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20/08/2011
REVIEW by MURRAY HUBBARD
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Volkswagen Australia has added its all-wheel drive 4Motion system to its options list for its Caddy range. The choice is offered in both the compact VW Maxi van and VW Life people mover. It will be combined with a six-speed DSG self-shifting manual transmission.
VW is aiming the all-wheel drive option at buyers who need a van or people mover because they either carry supplies or people from the blacktop onto roads that are gravel or snow covered. It’s very much a niche market, in particular there were no compact ‘bread’ vans that offered AWD. “This vehicle offers even greater active safety and all-round capabilities,” said VW’s commercial vehicles director, Philip Clark.
Volkswagen invited us to Albury for a drive to Falls Creek where we were intended to test the AWD system on the snow-covered climb to the ski resort. Unfortunately the night before we arrived the powder snow that had covered the road just hours earlier was washed away by rain.
The Caddy Maxi 4MOTION comes in two variants, a long-wheelbase van or a seven-seat people mover, tagged as Caddy Maxi Life. Both have dual sliding side doors.
The Caddy has always been impressively car-like in handling and the 4Motion is no different. As we did not get the opportunity to try out gravel or snow-covered roads the safety benefits of AWD were never on show. Depending on the road conditions the 4Motion system directs the majority of torque to the front or back. On the highway the front wheels take 96 per cent of torque.
It is also able to lock a wheel that has lost traction and send that torque to a wheel that has grip. As such the Caddy 4Motion should find a niche market with buyers who either need a van with some AWB ability or a people mover that can go off-road or on snow-covered mountain roads where the AWD will provide some extra grip and improved safety.
Both Volkswagens are powered by a 2.0-litre TDI engine that has 103 kW of power and 320 Nm of torque, and both feature the six-speed DSG gearbox. VW is the only company in this segment to offer a dual-clutch transmission. They also have hill start assist as standard, something that’s becoming common on automatics - where it doesn’t make a lot of sense. Surely this technology that is more important in manual gearshift vehicles?
Fuel consumption in the turbo-diesel VW van is cited at 6.7 litres per 100 kilometres, it increases marginally to 6.8 L/100 km in the Life.
Although there are front and side thorax airbags for front seat passengers the Volkswagen Maxi Life seven-seat people mover does not offer side curtain airbags for side impact protection of the second and third row passengers.
However, it does have the latest generation stability control plus daytime running lights as standard and we often say it’s much better to avoid a crash than have one and survive it.
While the Volkswagen Maxi Life is a people mover it is also capable of being converted to a van capable of carrying 3880 litres of cargo. The dual rear seat comes out as do the second row 60/40 split seats. We did not get the opportunity to do this during the press launch of the vehicle, but VW assure us it is a task that takes just a few minutes. We will try it later when we have one to review for a week.
We did get to try the rearmost row of seats that VW has made easily accessible by engineering the second row to tumble forward giving a wide entry/exit, even for adults. The Life also has a good size cargo area behind the third row of seats.
Both Van and Life have similar dimensions although the Life sits 50 mm higher at 1886 mm to allow for the extra clutch. There are also changes to the suspension, shock absorbers and the exhaust has rerouted to allow for the fitment of a rear differential.
The complete Volkswagen Caddy Maxi range, with prices (excluding government and dealer charges) is:
Caddy Maxi Van TDI320 (2WD): $32,990
Caddy Maxi Van 4Motion TDI 320: $36,490
Caddy Maxi Life TDI320 (2WD): $41,990
Caddy Maxi Life 4Motion TDI 320: $45,490
SPECIFICATIONS (Volkswagen Caddy Maxi 4Motion 2.0-litre diesel van)
ENGINE
Capacity: 1.968 litres
Configuration: Four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4876 mm
Wheelbase: 3006 mm
Width: 1794 mm
Height: 1886 mm (Van), 1893 mm (Life)
Load Area Length: 2250 mm
Load Area Width: 1552 mm
Load Area Width at wheelarches: 1172 mm
Load Area Maximum Height: 1262 mm
Turning Circle: 12.2 metres
Kerb Mass: 1649 kg (Van), 1790 (Life)
Fuel Tank Capacity: 70 litres
Towing Ability: 1500 kg (with brakes trailer)
Load Volume: 3880 litres
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Rear
Manual Transmission: Not offered
Automatic Transmission: Six-speed DSG
Final Drive Ratio: Not supplied |
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