Successor: Detailed Test Of The Very Large Volkswagen Teramont Crossover

Five-meter crossovers / SUVs with three rows of seats - the format for the Russian market is not that new, but still exotic. It is in America that affordable six-seven-eight-seater SUVs are rapidly squeezing the family market from minivans, and we have a large SUV for four million - this is, first of all, status. And only in some second or even third - family values, practicality and convenience
Interior
Practicality
Technique and reliability
Riding
Equipment
Competitors
conclusions

Video: Successor: Detailed Test Of The Very Large Volkswagen Teramont Crossover

2023 Author: Natalie MacDonald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 02:36

Five-meter crossovers / SUVs with three rows of seats - the format for the Russian market is not that new, but still exotic. It is in America that affordable six-seven-eight-seater SUVs are rapidly squeezing the family market from minivans, and we have a large SUV for four million - this is, first of all, status. And only in some second or even third - family values, practicality and convenience

Volkswagen Teramont 3,009,000 - 4,059,000 ₽ Editor's Choice: Equipment Status, 2.0 AT, 220 hp for 3 579 000 ₽ Rating: 4 out of 5 Pluses

Capacity
Balanced chassis
Familiar design

Minuses

Finishing quality
Harsh suspension
Price

Ownership cost per year with a mileage of 17,500 km: OSAGO 24,642 ₽ CASCO 69,500 ₽ Maintenance per year 12,540 ₽ Transport tax 18,150 ₽ Fuel 111,598 ₽ Total 236,430 ₽

VW Teramont, which with twists and turns reached Russia only in the spring of 2018, has already managed to win our last year's comparative test, beating both the overseas Chevrolet Traverse and the elegant MazdCX-9. However, the battle with its partner in the lineup - the flagship VW Touareg, which after the change of generations has risen significantly in price - Teramont seems to have lost outright.

See for yourself: in 2019, 5792 Tuareg and only 2554 Teramont were registered with the traffic police in Russia. And this despite the fact that VW Teramont is larger, brutal and more spacious inside. And cheaper: in fact, prices for the fashionable VW Touareg are just starting where Teramont will have everything. Just like on our test car in the top version Exclusive per 4,139,000 rubles - with an optional six-seater saloon, a six-cylinder VR6 engine with a capacity of 249 horsepower and all available options. Using this particular car as an example, we decided to figure out what is good about VW Teramont, and what it is still not very good at. And why he has not yet won the hearts of family Russians.

Interior

Teramont will puzzle its potential buyer, if not from the first, then from the second glance. Than? Interior trim! Because the American roots of the largest Volkswagen crossover stick out here literally from everywhere. They are felt in the quality of the materials used, in the fit of the parts, in the scale of everything and everyone, after all.

I do not exclude that if you drove a Tuareg of the year 2010, then Teramont will seem to you quite a modern and well-made car, but even the owners of Tiguanas will feel that they saved on them wherever they could. And they are unlikely to like it.

At first glance - the familiar car interior with the Volkswagen logo. Familiar steering wheel, climate control unit, multimedia. But everything else - air ducts, decorative inserts - seems to be enlarged in size by 10-15 percent. And the finishing materials are too simple. Everything below the dashboard is made of tough and not too premium plastic, which you expect to find in a VW Polo, but not in a car for almost 4 million rubles

The digital tidy is familiar from other Volkswagen models, and there are no complaints about it. The graphics are good, the display does not fade even in the sun, there are several design options …

For example, such a minimalistic one will come in handy on a long night road

The chairs are good. A wide range of adjustments, moderately soft padding, good lateral support. They are not cramped, but also not too wide - it seems that it will be convenient for almost any driver

In expensive versions of Teramont, the seats have power adjustments with memory and ventilation

A convenient niche for small things with a rubberized insert will fit any modern smartphone, but there is no wireless charging. But there is a USB connector - the usual, not the newfangled Type-C. There is an AUX input and even a cigarette lighter. I mean, real, not just a 12-volt outlet

Sound familiar? That's good! Convenient climate control unit does not require any getting used to. Everything is clear, logical - what else is needed?

