Second generation Volkswagen Touareg shoppers will get an impressive menu of engine choices for 2011. ?A standard 280-hp, 3.6-liter, V-6 FSI? gasoline engine starts the selection process, but the Touareg is also available in a pair of ?green? choices: hybrid or diesel.? Each of the engine choice comes with a with Volkswagens new eight-speed automatic transmission ? a first for an SUV.

The hybrid model has a 333-hp, 3.0-liter supercharged, direct injection V-6 gasoline engine paired with an electric motor that reduces fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by about 40 percent.??A special clutch can disengage the transmission from the engine when the engine is not powering the Touareg, allowing it to coast forward, emission free, to further aid in fuel savings. The electric motor can also recover kinetic energy during braking to help recharge the nickel metal-hydride battery pack. Combined, the V-6 engine and electric motor total 375 horsepower and 428 lbs.-ft. of torque, has a full towing capacity of up to 7,700 pounds and gets approximately 21 mpg city and 25 mpg highway.

Also available is Volkswagen’s 3.0-liter, V-6 TDI? Clean Diesel engine, which offers improved fuel economy, reduced emissions, and greater power versus a similarly sized gasoline engine.

Matching the new Touareg’s refinements under the hood is a fully-revised exterior that embraces the brand’s new face and styling cues, created by Volkswagen’s chief of design, Walter de’Silva.