Long-Term Test Update: 2004 Volkswagen Touareg V8

Technical Director Frank Markus, while visiting our Los Angeles office, came out to an airless tire one morning just before catching a flight back to Detroit. With no time to spare and no place open for a correct repair, he had it plugged. But the quickie repair resulted in a slow leak that left us with a glowing tire-pressure sensor warning. With the tires nearly worn out (at 14,000 miles) and the above noted damage, we made a call to The Tire Rack for a new set (at $888.20) of OE replacements and made a trip to a local tire shop for mounting and balancing ($80). A few days later, the sensor warning light came back on. After checking pressures, it was discovered that none of the tires was properly inflated, hence the reason for the light. After pumping them up to the recommended pressures, we were back underway with no additional warnings. The Touareg has proven solid and an often-requested weekend ride.