All climate control settings are duplicated on the multimedia system screen. From here you can adjust the temperature for the rear passengers

The glove compartment is large and deep and cooled. There is also a module for CD-disks and memory cards of the navigation system. A bit archaic solution in 2020, don't you think?

Just boxing. A huge drawer under a wide armrest, which contains nothing but a soft rug on the bottom and another USB port

And again, all the familiar faces are good, fast and convenient multimedia, which can be found on a dozen more VW models. Its biggest plus is the analog volume control knob

In 2020, standard navigation increasingly raises questions - why is it? Surely the person who paid several million for a new car has a modern smartphone, while Teramont has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto

But the graphics are beautiful. Each of the driving modes has its own picture

If it seemed to you that I was picking on finishing materials - here is a photo of the armrest of a car for almost 4 million rubles, with a range of less than 30 thousand kilometers. Trust me: it looks no better live

Practicality

But practicality is Teramont's middle name. And even if it is not the longest car in the class, it is definitely the most roomy. Even with three rows of seats, Teramont still has a very decent trunk, comparable in volume to the C-class crossovers (583 liters). With the third row folded, already an impressive one and a half cubic meters of cargo (1572 liters) will fit into the crossover, and in the two-seater version - almost three (2741 liters)!

And Teramont pleasantly surprises in terms of space in the second and third rows. With separate second-row seats, like ours, in the back - almost limousine comfort. And the unexpectedly spacious third row can be accessed either through the aisle between the seats, or through a wide opening, which is obtained by moving the separate second-row seats forward with one movement. In the seven-seater version, the back passage is not so convenient.

The seats in the second row are heaps, even if you sit behind a tall 190-centimeter driver. Yes, the chairs are set low, but no one will be cramped. Central tunnel? It's almost gone

Separate chairs can be moved back and forth, the backrest tilt and the height of the armrests are adjustable

At the disposal of passengers in the second row - two USB-connectors and a 12-volt socket

Plus own air ducts and a separate climate control zone

Access to the third row is wide and convenient. And the children will easily make their way back, without reclining the chairs, but simply through the central aisle between them

With the second row seats fully pushed back, the legroom in the third row is back to back. But if you ask passengers to move forward a little, even the adults in the back will be relatively comfortable. But the headrests are uncomfortable - they protrude too much forward and put pressure on the back of the head

In the pockets of the rear doors there are a couple of niches where bottles of water and all sorts of sweets will fit on the road

There are even sun blinds - though mechanical

Your Tiguan seems to have less trunk space than Teramont with the third row seat backs up

Our large suitcase can be put like this (and there will still be room in front of it for something smaller) …

Or like this - and still it will take up less than half of the luggage compartment

With the third-row seats folded down, suitcases are simply lost in the trunk. It would also be possible to remove these protrusions on the sides, which serve as armrests and cup holders for those sitting in the back, and it would be absolutely cool

In a two-seater configuration, Teramont will fit about as much as a small cargo van. The floor turns out to be even, something can be hidden in the empty gap between the second-row seats, and there are niches for small items on the sides of the trunk

In the underground - a stowaway and a handy organizer. You can also hide the folding curtain here

Mesh hooks - all this is also there, as in any Volkswagen. True, you will have to pay separately 16 thousand rubles for the net

Technique and reliability

Of course, VW Teramont is structurally much simpler than the "big brother", and therefore cheaper. Tuareg has a premium MLB Evo platform that is used on the Audi Q7, Porsche Cayenne and even the luxurious Bentley Bentayga. With a longitudinal engine, a robust all-wheel drive transmission and the ability to install a mechatronic chassis with a lot of nishtyaks - air suspension, active stabilizers and steering rear wheels. And Teramont has just an extremely stretched MQB light "trolley", on which, for example, VW Golf, SkodOctavi, and a dozen other models are built.

