National Geographic Adventure named the Volkswagen Touareg 2 as a winner of its Best of Adventure Gear Award at yesterday's Adventurer of the Year Celebration at National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Touareg 2 was honored in the Desert category and was praised for its ability to navigate side slopes and its computer-controlled descent feature that doesn't require the driver to manually brake while the feature is in use.
"We're immensely proud that the Touareg 2 has received this accolade from National Geographic Adventure," said Clark Campbell, Volkswagen of America Motorsport Manager. "Volkswagen's commitment to making safe and well-engineered vehicles at an affordable operating cost for off road and on road adventurers is reflected in the Touareg 2's performance. National Geographic Adventure features some of the most extreme travel and sporting events in the world. It's exciting that the judging panel feels the Touareg 2 will enable their readers to pursue their extreme adventures."
National Geographic's Adventurer of the Year Celebration is an annual event that honors those in the world of adventure whose extraordinary achievements have expanded our sense of what is humanly possible, and also salutes the best new products on the market that have made adventure sports safer and more fulfilling. Winners are selected by National Geographic Adventure's editors and their Retail Advisory Board.
"The roughest path to the trailhead is in the desert, and no stock vehicle is better engineered for loose and broken tracks than the Volkswagen Touareg 2," said Steve Casimiro, National Geographic Adventure's West Coast Editor.
National Geographic Adventure has established an advisory board of 44 of the leading outdoor retailers in the United States to assist the publication with choosing honorees. The advisory board contributed in two ways: by weighing in on products that in its expert opinion are innovative and by reporting on what products consumers are particularly excited about in the marketplace.
Volkswagen's Touareg 2 will be honored with the other winners in the December/January issue of National Geographic Adventure, which hits newsstands on Nov. 27. NGA's 2007 Best of Adventure issue was inspired by the larger-than-life world of adventure lifestyles through two perspectives: a review of the year's best achievements in exploration, conservation, and humanitarian aid; and equipment that aims to inspire readers to achieve greatness. This issue also features a leading-edge guide to the state of adventure that celebrates the best gear, outdoor sports trends, and incredible acts of 2007.
The Touareg 2 builds on the legacy of the original Touareg, as a stand-out off-road vehicle that delivers the comfort of a luxury sedan and the dynamic driving experience of a sports car. After its introduction in 2003, the Touareg quickly garnered accolades ranging from "4x4 of the Year" to "Best SUV." Volkswagen continues to demonstrate the off-road prowess of the Touareg 2 and showcase its available diesel technology with its recent success at the Tecate SCORE Baja 500, with more excitement to come at the 2008 Dakar Rally.
The next-generation Touareg 2 promises to offer even more power, safety, comfort, and versatile on- or off-road ability. The new Touareg 2 is instantly recognizable with its new stylized front grille, a redesigned front bumper, new side mirrors with improved airflow, sleek, new organically shaped headlamp housings, LED lighting, a new roof edge spoiler, an upgraded color palate, and all new alloy wheels.
Source: Volkswagen of America, Inc.