Volkswagen Touareg VS Toyota Kluger
Volkswagen Touareg
Likes
- Technically very impressive
- Luxurious interior
- Absolutely packed with stuff
Dislikes
- Disappointing ride quality
- PHEV elements frustrating to use IRL
- Limited appeal compared to other R models
Toyota Kluger
Likes
- Hybrid efficiency
- Low ownerships costs
- Great space and storage
Dislikes
- Grande grade is expensive
- Exterior design uninspiring
- Third row airbags don't fully cover occupants
Summary
Volkswagen Touareg
It’s big, it’s fast, it’s luxurious, Volkswagen’s Touareg has always been a stand-out large SUV.
This one, the full-fat R is the latest take on the halo Volkswagen model. It has big shoes to fill.
See, top-spec Touaregs in the past are hardly rivals to the Toyota LandCruisers and Hyundai Palisades of this world. They’re a different breed, with the first-generation Touareg powered by a variety of engines up to a 5.0-litre turbo-diesel V10, and the second-gen version packing petrol and diesel V8s in its upper levels.
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They were the ultimate sleeper family SUV, ridiculous engines with rich VW Group lineage in a seemingly mainstream family-friendly package.
But this third-generation version can’t quite replicate the over-engined craziness of its predecessors. It has to think outside the box as emissions regulations crack down the world over.
This Touareg R is a plug-in hybrid. A performance-focused one at that. Can it hope to replicate the unhinged nature of its forebears and find an appropriate place atop the hierarchy of Volkswagen’s R models? Let’s find out.
| Safety rating | — |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | — |
| Fuel Type | Hybrid |
| Fuel Efficiency | —L/100km |
| Seating | — |
Toyota Kluger
So, a big SUV like the Toyota Kluger Grande is on your shopping list, but how well will a hybrid version work for you?
Chances are you're a parent - the Kluger is a family favourite after all. And if you’re a parent take comfort in knowing this review of the Toyota Kluger Grande Hybrid is being written by a fellow parent.
A parent who has been up since 5:00am with a toddler who threw breakfast on the floor, somebody who’s already done the school run with the eight-year old and is on their third cup of coffee. And it’s only 9:00am.
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What does this have to do with cars? Everything - well, it does for family cars, anyway.
The family car is a vital tool and if it doesn’t work properly, not just mechanically but in a practical and financial way, it’s not going to be much help. A good family car needs to be easy to use as well.
Because you’re also a sleep-deprived parent I’m not going to make you trawl through this entire review to find out if the Toyota Kluger Grande Hybrid is any good.
So, let me tell you now, it’s excellent and outstanding among its rivals like the Hyundai Palisade, Kia Sorento or Nissan Pathfinder. It’s exceptional for its roominess, cabin storage and low ownership costs.
Does being a hybrid matter or change things? Absolutely. It'll save you money on fuel and make driving smoother. So, in my books you'd be bananas not get the hybrid version.
So, there you have it - buy it. Seriously. There’s a reason why it's so popular among families.
You only have to look at the car park at the pool I take my son to for his swimming lessons.
Last weekend I ended up in a Kluger traffic jam in there. See, I took a photo because I thought it was funny. My son did not. What would be the collective noun for a group Klugers?
Anyway, the reason why you should continue reading is because I think you don’t need to get the top-grade Grande as it’s too pricey. Read on to save some money and find out more…
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 2.5L |
| Fuel Type | — |
| Fuel Efficiency | 5.6L/100km |
| Seating | 7 seats |
Verdict
Volkswagen Touareg7.4/10
A car as impressive as it is frustrating, the Touareg R is a vehicle for a very specific buyer. Someone whose daily commute consists of limited distances, someone who can always charge at home overnight and someone who appreciates the subtlety of the performance and luxury the Touareg brings.
For everyone else - there are better options. Performance-focused PHEVs can be tricky to charge and extract the full benefit from, and at this price you have access to some serious performance-oriented combustion SUVs or the choice of going fully electric.
While this R-badged VW might be the most mind-bending of the lot then, it also has the most 'specific' appeal.
Toyota Kluger8.1/10
The Kluger Grande Hybrid is outstanding among its peers for fuel efficiency, practicality and ownership costs. It's just that this grade is overly expensive. Really the GXL is the sweet spot in the range for value but you do miss out on some good features such as the sun blinds and leather seats.
