Safe new Volkswagen T6 range due November

Volkswagen will release its new T6 generation of commercial vehicles and people movers in Australia around November, and we've driven it during its global launch in Sweden last week.

Based heavily on the now 11-year old T5 generation, the new series of Transporter, Caravelle and Multivan variants will bring a selection of Euro 6-compliant engines, revised styling and new driver assist features to keep Volkswagen competitive in the local commercial vehicle scene.

For the moment, we're told by Kurt McGuiness, Volkswagen Australia's Public Relations Manager, that the importer is yet to finalise local specification and pricing. But there is a possibility the T6 model will come down in price, as it has in Germany, despite the way the Australian currency is headed.

While not at liberty to reveal much about the T6 range's price and specification, McGuiness did hint that the Generation Six cosmetic pack will be promoted in Australia as a single Multivan variant for our "small market". McGuiness also indicated that the long-wheelbase commercial variants will be offered in Australia too.

It looks like a solid prospect the T6 range in Australia will be exclusively diesel, but in numerous performance flavours. We may not see all the different outputs of diesel engine available around the world, but the 150kW bi-turbo 2.0-litre is practically a certainty – particularly for the Multivan. At the other end of the scale, the 75kW Bluemotion engine appears to offer enough real-world performance to be a starter for courier companies in Australia.

Manual transmission will be available as an alternative to the seven-speed DSG (dual-clutch) that will likely be the default transmission across most of the range. McGuiness didn't specifically mention this, but there is a chance we will see a five-speed manual that is the sole preserve of the very frugal Bluemotion variant. Count on the six-speed being the principal choice of manual transmission however.

In brief, the T6 range comprises panel van, Kombi (window van) and pick-up commercial variants, and the nine-seat Caravelle and high-spec seven-seat Multivan people movers.

New driver assist technology being offered includes Front Assist, City Emergency Braking (AEB), Automatic Post Collision Braking, Adaptive Cruise Control, Light Assist, Driver Alert System, Rear Assist, Hill Descent Assist and Trailer Stabilisation. In Germany the Front Assist system is standard for the Multivan Business, but is an extra-charge option for the lower-spec Multivan, Caravelle and Transporter variants. Adaptive Cruise Control will bring the vehicle to a complete halt and City Emergency Braking will automatically handle emergency stops at speeds below 30km/h.

The new diesel engine family – EA288 Nutz – is offered in 2.0-litre displacement, but in varying states of tune. Peak power ranges from 62kW (220Nm) up to 150kW for the range-capping bi-turbo engine that develops 450Nm. Other engine variants include the 75kW Bluemotion engine (producing 250Nm) already mentioned and a 110kW engine that's rated at 340Nm. All diesels come with auto-stop to save fuel.

Volkswagen is offering petrol engines in the range too, but these are effectively ruled out for our market. Like the diesels, the petrol powerplants displace 2.0 litres and develop different peak power outputs of 110kW or 150kW.

The T6 van measures just over 5 metres in SWB form (on a wheelbase measuring 3.0m) or 5406mm in length for the LWB van on a 3400mm wheelbase. Volkswagen states that the SWB van measures a 4.3m² area and can accommodate 5.8m³ or 6.7m³ by volume, depending on the roof height. Measuring 5.0m² in the load compartment, the LWB van is rated at 6.7 or 7.8m³, depending on roof height. At the highest level of roof option, the LWB van can take as much as 9.3m³. Nominal GVM, based on German specifications, starts from 2.8 tonnes and the towing capacity is 2.5 tonnes braked.

A new feature, DCC, is a system that electronically adjusts damper settings on the fly. Three modes are available: comfort, normal and sport. Somewhat confusingly, DCC stands for Dynamic Cruise Control.

Volkswagen is rolling out new infotainment systems across the T6 range. The new infotainment screen employs a proximity system that displays menu options with prompting by placing a finger close to the screen where the menu option should display.

Finally, available from launch is the Generation Six package, which is a retro-look dress-up kit comprising two-tone colour scheme, 18-inch alloy wheels in a 'Disc' design, tinted windows, LED headlights and rear lights, fog lights with cornering light and a 'chrome package'.