Used Volkswagen Touran 2015-present reliability

When viewing a used car, always follow our used car buying checklist.

This spacious and flexible family car will have been used in car parks and on tight urban routes, so check bodywork carefully for damage and alloy wheels for kerbing. Also, look at the interior for signs of wear and tear, and make sure the two rearmost seats pop up and fold down easily.

Inside the car, ensure there are no loose bits of trim and that all the seats slide and fold as they should.

The Touran has been recalled for the following reasons. Check with your local dealer that all remedial work has been carried out.

Recalls

To rectify a possible issue with the car not informing its driver if one of the lights fails. This affected Tourans built between June 2015 and November 2016.

Due to an error in the manufacturing process, the airbag and/or seat belt pretensioner may not trigger in the event of a collision.

Possible short circuit in the LED lighting module of the panoramic roof.

It has been identified that due to a programming issue with the On-Board Supply Control Unit it is possible that the failure of one of the vehicle lights (dipped beam/main beam/daytime running light/rear fog light or indicator) may not be recognised by the control unit and therefore not shown in the instrument cluster. It is also possible that vehicle lights may be shown as faulty when they are not. Furthermore, a failure of a dipped beam may not trigger a replacement response (activation of side lights). A light failure without a display in the instrument cluster or without a replacement response can pose a danger of an accident, especially in the dark.

During a limited production period, a burr may have developed on the locking bar of the head restraint guide.

Too little torque may be provided by some of the engines at low engine speeds.

Wheels ordered and bought at the dealers may not be compatible.

The specified wall thickness of the fuel tank can in some places fall below the threshold.

While there are no reports of common failures on the Touran to date, it is still worth paying a bit of extra attention to any car fitted with a DSG automatic. In the past, Volkswagen has suffered some fairly expensive problems with these gearboxes, and although it now appears to be on top of them, it’s still worth looking out for juddering, particularly as the car slows down.

As with any car, it’s also important to keep on top of servicing so look for evidence that it’s been done, and try out any and all electrical functions to ensure they work.

Click here for more information. Contact your local VW dealer if you believe your vehicle is involved in a recall.

Our data suggests the Touran is an unreliable car. It didn't appear in our 2023 What Car? Reliability Survey, but in the last survey it appeared in, it came in seventh place out of seven cars in the MPV class.

Reliability rating 75.2%

What went wrong? Gearbox/clutch 13%, air-con 8%, battery 8%, brakes 8%, engine 8%, fuel system 8%, non-engine electrics 8%, bodywork 4%

The Touran can be costly to fix and slow to repair. Half of the cars we were told about went wrong and only 47% of the costs were covered by Volkswagen, leaving 13% of drivers with bills of more than £1500. On top of that, a third of the affected cars spent more than a week in the garage.

Owner’s view "My car has broken down twice and I’m worried about it doing so again. Repairs have been costly, too"

As a car brand, Volkswagen finished in 22nd place out of 32 manufacturers in our latest survey. Its overall reliability rating was 90.2%, beating Renault and Vauxhall, but falling short of Ford and Skoda.