That said, hybrid is the way to go with a large SUV, delivering fuel savings and a more peaceful driving experience.
Comfortable, easy, practical and peaceful, that's all parents really want.
Design
Volkswagen Touareg
The Touareg, as always, screams big Volkswagen. It’s more subtle than the Porsche Cayenne and Audi Q7 with which it shares its underpinnings, yet looks as slick as either up close.
It’s defined in its face by a massive black grille, integrated light fittings, and as usual with Volkswagen, some pretty subtle highlights and tail-lights in attractive LED patterns.
The wheels sell the vibe of an R. They’re enormous and gloss black, matching the theme and style of its smaller siblings, black highlight trims replace chrome or body colour bits to set it apart from the rest of the range.
It doesn’t look quite as modern as something like Kia’s Sorento or EV9, and it doesn’t look as elegant as the Volvo XC90 or as defined as the Land Rover Defender, all in the same price bracket.
This helps the Touareg maintain a certain mainstream appeal, and a sporty edge, without being too egregious.
Still, some might want some more overt visual flourish to indicate they’re driving a vehicle which is capable of sprinting to 100km/h from a standstill in 5.1 seconds.
Perhaps I’m in a different camp, one which appreciates the ‘sleeper’ nature of a giant family SUV capable of incredible driving feats when pushed.
Inside is always a pleasant surprise in a Touareg. While it might be the most affordable of the giant SUVs on this platform, it maintains the air of luxury and plush nature of its more expensive counterparts from Audi and Porsche.
You’re met by nicely trimmed leather seats and a chunky VW R steering wheel, massive screens and lavish amounts of padded leather surfaces everywhere. It feels every bit the luxury SUV the price indicates, in case you were worried you’d be getting something which feels more like a T-Roc than an Audi. For what it’s worth I quite like all the Volkswagen switchgear.
Toyota Kluger
The Toyota Kluger is the New Balance sneaker of cars. Yep, Toyota has nailed Mum-and-Dad fashion with the look of the Kluger, without any hint of irony.
This generation came out in 2021 and you can guarantee Toyota won’t bring out a new-gen version until about 2028, possibly 2030.
And even then that one will also look like a loaf of bread, just with a different face. Like this one, and the last one and the one before that.
That reminds me, we need bread.
The Kluger looks tough, but not elegant. It looks modern, but not avante-garde. It looks functional and tells the world, 'if it wasn’t for the kids I wouldn’t be driving this'.
Get past the Kluger Grande’s uninspiring exterior and you’ll find a surprisingly upmarket cabin that's full of air and light, well appointed with premium seats as well as a modern and stylish dashboard.
The Grande grade adds some nice trimmings I didn't mention in the features section such as the wood-look elements, ambient lighting, and the soft-touch instrument panel.
The exterior also gains chrome elements in the grille, roof rails and larger 20-inch chrome-look wheels.
There are some elements which bring the tone down in the cabin. The JBL speakers in the windscreen pillars look like big plastic novelty ears and the wood-look trim doesn’t look or feel like wood (why didn’t they use real wood?), but it’s not worth getting uppity about.
Practicality
Volkswagen Touareg
It’s a big SUV with big interior dimensions. It feels spacious and wide on the inside with a large centre console area for spreading out and a highly adjustable driver’s seat.
The seats are plush and comfortable, and visibility is pretty solid out of the cabin. Again, you're greeted by excellent touchpoints, from the steering wheel to the door cards and there’s even lashings of padded leather trim down the sides of the centre console for your knee to rest on.
Volkswagen’s screens are usually some of the best in the business and that continues here. They’re bright, sharp and served up with attractive and mostly functional and easy-to-navigate software.
The hardware behind them is also enough to keep them lightning fast when reacting to inputs, with satisfyingly smooth animations, too.
The one thing I like a bit less is how a few of the menus can be confounding. It took me a while to figure out I needed to set the default battery level higher than its current charge to get the engine to stay on, and I’d also love a button to simply switch between EV and hybrid mode.
In fact, the lack of buttons is one of the major issues in this car. Sure, the enormous centre screen is an impressive feature, syncing up with the dash design nicely, but you’re also forced to negotiate with touch elements for key climate functions. No matter how fast or slick the software is, there’s no compensating for a toggle or dial you can easily reach while you’re focused on the road.