But this solution also has advantages. The design is simple, well-known and reliable enough. As well as the power plants used in the Russian Teramont. The base is a two-liter turbo engine with a capacity of 220 horsepower, and as an alternative, an "atmospheric" VR6 TSI with a volume of 3.6 liters is proposed, which is well known from the Volkswagen and Skod models of the past years. At first - about a year after the start of sales - its output was 280 horsepower, but then the engine was slightly reconfigured for the "tax" 249 hp. The gearbox is only a traditional eight-speed "automatic" Aisin, and the drive is only full, based on a multi-plate clutch in the rear wheel drive (in the USA, Theramont-Atlas is also front-wheel drive).

The Russian owners have not yet accumulated any serious complaints about the technique against Teramont. The "turbo-four" has not yet been found to have increased oil consumption, however, experts recommend using low-viscosity options, and after active driving, they advise to drive in a quiet mode or let the car idle before turning off the engine. Some owners have encountered interruptions in the operation of the gasoline pump after refueling with 98th or 100th gasoline, but this problem is not yet widespread.

The latest generation VR6 motor is considered reliable. With proper care - changing the oil every 7.5-10 thousand kilometers and refueling with high-quality fuel - it can travel at least 400,000 kilometers without serious problems. Moreover, at this distance, the timing chain will need to be changed only once - just in the middle. There is, in fact, only one drawback of a naturally aspirated engine - fuel consumption in the urban cycle. In traffic jams, you will most often see figures of 13 liters and above, but on the highway this unit is able to keep within 10 liters per 100 km.

Unpretentious materials in the interior trim do not badly resist wear and tear, but the American assembly over time makes itself felt with crickets in the door trims and, sometimes, creaks and knocks from the trunk. There are no massive problems with paintwork yet, and Teramont's body is galvanized. However, the chrome on the rear door trim swells even with low mileage, and this problem is just very common.

Other complaints include steering wheel wobble when braking after reaching solid mileage. The same problem was on our test car, but dealers still consider this case out of warranty and associate it with improper operation: overheating and subsequent deformation of the brake discs. The owners collect statistics and intend to seek recognition of the defect as a factory defect. Another massive problem, which we also encountered, is the leakage of gluing on the left side of the windshield, which is why, after heavy rains, a real puddle accumulates under the floor covering on the driver's side. This defect, to the credit of Volkswagen, is already considered a warranty case and is eliminated under the appropriate conditions.

The compact VR6 engine takes up very little space in the huge engine compartment of Teramont. It seems that even a V12 will fit here, and longitudinally

With a puck, you can choose one of four driving modes: winter, road (aka normal), off-road and off-road individual. True, it is not clear why Teramont needs such customization. Only the gearbox has a sport mode, but most likely you will not use it either - there is no need

An all-round visibility system and a car park are the necessary options for a car that has exceeded five meters in length. Multiple camera angles, clear and bright picture - convenient

A panoramic roof is a mandatory option for a car, the ceiling area of which is comparable to an average bathroom. With this huge glass (and beige headliner) Teramont is light and airy

The stated ground clearance is 201 mm. The bottom point of the front bumper is the aerodynamic skirt and hangs noticeably lower. However, it is soft, pliable and not afraid of borders. But the protection of the engine compartment hangs low - be careful when driving on country roads

The lowest point in the back is the muffler body, but it is moved deeply, so that even very high curbs can be approached fearlessly

Despite the beveled front bumper and protective pad, the overhang is still too big. Therefore, when driving on a hilly exterior, it is better to ask the passenger to be your co-driver - this is safer

It turns out that the list of design flaws is quite modest, but the disadvantages of a light aggregate base at the heart of a large and heavy crossover are still present. Owners - both in Russia and in the United States - complain about knocking on the suspension and steering. Dealers change under warranty the left shock absorber assemblies, and in rare cases, also the stabilizer struts. Knocks when the suspension is triggered on rebound are a family trait of all cars built on the MQB platform, however, on Teramont, the situation is aggravated by large and heavy wheels (20-inch in top configurations), which are too difficult to control for the suspension.

