THE PERFECT ‘KOMBI’ NATION

VOLKSWAGEN VIRTUALLY INVENTED THE VAN SECTOR, AT THE VERY LEAST THEY MADE IT SUCCESSFUL AND CREATED A WHOLE CULTURE AROUND THE KOMBI, STARTING WITH THE T1 BACK IN THE EARLY 1950S. WHILE OTHER VEHICLE MAKERS HAVE TRIED TO EMULATE THE CONCEPT NONE HAVE BEEN AS SUCCESSFUL AS VOLKSWAGEN HAS. NOW 70 ODD YEARS ON THE LATEST ‘KOMBI’ OR TRANSPORTER RANGE HAS HIT. WE TOOK THREE OF THE RANGE FOR ROAD TESTS IN A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF THE NEW ‘KOMBIS’.

Volkswagen is the absolute master at building vans. The German auto giant revolutionised the design of goods and people carrying vans and six generations on, the VW badge still rules supreme in this genre of automobiles.

Volkswagen significantly upgraded the Transporter T6, which it’s dubbed the ‘6.1’ generation, with an array of updated equipment and new variants, including the return of a factory built camper model.

It is the most significant upgrade for the Transporter range since the launch of the T5 back in the early 2000s with features such as performance and steering advances, an entirely new dash and a plethora of safety upgrades.

The new range has a total of 49 different variants, available in a choice of short or long wheelbase variants, high or low roof, dual cab or single cab light trucks. There is a choice of three 2.0 litre turbo diesel engine options, ranging from 81kW to 146 kW depending on model, and either a five or six-speed manual and VW’s own seven-speed DSG auto, again depending on model and engine choice. Drive is either by standard front drive or 4Motion all-wheel drive on various models.

The Transporter ‘6.1’ receives an array of added standard safety and convenience technology as standard, including Front Assist with City Emergency Brake (CEB), Crosswind Assist, Side Assist including blind spot monitoring and Rear Traffic Alert, Multi-collision brake and, in some models, a fantastic new digital cockpit akin to what the aviation industry calls a ‘glass cockpit’.

The new range also gets an interface with both Apple Carplay and Android Auto which adds a higher degree of convenience and puts it on a par with other new passenger and commercials.

In the past few weeks, we have had the chance to slip behind the wheel of a number of the new Transport models including the latest cab chassis trayback ‘ute’, the ritzy Multivan Cruise and the Plane Jain Transporter van.

First up we slipped into the cab chassis dual cab tray back which was a revelation. Sure, it was a workhorse and is equipped with an alloy trayback but its performance on wet and slippery roads during Sydney’s recent ‘Big Wet’ was astounding. This was helped by the fact that it came equipped with the VW 4 Motion on demand 4-wheel drive system, which is also capable of being locked into 4WD if you happen to need to go seriously off road.

The dual cab was utilitarian inside with hard wearing vinyl flooring but the new dash and overall strong equipment levels made it very easy to love, even at a price of $60,490 plus on roads, the 4 Motion dual cab with the factory tray and seven speed DSG is well priced and even more versatile than the one tonne Japanese utes we all seem to love. You can lop $3000 off without the 4 Motion, but why would you.

There is also a single cab tray back version which is $2000 cheaper than its dual cab counterparts.

During our time with the dual cab, we had the need to head south from Sydney to Mittagong to pick up a bulky item. Unfortunately, we found ourselves in a bumper-to-bumper traffic jam after an earlier crash on the Hume Freeway. These can obviously be a chore, but even with the base level audio system and sitting up high in the Transporter cab, it was easy to

cope with the long delay. Once at our pickup point, we easily loaded and tied down the awkward cargo on the timber lined floor of the aluminium drop side tray. The practicality of the drop side tray load area was clearly apparent and made life easy and we were soon back on the freeway and making up time after the traffic jam.

The performance on the freeway was exceptional. It easily and comfortably sat on the 110km/h limit on cruise control, with low noise levels and with absolute comfort and quiet. The seats provided plenty of support and adjustment

We also ventured up some local dirt roads to try out the off-road capability and despite some wet and slippery conditions this proved even more impressive. With good ground clearance and very good weight balance, the T6.1 tray back ambled over the rough going with enormous confidence. It was clear to us that the 4Motion Transporter tray back dual cab could be a handy machine when heading off road on a longer trip.

At the end of the first week, we were sorry to have to give up the dual cab tray back Transporter, even though we were swapping into a very swish luxury people mover Transporter, the Multivan Cruise.

The Cruise is a swish piece of kit with strong levels of luxury and comfort and excellent on road dynamics.

The Multivan TDI340 Cruise Edition SWB to give it its full title, is powered by the two-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel with 340Nm of torque, which I why it’s called a TDi 340. It boasts 110kW of power and is mated to a seven-speed twin clutch automatic and drives through he front wheels.

It rides on very attractive 18-inch alloy wheels and our test car featured a striking two-tone silver over burgundy paint scheme that gave it a real visual presence on the street and in the car park.

Inside the Multivan Cruise is a haven of quiet, unfussed people moving comfort. The VW designers have done a great job with the new dash which includes a digital display in front of the driver, an audio system with a big easy to read and use touch screen that interfaces with Apple Car and Android Auto and a built-in reversing camera, while it is linked to a six-speaker output for great sound on the move.

It also comes with multi-zone climate control air conditioning, electric sliding side doors, a powered tailgate, and sat nav which is also run through the big AV touchscreen display.

We loved the auto LED headlights, which lit the road ahead with a strong, even white light that seems to illuminate every corner of even the darkest roads.

There are other features including park assist which includes automated steering for those that would prefer the car to handle the tight parking jobs, while there are also auto wipers, power front windows and a bunch of other items we will touch on later.

