touareg V10 TDI was pulled from sale in some states until Volkswagen could make it cleaner. Eventually, they succeeded, though stricter emissions rules eventually killed it again — and Volkswagen replaced it with a turbodiesel V6 that had better sales prospects anyway. But the V10 TDI model is still the one everyone wants — the ultra-rare Volkswagen Touareg that can tow a plane. Literally, I mean: Top Gear used it to actually tow a Boeing 747 at slow speeds during an episode.
Of course, not too many people actually bought the V10 TDI, so there aren’t too many on the used market — but this one is quite impressive, as it’s the cheapest one on sale. Offered by AZ Euros in the Phoenix area, it’s available with 153,000 miles for just $9,995 — under ten thousand dollars! For one of the most famous SUVs of our time!
Yes, sure, you’ll want to consider maintenance and repair costs, which surely won’t be a cheap for a top-of-the-line, ultra-rare, V10-powered aging German SUV. But I bet you won’t be thinking about maintenance costs when you’re towing your plane. You’ll just be cool. Find a Volkswagen Touareg for sale
Doug DeMuro is an automotive journalist who has written for many online and magazine publications. He once owned a Nissan Cube and a Ferrari 360 Modena. At the same time.
MORE FROM OVERSTEER:
Why Are There No 3-Row Pickup Trucks?
Mitsubishi Is Quietly Becoming a Crossover Brand
Video | Here’s Why Everyone Loves the XJ Jeep Cherokee