Riding

Yes, VW Teramont really likes good roads. At the same time, even on 20-inch wheels, it filters small things well, does not notice cracks and medium-sized joints of the roadway, but you cannot rush along a broken road on it. On larger pits, the suspension does not hold impacts well, letting them pass to the body, and it works noisily and rudely on rebound.

But on a relatively flat asphalt Teramont is pleasant. Not gambling - no, it's better to go to Mazda for this - but the European school is clearly felt in the character of this American car. The crossover is neutral in behavior, and in the limit it slides with all four wheels, without frightening the driver with a sharp skid, even under the deliberate release of gas. Only the stabilization system here, in the American way, is reinsured, in the bud, breaking off any attempts of the rear axle to go into sliding. And you can't turn off the electronics - but it's better that way than if someone on this big guy accidentally turns over.

The effort on the steering wheel is not the most "tasty", but there is nothing to complain about too much. The five-meter crossover responds to commands calmly, but without laziness. In general, after a day or two behind the wheel of Teramont, you cease to feel like a truck driver. The dimensions (including thanks to the massive hood) feel great, the eight-speed automatic works smoothly and imperceptibly, but if you suddenly need to accelerate, it quickly drops a couple of gears, sending the tachometer needle to the aspirated working area. So the sports transmission mode is useful here only for difficult overtaking on narrow country lanes.

The VR6 motor is nice too. It slightly lacks the juicy thrust that turbo engines have at low and medium speeds, but if you spin it higher than 3-3.5 thousand, then it sounds and goes as it should for a 3.6-liter "six" … True, for the sound and "atmospheric" will have to pay with increased consumption: 13 or more liters per hundred kilometers is a common thing for this engine.

VW Teramont with a two-liter "turbo four" accelerates to a hundred in the same 8.6 seconds, but at the same time it is slightly more elastic, a couple of liters more economical and … ".

But with the brakes on Teramont, you really need to do something. There are no problems with information content and drive settings, but this overweight crossover stops hard, especially from high speeds. The noticeable beating of the brake discs on our car is annoying, and after a couple of hard braking in hot weather, the deceleration efficiency drops noticeably, forcing to slow down and increase the distance.

The selector for selecting driving modes does not change the character of Teramont. The steering wheel becomes a little heavier or, conversely, more relaxed, the response to the accelerator slightly changes, but there are no adaptive shock absorbers or a mechatronic chassis, so there is nothing special to “regulate”. Only the off-road mode may be useful: in it, the electronics begin to slow down the slipping wheels earlier, imitating interwheel locks even more effectively. Of course, it is better not to meddle on a real off-road in a VW Teramont, but you will most likely be able to get to the shore of a pretty lake along a hilly country road.

Equipment

The most affordable VW Teramont in Russia is almost a million cheaper than the test one - for 3 million and 9 thousand rubles from above you will be offered a 220-horsepower crossover in the complete set Origin … It will have 18-inch wheels, LED headlights, three-zone climate control, fabric interior, electric windows and mirrors, heated front seats, steering wheel and mirrors, adaptive cruise control and multimedia with an 8-inch touchscreen display.

In the next configuration Respect per 3,279,000 rubles faux leather trim, fog lights, heated windshield, electric tailgate and driver's seat, a parking assistant with a rear-view camera and keyless entry are added.

By adding 300 thousand rubles for a complete set Status (3,579,000 rubles), the buyer will receive electric front seats with memory for the driver's settings, Discover Medi navigation with maps of Russia, digital tidy, chrome edging for foglights and body-colored bumpers with chrome inserts (at previous equipment levels, the lower bumper section will be unpainted).

