Most buyers of big-engined, bigbodied 4x4s aren’t too concerned about pricing…which is why Porsche can charge more than £70,000 for their Cayenne and have footballers’ wives queuing up to buy.

But such a vehicle became more in reach of those on the terraces earlier this year when Volkswagen adjusted down quite considerably the asking prices for their Cayenne lookalike, the Touareg.

The entry price for Touareg is now £28,600 on the road – £1,730 less than before – while the mid-range V6 SE gained almost £3,000 worth of extra equipment and was also reduced in price. At the top of the line-up, the special edition Altitude became a permanent addition to the range.

In each of its trim levels, the Touareg is luxuriously appointed – so much so that I hesitated to take such a beautiful looking vehicle off road at all during the test drive.

Yet it has all that’s necessary to make its way down streams and through aforestation: features include short front and rear overhangs, a hill hold function, traction control linked to an auto-locking centre differential, full-time 4XMOTION four-wheel drive, hill descent assist and simple high and low ratio gear selection to help find the right gear for the right terrain.

The entry-level Touareg boasts six airbags, air conditioning, a 10-speaker stereo system with a CD player and 17 inch alloy wheels. This model is available with 2.5 litre TDI and 3.0 litre V6 TDI engines. Moving up the range, the revised SE features leather upholstery with heated front seats, DVD satellite navigation with a six inch LCD screen and a six CD player.

As factory-fit options, these items would previously, claim VW, have cost £3,070. In fact, SE V6 TDI costs £865 less than the model it replaced. The 3.0- litre V6 TDI benefits from wood trim; dual zone climate control, 18 inch alloy wheels, a chrome trimmed radiator grille and window surrounds and front fog lights. This represents £3,935 worth of additional value.

The SE specification is available with a full range of engines including the new 3.6 litre V6 FSI petrol which generates almost 280 horsepower and a 5.0 litre V10 TDI. The latter is truly verging on to Porsche territory for its price is virtually double that of the entry model at £56,050. It lacks for nothing – except perhaps for what many drivers consider to be a more prestigious badge!

Due to the success of the 3.6, the 4.2 litre V8 engine in Touareg was discontinued. The Altitude model was initially introduced to commemorate the world record set by a Touareg in Chile, climbing to the highest point on Earth that a vehicle can reach – 6,080 metres. Now a permanent addition to the range, this model is truly a high flyer, offering the striking looks provided by a special VW adornment pack, privacy tinted rear windows and imposing 19 inch alloy wheels. The Altitude model is available with all of the Touareg engines, starting at £34,630 for the 2.5-litre TDI.

Incidentally, Volkswagen are not only aiming to make inroads into Porsche territory but are also looking at increasing the competition further down market. Toureg’s “little” brother, a compact sports utility, is to be built in Wolfsburg from 2008 and it will be called Tiguan.