For what it’s worth, the wireless Apple CarPlay worked seamlessly with the car in my time with it (and looked good too) while the wireless charger is rubberised and in a good location so your phone will be able to at least maintain its state of charge on the go.
Storage is plentiful up front, with large pockets with integrated bottle holders in each door, a large dual cupholder set-up in the centre console with variable edges and a large armrest console box.
In the back seat I have enough room for myself behind my own driving position at 182cm tall. It’s plenty wide and tall, but I don’t feel as though I had an enormous amount of legroom considering the size of the vehicle.
Still, the width will give you space for three adults across in relative comfort. Yes, there’s a large raise in the floor in the centre position to accommodate the all-wheel drive hardware underneath, but the width of the floor should allow a centre passenger to put their feet on either side.
Big door openings and the wide cabin make for easy child seat fitting, and there's even built-in window shades alongside two rear climate zones with physical controls, large bottle holders in the doors and a drop-down armrest, with some flimsy nets on the backs of the front seats to round things out.
Boot space is allegedly enormous at a quoted 810 litres, but the shape of it is less than ideal. Sure it’s nice and wide and oblong shaped at the base, but the rake of the boot quickly eats into the amount of height available, making it tricky to fit larger objects.
The space accommodated our CarsGuide three-piece luggage set with ease, but it didn’t leave much room to spare. It doesn’t feel like it’s double the 400 litre space typical of a one size-down SUV.
There’s also a needlessly complex two-piece shelf, which lifts with the tailgate, but the boot wouldn’t completely close with the luggage set present unless you removed it. To the Touareg’s credit, the second row seats hinge forward significantly to expand space by a fair bit.
Under the floor there’s only a repair kit, as the huge PHEV battery takes up the rest of the space. A decidedly less than ideal flat tyre option.
Toyota Kluger
The Kluger is vastly more practical than many of its rivals despite them also being large and seven seaters.
That’s because the Kluger’s use of space inside is excellent for storage, luggage and people. There’s thoughtful practicality everywhere.
Take the Kluger’s dashboard, which doesn’t eat into the cabin too much and has built-in shelves running the width from front passenger to driver.
And the centre console box with its roller door opening that reveals a wireless phone charger and below that deck is a huge hidden space.
There are cupholders in all three rows and generously sized door pockets.
Legroom in the second row is excellent and I can sit behind my driving position even though I'm 189cm tall.
I could sit in the third row, but my head touched the roof and my knees were getting friendly with the back of the seat in front. As with most third rows in SUVs they’re best suited for kids.
Along with the wireless phone charger there are seven USB ports (five up front and two in the second row).
Three-zone climate control means the second row can set their temperature (this comes on the GXL grade, too), and the Grande adds sun blinds and privacy glass to the rear windows.
The rear doors also open tall and wide making entry and exit easy.
The tailgate opens high so there's less chance of bumping your head and it’s the gesture type which means you use a kick motion to open if your hands are full.
Boot space is excellent. The cargo capacity with the third row folded flat is 552 litres and with the third row up its 421 litres.
Price and features
Volkswagen Touareg
Is the Touareg R good value? Seems like a silly question doesn’t it?
One school of thought says, of course it isn’t. Nobody needs a giant $129,990 (before on-road costs) SUV which is this fast. What the halo Touareg variant has always offered is excess with a modest exterior wrapper.
On the other hand, the Touareg R is great value when you consider you’re getting much the same hardware as a Porsche Cayenne S E-Hybrid ($188,600) with a Volkswagen badge.
In its size and price-bracket, the Touareg R directly rivals the Land Rover Defender 110 PHEV ($126,184), Lexus RX HEV ($127,434), Range Rover Velar PHEV ($131,536) and Volvo XC90 Ultra T8 PHEV ($128,390).
I see two problems with this. Firstly, all of those price rivals are premium brands, and secondly, at the circa-$130K price-tag there’s also the awkward reality you could be choosing one of a few very appealing fully-electric options, from the Kia EV9 GT-Line ($121,000), to the Polestar 3 ($131,054), Mercedes-Benz EQE ($134,900) and BMW iX ($136,900).
So, it’s great value from one perspective, but not so much from a few others. Then again, this is the biggest, baddest Volkswagen you can currently buy, so whether you’re in the market for an R-badged car or a PHEV of this size, you’re likely familiar with a six-figure price-tag.
