But, there is a better solution than remote start on the Touareg (and maybe on the Phaeton). It is much more common in Europe. It is a remote heater from Webasto called BlueHeat in the USA.
http://www.techwebasto.com/ima...1.swf
The Touareg parts list shows the heater. The V10 Touareg even has the Webasto sticker on the door. But I haven't found out if I have it in my car or how to activate it.

TOUAREG HOW TO INFO: MP3, XM, CELL or VIDEO, KEYLESS START, PADDLE SHIFT.

In Europe, you can order a 'stand-alone heater' in all VW products except the Lupo and Polo. This is a small gas or diesel powered device that heats the coolant up, circulates it, and warms the cabin using the fan in the heater plenum. It uses about half a liter of fuel an hour, which is much less than an idling engine does. It is the European approach to 'remote start' - rather than starting the whole engine, you just start the pre-heater. You can start it either by RF control (a key fob), by setting a timer using the multifunction display in the car, or by Telematics - phone your car, press a few buttons on the touch-tone phone, and you program in the start time for that cycle.

It is not offered in North America out of fear that drivers would turn it on while the car is in an indoor garage, thus creating a great risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. It is very popular in Northern Europe (Scandinavia).

It is an expensive refit, about USD $2,000 to do. A friend of mine retrofitted one to his North American Jetta. It costs about USD $1,200 if you order it as a factory option. The same product is used on all the different VW models, although I suspect there might be different output levels, to suit a 1.6 petrol engine vs. a 6.0 W12, or a 1.9 TDI vs. a V10.

Here's some photos of it:

Webasto Pre-Heater

Modified by PanEuropean at 9:32 PM 6-18-2005

Have you considered visiting a very large manufacturer of 'green' agricultural equipment in your town and seeing if they have an off the shelf fix for you?

Michael

These same heaters can also be used to supplement heat produced by the engine during cold weather, when the engine is idling but not generating enough heat to keep the cabin warm. In such cases the heater kicks in automatically to warm the coolant that is sent to the heat exchanger in the cabin.

It is possible (I am really guessing here) that VW equips the North American product with the high end "Thermo Top C" heater, which has the capability of being both an auxiliary source of warm coolant when the engine is idling and also a stand-alone parking heater, but only enables the 'auxiliary heat with engine running' function when the vehicle is shipped to the North American market. Their liability concern would probably be that some fool would enable the stand-heating (pre-heating with engine off) function when the truck is parked in a garage, and thus asphyxiate everyone.

Here are a few links to get you started:

Webasto Thermo-Top Heaters - General Description

Webasto Parking Heaters - Detailed Description

You might want to try re-coding your truck with a scan tool to indicate that parking stand-heating ('Standheizungen', in German) is installed, and then see if the additional control for it shows up on the supplementary screens for climate control on your multi-function control unit. I know that on the Phaeton, if I recode the vehicle to indicate that Standheizungen is installed, I get an additional control for it on the same page as I find residual heat and automatic recirculation. Because my Phaeton does not have Standheizungen, the control doesn't do anything, but it does appear.

AFIK the control module for the Standheizungen unit, and the control module that enables you to operate the Standheizungen from the MFI are two different modules. If you have a diagnostic scan tool, try polling address 18 or address 7E and seeing if you get a response. These are the addresses for the auxiliary heating module. Enabling control of this module via the multi-function display would probably be done through address 09 or 46.

Michael

Modified by PanEuropean at 5:15 PM 11-14-2004

The parking heater can also be turned on using a remote control similar to the key fob - this works from quite a distance away, so it is possible to be in a restaurant, to press the button when you are finishing your coffee, and to go out and find a nice warm car waiting for you about 20 minutes later.

Michael

Control Page (German Language)

Same Control Page (English Language)

Sub-menu for programming weekly operation

I wonder if it is feasible with the very complex electrical system the car has. If anyone has accomplished this, can you give details as to the manufacturer, etc. Thanks