Seating wise the Multivan is a true seven-seater and handles that task with ease, thanks to three rows of comfortable seats. The two buckets up front for the driver and front passenger, come with fold down armrests and good support, while the middle row boasts two bucket seats that can be slid fore and aft on VW’s very good in floor rail system. The middle row can also be swivelled 180 deg, so the middle row passengers can sit facing those sitting on the rear bench seat.

That rear row can slide froward to give more luggage capacity, or removed altogether for even more versatility, and they can be folded flat to provide an impromptu bed.

The Cruise Edition comes with 18-inch alloys.

The interior really reflects quality and comfort and one would expect that with the price VW asks for this luxury people mover, although it is not the top-of-the-line model, which attains another level again.

Few commercial vans scrub up this well.

Access to the passenger area on the Multivan is via two electrically operated sliding doors on both sides of the van, making for very easy access for all of the rear passengers. These can be opened and closed via buttons on the remote key, which is a great convenience feature.

There is a plethora of storage spaces throughout the Multivan as well as other convenience items throughout the passenger area including plenty of cup holders and USB-C ports for keeping things charged on the go.

Another nice touch that would be appreciated by families with young kids or even paying passengers if this was being used as a shuttle or luxury limo, are the pull up blinds that give both more privacy and a bit more shade on hot sunny days.

Room is something that there is no shortage of in the Multivan and in fact if you slide both of the two rear rows of seats out it gives you a huge amount of cargo space, roughly about 2.5 metres long by about 1.6 metre wide, which is also 1.3 metres high. You can also remove second row seats, slide the rear row forward, giving five seats and enough luggage space for that mob to holiday on for four or five weeks.

If you hoof the seats out, the cargo area is 2.532 metres by 1.627m.

The Mutivan has a payload of around 814 kg, given it tips the scales at 2266kg kerb weight and lists a 3080kg GVM. With a family of five on board with a weight of say 400kg between them, that still gives more than 400kg of luggage capacity. Towing weight is not bad with a maximum of 2500kg with a braked trailer and 750kg unbraked.

But what is it like to drive? Well like the previously mentioned dual cab tray back, this is a genuinely fun machine to drive despite its large dimensions and the fact that it is based on a goods carrying van.

The Mutivan may be front drive and lack the traction of the 4 Motion, but it is incredibly well mannered and fun to heft into corners and power through. The front drive does have its limitations and you can chirp the wheels under hard acceleration so it has its limits, but let’s get some reality back, this is not a hot hatch GTi, it’s a seven-seater van and when you frame it around that there are few better in terms of performance and ride quality.

None of this comes cheap and at $73,990 list plus on roads the Multivan Cruise is at the upper end of the seven-seater van market. However, Volkswagen invented this sector and is still the class leader on just about every criterion you can think of.

It’s great to drive, fun, safe efficient with fuel economy of around 8lt/100km which is exceptional. About the only thing we would order is the 4Motion all-wheel drive system to give the added versatility and traction, but that is a personal preference.

Our final Transporter test was the plain jane Transporter van with a six-speed manual, the TDI340, which is priced from

$41,990 plus on roads. There is also a five-speed manual version in the SWB van with the 250Nm TDI250 motor which is the actual entry level model to the range at $38,990, still more expensive than many of its Japanese and Asian counterparts but the VW is head and shoulders above all of those competitors.

Anyway, our week in a manual Transporter in Sydney’s traffic was no chore even with a gearstick we had to shift ourselves. The manual transmission shifts easily with a light clutch that offered plenty of feel and is not fatiguing even in a traffic jam. Clearly an auto, particularly Volksy’s terrific seven-speed DSG would be the preference, but it is an extra $3000 and for some it offers advantage, but if budget and environment favours the manual it is still a strong choice.

The stick shift is mounted on a little podium at the bottom edge of the dash, is short and quick and doesn’t get in the way of movement around the cab leaving the floor free for the driver to walk straight through between the seats into the rear load area.

The load area has a painted steel floor, which if we owned it would get some hardwearing rubber mats to protect from scratching and eventual corrosion as well as reducing slide around issues and a reduction in noise. The sides of the load area gets painted plyboard panelling on the bottom half, which is reasonable but like all vans the drumming and echoing that comes from an also feature built in tie down points and a standard left hand sliding door and rear lift up door. A right-hand sliding door is optional as is rear barn or wing doors. The van gets plain black hardwearing vinyl finish bumpers which work van buyers prefer because they don’t show up scratches and bumps like painted ones do.

The vans offer a payload ranging from 951kg in the entry level TDI250 manual up to 1220kg for the TDI340 SWB six speed manual as we tested, but generally they are around the one-tonne mark across the van range depending on spec, give or take a few kilograms here or there.

With the cab chassis trayback variants, the payload ranges from 853kg for the single cab TDI450 up to 1056kg for the dual cab TDI450, and again with small variations around those weights depending on exact spec. All models have a towing capacity of 2.5tonnes for braked trailers and 750kg for unbraked trailers.

We enjoyed our week in the working van version of the Transporter 6.1 and the manual shift gave it a sporty feel and a fun experience behind the wheel.

Overall, the Transporter 6.1 range really plugs just about every niche in the light van market and we would happily have one on our fleet.

We didn’t get the chance to sample the new California Beach ‘adventure van’, the modern day take on the Kombi camper, but we look forward to sampling that near a beach somewhere on a camping trip at some point in the future.

VW’s quoted average fuel average consumption figures run from as low as 6.1litres/100km for the entry level TDI250 up to around 8.4litre/100km for the more powerful and heavier variants, which are pretty impressive fuel numbers, if they can be matched in real world conditions.

All in all the new VW Transporter 6.1 range offers. great engineering, drive, comfort and efficiency and we would own one in a heart beat.