Do you at least score good equipment for the money? Aside from all the complex drivetrain hardware, this VW is an impressive place to be, with extensive plush leather interior trim in the seats and doors, power adjust for the front two positions with heating and ventilation, a 12.0-inch digital dash with Volkswagen’s slick-as-ever digital cockpit software, a head-up display, a massive 15.0-inch multimedia touchscreen (with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), matching wireless phone charger and quad-zone climate control.
Outside, there’s the brand’s signature matrix LED headlights, massive gloss black 22-inch alloy wheels, enormous ventilated disc brakes and a sports exhaust with air suspension hiding below.
It’s a lot of kit for a mainstream SUV, and performance, which we’ll talk about later, is impressive (with a few caveats).
Toyota Kluger
If you’re reading this you’ve decided to find out more or possibly just want to know why I called out the price of the Kluger Grande Hybrid in the introduction.
Here’s why. The Kluger Grande Hybrid lists for $80,230. That’s before on-road costs like rego, stamp duty, compulsory third party insurance and dealer delivery charges.
That’s a lot of money and it’s because this Grande grade sits at the top of the range.
The entry-level Kluger GX Hybrid lists for $58,290. That’s $22K less than the Grande. You could buy an entire car for $22,000 - a Hyundai Venue, a Kia Stonic or a Suzuki Swift.
So, why does the Grande cost so much? I don’t know. The features don’t seem to justify the higher price.
All Klugers come standard with alloy wheels, LED headlights, proximity unlocking and push-button start, three-zone climate control, rear privacy glass plus wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. And all have seven seats.
The GXL adds built-in sat nav and a big 12.3-inch media display, heated and power-adjustable front seats, and an auto tailgate.
The Grande then adds leather seats (heated and ventilated up front), a wireless phone charger, head-up display, panoramic glass roof, kick-function tailgate, sunshades for the rear windows and an 11-speaker JBL sound system.
Really, the GXL Hybrid is the one to get and it lists for $67,810.
Under the bonnet
Volkswagen Touareg
The Touareg offers a performance-focused plug-in hybrid (PHEV) drivetrain. Usually this means a little turbo four-cylinder engine and an electric motor, but instead this big SUV offers a 100kW electric motor and a 3.0-litre V6 turbo-petrol engine which combine for a whomping “total system power” of 340kW/700Nm.
This allows a 0-100km/h sprint time of just 5.1 seconds. Power is sent to all four wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission and Torsen central differential. Up to 70 per cent of power can be sent to the front wheels, with up to 80 per cent of power going to the rear.
It is capable of driving at up to 135km/h under electric power alone, with the V6 kicking in beyond that speed.
It’s a rare set-up for two reasons. Firstly, it’s a plug in which maintains a large six-cylinder engine, and it runs even electric power through the transmission to all four wheels.
Some PHEV rivals, for example, use front combustion-drive only with no mechanical connection between the engine and the rear axle, which is driven purely electrically.
When it comes to towing specs, the Touareg offers solid official figures of 750kg for an unbraked trailer and 3500kg braked, although the maximum towball download is 220kg.
Toyota Kluger
If you're concerned a hybrid system will have trouble pulling a large SUV around, let me tell you, the Kluger is powerful and has no problems doing the work. This hybrid SUV could well have more grunt than any car you've ever driven.
Okay, so the Kluger Grande we tested was a petrol-electric hybrid variant which combines a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with three electric motors powered by a battery.
The engine’s output is 142kW and 242Nm while the motors make a combined 184kW. The front two electric motors make 134Nm and 270Nm of torque while the rear motor produces 121Nm.
The continuously variable transmission keeps the motion smooth and sends the drive to all four wheels, so yes, the hybrid is all-wheel drive.
Efficiency
Volkswagen Touareg
Like other plug-in hybrids, the official combined (urban/extra-urban) cycle fuel efficiency number for the Touareg R is an eyebrow-raisingly low figure which you know won’t be achievable in the real world, but is probably technically feasible in lab-style conditions.
In this case, it’s 3.3L/100km. When I picked up the car it had a low charge level, and the next day I was able to top it up to just 50 per cent because I don’t have a power point in my garage, and the achingly slow 3.6kW maximum AC charging speed is severely limiting if you need to rely on the public network, as the 17.9kWh battery is relatively large.
