2005 Volkswagen Touran SE review from UK and Ireland

Front passenger door occasionally doesn't unlock when it should. This is a fault I've read about in other 04 Tourans, but it doesn't bother me that much; I just press the unlock key one more time and it unlocks.

This is a serious family car. I have the 7 seater version and find it extremely versatile and good to own in almost every respect so far.

Even with the rearmost seats in use, there is still a bit of boot room to put a few things. However, these part time seats are not as easily accessible as they could be as you have to pull one whole Row 2 seat forward before anyone can get into them. If you have a Group 1 car seat, or booster seat in position, you'd have to move those too before the rear seats could be accessed (or have your passenger climb over as my 12 year old nephew did once). The plastic around these seats gets marked and dirty when in use as a boot so that's a bit annoying. The 3rd row rearmost seats aren't covered by their own airbags.

Having said the above, the 5 star NCAP crash protection rating is because of the number of airbags everywhere else, so I see it as a very safe car.

The number of storage bins and drawers are so many that I didn't discover two of them until two months after purchase! The overhead ones on the ceiling of the car seem pretty useless though unless you own a lot of pairs of glasses: every one of them has a 'support' inside just as a glasses case does. The glove compartment is air conditioned which is handy.

The boot is extremely capacious in the 7 seater and can hold two children's bikes easily (my kids are 7 and 5), as well as a buggy and scooter. I did just about get one adult bike inside the cabin by removing the middle seat completely, but it wasn't that easy and the handlebars marked the car's ceiling.

The whole car is high up and the doors open nice and wide, making access easy. The seats are comfortable and the whole car has a feeling of solidity and security. The cabin lights light up the whole car really well when required and the funky red and blue lights of the dash and all relevant equipment are clear as well as entertaining to look at. The radio display, too, is clear and easy to use and the sound is very good quality.

Gearbox is firm, but clutch feels quite heavy. Driving position very good indeed and the car drives sportily enough to go fast when you want it to without too much roll (though I don't throw it around). Steering feels precise and reassuringly responsive. Sixth gear on a motorway is fantastic, but engine can be noisy at most speeds, exacerbated by a bit too much tyre noise on many surfaces. Maybe just the diesel engine? Haven't owned the car long enough to comment on service or oil matters.