Finally, in top-end configuration Exclusive per 3 899 000 rubles to all of the above are added 20-inch wheels, a panoramic sunroof, Vienna leather interior trim, front seat ventilation, ambient lighting, folding side mirrors, adaptive light control, heated rear sofa (but only for those sitting on the sides), parking autopilot and hold system in the strip.

Of the available options - a luggage net for 16 thousand rubles, an autonomous heater for 60 thousand, separate second-row seats for 63 thousand rubles, as well as 21-inch wheels, which cost 70 thousand rubles.

Surcharge for the VR6 engine - 150 thousand, regardless of the configuration. As a result, the most expensive VW Teramont 3.6 in the configuration Exclusive will cost the buyer 4,059,000 rubles excluding discounts and additional equipment. And it is more expensive than competitors.

Competitors

Chevrolet Traverse

Такой же вместительный, как и Терамонт, но при этом более комфортный, особенно на плохих дорогах. И более доступный - с безальтернативной 318-сильной «шестёркой» Traverse стоит от 3,5 до 3,7 миллиона рублей без учёта скидок. Правда, активного водителя коренной «американец» вряд ли порадует слишком уж вальяжными настройками шасси" style="width: 823px; margin-right: 8px;">

MazdCX-9

Самый элегантный и драйверский автомобиль в классе тоже обойдётся ощутимо дешевле. В топовой версии (с единственно возможным 2,5-литровым турбомотором мощностью 231 л.с.) СХ-9 стоит смешные 3,488 миллиона рублей - и за эти деньги у вас будет даже отделка салона дорогущей кожей Nappи музыка Bose. Но Мазда теснее и ещё менее комфортна на щербатых дорогах, чем Терамонт" style="width: 823px; margin-right: 8px;">

HondPilot

Представьте себе - Хонды всё ещё можно купить в России новыми. И не только компактный кроссовер CR-V, но и его восьмиместного брата под именем Pilot. Мотор всего один - 249-сильная трёхлитровая «шестёрка», а комплектаций три. Цены - сравнимы с Терамонтом: от 3,188 миллиона за базу до 3,892 миллиона за топовое исполнение Premium. Причём у дилеров можно найти даже машины 2018 модельного года и хорошенько поторговаться" style="width: 823px; margin-right: 8px;">

ToyotHighlander

На момент публикации этого материала новый Хайлендер до России ещё не доехал, хотя уже рассекречен. К нам приедут машины только с V6 мощностью 249 сил, восьмиступенчатым «автоматом» и хитрой системой полного привода с двумя раздельными муфтами сзади. Комплектацию обещают богатую, а это значит, что и цены будут немаленькими. Их пока нет, но для примера: кроссовер предыдущего поколения стоит в России от 3,577 до внушительных 3,875 миллиона рублей. Новый наверняка окажется ещё дороже" style="width: 823px; margin-right: 8px;">

conclusions

They say that Russians are a lot like Americans. We also love beer, simple food and big cars. And if cars were as affordable in Russia as in the United States, we would also drive pickups, and our wives would take the kids to school in seven-seat crossovers like the VW Teramont.

But we are not in America. And a large and comfortable family car with a price of several million rubles in Russia has no buyers yet. More precisely, they exist - but there are too few of them. A familiar family car in Russia is still C-segment crossovers with a price in the region of two million rubles - for example, the VW Tiguan. And those who are ready to double the costs for the sake of a large off-road or at least an SUV will add a little more and choose the status VW Touareg, BMW X5 or ToyotLand Cruiser.

And this is not Teramont's fault. This is an excellent family car - very spacious and comfortable, pleasant in appearance and successfully balancing between passenger comfort and driving pleasure. For all this versatility, the crossover could be forgiven for inexpensive finishing materials and even minor design flaws. It is difficult to come to terms with only the price: if in America VW Teramont (Atlas) costs only a quarter more expensive than Tiguan, then we have a two-fold price difference. Agree: if Teramont cost a little over two million rubles, then it would be a completely different conversation.