This should bring you to the obvious conclusion the Touareg R is not a good hybrid if you can’t charge at home, as you’ll never extract the full benefit of the electric set-up. Perhaps adding evidence to this is its official energy consumption which comes in at a painful 21.1kWh/100km.
As for hydrocarbons, in my week of driving (in which I tried to pick up charge wherever I could) I saw over 14L/100km. Makes sense for a heavy petrol V6 SUV. I’d say you’re likely to see a figure like this on a longer journey or if you drive it with enthusiasm as the R badge encourages. To add additional pain, it requires 98RON premium unleaded fuel.
With a realistic maximum pure-electric range of closer to 40km compared to the official WLTP-rated 51km (more on this in the driving section of the review), the R is also best for people whose daily commute is relatively short.
I can’t imagine, for example, the best benefit of this car will be extracted from someone who lives in the urban sprawl and commutes to the city every day with distances in excess of 50km for a return journey.
Additionally, the hybrid mode is very EV-heavy, draining the battery relatively quickly unless you manually put it in preservation mode.
For nerds who could be bothered, this mode is potentially a nifty feature allowing retention of some EV range at the end of a long freeway journey. But it takes a certain buyer to even be bothered with this.
Can you see why plug-less hybrids are the Australian new car buyer’s electrification configuration of choice?
Toyota Kluger
There are plenty of large SUVs with big V6 and V8 petrol engines out there with heaps of power but they use three times the amount of fuel the Kluger Grande Hybrid does.
I know this first hand. I’ve just tested a V6 powered seven seater SUV which used 20L/100km month in, month out.
I drove the Kluger Grande Hybrid on exactly the same roads every day, doing the same things like school drop offs, the supermarket run, swimming lessons and the work commute and it used 6.6L/100km. I measured this at the fuel pump.
So, 20L/100km for another V6 seven-seater SUV or 6.6L/100km for the Kluger Grande Hybrid? Which would you prefer?
Toyota’s official consumption figure for the Kluger Hybrid is 5.6L/100km (based on a combination of open and urban roads) but mine was mainly suburban and city driving when more fuel is used.
The Kluger Hybrid has a 65-litre fuel tank which means a range of approximately 1160km is technically possible.
The Kluger Grande Hybrid doesn't need plugging in to charge. The battery recharges on the go through regenerative braking.
So, unless you’re a driving enthusiast who loves high-performance or classic cars I’m not sure why you wouldn't choose the hybrid option when it comes to a large SUV. Or a small one.
Driving
Volkswagen Touareg
Here’s where things get a bit frustrating, and your experience will vary dramatically depending on how you use this car.
One thing we can get out of the way immediately is the Touareg is deeply technically impressive when you attack a few corners. Its immediate electric thrust is capable of propelling this large object forward with eye-widening speed, and the air suspension, wide grippy tyres, Torsen centre differential and tidy steering tune conspire to make it mind-bending to carve corners in.
It’s flat, stable, and far more accurate and agile than expected. The only hint as to the sheer physics of wrangling the Touareg around bends is the tyres screaming out in agony as the suspension and all-wheel drive system work their magic to keep it all under control.
Once the electric torque pushes you out from the corner, the deep satisfying thrum of the 3.0-litre petrol V6 quickly takes over as you lurch forward on the almost fluid-feeling suspension. It’s laugh-out-loud satisfying and certainly enough to capture passengers' attention.
In this sense, the R fulfils its mission of transforming the big Touareg into a handling and acceleration hero, but despite all the cleverness it doesn’t feel as sharp or lean as the Golf R, T-Roc R or Tiguan R.
There’s still a massive battery, as well as huge complexity and weight to deal with, no matter how technically fast it is. There’s always the unsettling feeling of this amount of weight moving around, and the occasional slight delay from the transmission as it figures out what’s going on between the electric motor and big engine.
Then there are the compromises. Normally, I’m a huge fan of how plush and luxurious the Touareg feels. It’s usually such a step above its station in the VW Group, occasionally even feeling preferable to its platform relations, but the R has some issues.
For a start, the enormous 22-inch wheels and low-profile tyres ruin the day-to-day ride quality, crashing over bumps and road imperfections, despite the fact there’s also air suspension supposedly providing a buffer between you and the tarmac.
Even in the more comfort-oriented drive settings you can hear and feel every bit the moment the wheels contact a pothole or bump. Clearly, it’s tuned more toward handling than maintaining the same luxury feel as the rest of the range.
