Lifted Touareg – Don’t Sweat the Technik

Follow your natural energy. You owe that to yourself. A lot of times, and especially true in car culture, we have a tendency to pigeon-hole ourselves. We pledge allegiance to certain subculture tribes (domestic, JDM, Euro, off-road drift, track, etc), and we tend to keep within those fences. But – don’t put boundaries on yourself. Be like a dog that sniffs everything lol… and keep your tail wagging. And if you feel a natural energy pulling you a certain direction – follow it man. And if that pull ends up being towards a lifted Touareg… well cool. Take note: Restraining that natural energy is a surefire path to burnout and/or frustration.

As true car & life enthusiasts, there are no boundaries here…

You think your forefather hot-rodders, racers, & greasers cared about conformity? No sir… they broke rules; they went outside the boundaries. You owe it to yourself to explore different colorful sides of car culture… they’re all worth it. And – if your concern is losing your roots/identity… or losing your tribe… that’s not gonna happen man. Your roots will only be strengthened with more perspective, experience, & understanding. 

 

This is Morgan Wilson’s lifted Touareg…

Morgan runs Black Forest Technik. He’s always been low & Euro. Lowered is the lifestyle. But – the crazy thought of building an off-roader that could mash through stuff… was a breath of fresh air to Morgan. And he inhaled it. Furthermore – the thought of incorporating his veedubber roots made it even more enticing.  

So he found a Touareg on the cheap…

At first, Morgan was shopping Cayennes. Porsche Cayennes are the more common choice within this uncommon niche. But then this T1 Volkswagen Touareg came his way. Basically – it’s the same thing as a Cayenne, with a Volkswagen badge. And in some ways, that made it even better. V8, full-time AWD, low-range transfer case, center-locking diff, and some had locking rear. This example was a solid body with pretty low mileage, but it needed some of that ‘scheduled’ (aka: expensive) engine maintenance. For Morgan however, that wasn’t a deal-breaker. So he scooped the Touareg for just $1,500. Keep in mind, this thing sold for $67,000 back in 2006. 

 

Morgan mounted some dry used 33s on the stock wheels for awhile…

And he quickly fell in love with the vibe of the Euro V8 off-roader. As someone who comes from a life of low, fragility, & finesse, having something that was both rugged, capable, and 2000s upper-class… was a whole new obsession. Eventually, Mike Ngo from Eurowise did him a deal on a set of Rotiforms that a customer had backed-out on (STLs in 18×9 +20). He matched ‘em with some new 33-inch Kenda Klever R/Ts. And that kind of got the dominos re-falling… but not too much to ruin it. 

This Touareg runs a Eurowise 3″ lift kit…

Along with a Eurowise 1″ subframe drop. It also has a JXP driveshaft carrier support (OEMs in Cayennes & Touregs are notorious for failing). On the exterior, the Touareg sports a subtle Black Forest Technik livery, with a Eurowise spare tire carrier & Eurowise V1 roof rack. The Touareg’s chrome trim went black. And the rear bumper has been cut. Inside, it’s got a Black Forest Industries GS2 shift knob and an OEM T1 cargo tub. And that’s about it. 

 

Morgan’s lifted  Touareg hits a sweet spot…

It’s a lot of fun off-road. There’s just something about taking a premium euro SUV, and making it gnarly. Everyone on the trails wants to know: 1) What is it? 2) Why does it sound so mean!? And 3) How is it doing that?! Somehow, the Touareg is rounded & boxy at the same time. It looks ‘totally Euro’ (back when Euro had a distinct look lol). And the key factor here… the icing on the cake is: It’s not overbuilt. In the modern world of ‘oversized everything’, it’s easy to make a rig that somehow numbs-out the trails, and is simultaneously a bad daily too. But like I said, this Touareg stays nestled in the sweet spot where amusement meets usability & versatility. Morgan can still cruise it at interstate speeds, and drive it to work everyday without stressing/exhausting himself. In an age of Instagram First builds, there’s something to be said for that. Although keep in mind – Morgan runs a shop that services quirky/complex European platforms. It’s what they do. So if you don’t have that unique Euro skillset, you might consider a Toyota/Jeep.. unless you’re ready to nut up lol. 

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