The transmission is also occasionally hesitant, either from a standing start or when switching between electric thrust and the engine. This is much better when the battery is charged up from the reserve level, as there isn’t enough charge when driving around as a hybrid to push a big, heavy (and always) all-wheel drive very far.
But hybrid driving is also frustrating, for reasons mainly related to the software. With the battery charged, the 51km of claimed driving range feels a tad ambitious. I was able to charge it to about 50 per cent (the battery is huge, at 17.9kWh, and I could only pull about 3.5kW from a local AC charging unit) and scored about 20km of driving range.
It drains quickly, even in the hybrid driving mode, as it relies on the electric motor a lot for initial take-off.
This means unless you set the battery preserve mode manually in the hybrid settings screen, it will likely run the battery dry before you’re even able to get it somewhere where it can take full advantage of the extra electric thrust.
As an electric vehicle it’s also only alright. The short time I was able to spend in full EV mode proved the battery will drain faster than advertised, and the regen is so-so for assisting in braking.
Other more performance-focused PHEVs suffer the same issue. For example, I felt largely the same way about the much-maligned four-cylinder PHEV Mercedes-AMG C63.
While hybrids like this may be impressive when conditions are ideal, they’re ultimately frustrating to use in reality. It’s a shame, because I wanted to like it more but it doesn’t quite capture the same magic of its R-badged forebears and siblings.
Toyota Kluger
Smooth, easy, comfortable. Let’s be honest, the Kluger is the SUV version of the Toyota Camry and like that sedan it’s not trying to be a performance vehicle.
Besides, as a dad of small children, smooth, easy and comfortable is all I want these days. I’m still hurting all over after giving piggybacks down a hill all after yesterday. I think I’ve punctured a lung or something. So yeah, smooth, easy, comfortable please and dull sounds good to me right now.
The hybrid powertrain with the continuously variable transmission means motion is smooth with no jerky gear changes and at lower speeds the Kluger glides in silence under the power of just the motors.
If you've never driven an EV before a hybrid like this is the perfect place to start. There's no plugging in to charge yet at low speeds it operates just like an electric car, moving silently and smoothly through the world.
It's serene and makes traffic far less taxing with no gear changes or idling engine.
The steering is light and accurate, while the visibility is good making the Kluger easy to pilot and park.
The suspension is set up for a composed ride and this is helped more by the big, comfy seats.
The Kluger Grande Hybrid isn’t fast in a straight line, but it isn’t sluggish either. The combination of the torque from the electric motors and petrol engine make it feel just as quick off the mark as some V6-powered SUVs I’ve driven lately.
Safety
Volkswagen Touareg
All of the safety kit is standard and present on the Touareg R, including autobahn-speed auto emergency braking, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, front and rear cross-traffic alert, blind spot monitoring, road sign recognition, driver fatigue detection, a surround view camera and adaptive cruise control.
The best part is these systems not only work, but they’re well calibrated so they generally don’t interfere with the core driving experience.
Additionally, the Touareg has a suite of eight airbags and maintains a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating achieved in 2018.
Toyota Kluger
The Kluger was given the maximum five-star ANCAP rating when it was tested in 2021 and all grades through the range come with the same high level of safety tech.
So, like all the other grades the Grande has AEB with pedestrian and cyclist detection, there’s blind-spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, plus front and rear parking sensors.
The rear view camera’s view is wide and the resolution is excellent - vital for reversing out of driveways.
Child seats can be fitted only in the second row with three top tether anchor points and two ISOFIX mounts.
You should also know that airbags don't fully cover the third row occupants in the Kluger.
Ownership
Volkswagen Touareg
The standard five year, unlimited kilometre warranty features with one year of complimentary roadside assistance provided (renewed for another year with each service at an authorised dealer).
Servicing is required once every 12 months or 15,000km and the most affordable way to do it is with pre-packaged service plans bundled in with purchase. These come in at $3400 for five years (a saving of $668 over the a-la-carte program) or $2050 for the three year plan (a saving of $222).
Even in its most affordable form this makes servicing average $680 a year which is a far cry from most affordable brands, but it could be worse considering the complexity of the powertrain.
Toyota Kluger
The Kluger Grande Hybrid is covered by Toyota’s five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty. The hybrid battery is covered by an eight-year/160,000km warranty.
Servicing is needed annually or every 15,000km and is capped at $265 per service for the first five years.