Volkswagen Caravelle 2004 Review

What we liked
>> Spacious and flexible interior
>> High level of standard equipment
>> Quiet highway cruising

Not so much
>> Too much body roll
>> Jiggly ride on rough roads
>> Some fit and finish not up to std

OVERVIEW
For Volkswagen, the new T5 range –- which numbers 30 different variants of vans, cab chassis and people movers -– has been about 10 years coming, so you would expect some big upgrades.

Visually, there's no dramatic change of shape but then again, there isn't too much you can do with a large box-like van whose big claim-to-fame is carrying capacity, whether it be people or goods.

The T5 however, does feature an all-new body that is longer, wider, higher and sits on a longer wheelbase than its predecessor. But it is under the skin that the biggest improvements have been made with new engines, transmissions and front suspension. Engine choices run to four, with V6 and four-cylinder petrol and four and five-cylinder turbo diesel powerplants, that all drive the front wheels through five-speed manual gearbox or six-speed manual or automatic transmissions.

Body choices are enormous, ranging from short and long-wheelbase vans and people movers with low, mid and high roof options, to single and dual-cab chassis. For our first taste of the new T5, we concentrated on the people movers.

FEATURES
In what is a very small segment of the market, VW offers the widest range of people carriers with no fewer than five different trim/seating options. At the time of writing, VW had yet to release prices but the range is expected to cost between about $40,000 and $65,0000.

At the entry level is the Kombi, which shares its exterior style with the Transporter van. Inside, it offers seating for nine passengers in three rows and despite being the base-model, is still well-equipped. Standard features include air conditioning, remote locking, CD sound, and power front windows and mirrors. A higher-spec Kombi version, that in Australia will be called the Caravelle Shuttle, is an eight-seat vehicle in a 3/2/3 configuration. It also gains an upgraded air conditioner and dual - as opposed to left-hand side only - sliding rear doors.

Moving up in the range brings the Caravelle, which is visually distinguished from the base models by bigger, body-coloured bumpers, alloy wheels, minor cosmetic treatments and the availability of a V6 engine. As a seven-seater with two front, two separate centre-row swivel seats and a third-row three-position bench seat, the Caravelle is available in Comfortline and Highline trim.

At the top of the lineup is the Caravelle Business, which shares its body style with the two other vehicles but inside has just three rows of two separate seats. It also has a single driveline option, being a V6 automatic.

COMFORT
The Caravelle has always been among the biggest people-movers on the market and in the new T5, this translates into significant interior space. The Caravelle models, which we spent the most time in, all feature second and third-row seats on tracks that can be slid forward or backward, with reclining backrests and armrests where the seats are separate.

This allows you to move the seats according to the occupant's size and even with all six or seven spaces filled, there is still a decent amount of luggage space in the rear. Passengers are well-catered for, with plenty of storage cubbies and cupholders, a pop-up round table, separate front and rear air conditioning controls and a 6-stack CD audio system. Highline and Business models also get a standard DVD entertainment system and satnav, with the latter also gaining power-operated rear sliding doors and a sunroof.

The seats are comfortable and reasonably supportive, with our only gripe being that the drawers in the bottom of the seat frame mean that you can't slide your feet under the seat in front.

The interior is well-finished, although some of the cubbies and cupholders seemed a bit flimsy and the dash layout, while functional, looks a bit industrial. Having the gear lever or tiptronic auto transmission shifter mounted on the dash, makes for very good ergonomics.

SAFETY
VW has always delivered a high-level of safety equipment in its cars and the T5 is no different. There are adjustable headrests and three-point seat belts with pre-tensioners and height adjustment for every passenger seat.

Other passive safety comes in the form of airbags, of which there are four - dual front and front-side. Given the nearly 2.5 tonne kerb weight of the Caravelle, stability, traction and stopping are crucial and VW has delivered, with a full complement of standard electronic systems, including anti-lock brakes with an electronic diff lock and ESP stability and traction control.

MECHANICAL
With the T5, VW is introducing a range of new engines and transmissions that start with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine. This 85kW/170Nm powerplant is only available with the base-model Kombi in conjunction with a five-speed manual gearbox.

The 2.5-litre five-cylinder turbo diesel engine is offered in two states of tune, with the lesser 96kW/340Nm version only offered in the Kombi and Caravelle Shuttle models. All other Caravelle diesels use the higher-output version that generates 128kW of power and a substantial 400Nm of torque at a low 2000rpm.

Caravelle models are also available with a 173kW/315Nm 3.2-litre V6 petrol engine. Transmission options for both the diesel and V6 are a six-speed manual or six-speed tiptronic-style automatic transmission.

For T5, VW has also replaced the T4's double wishbone front suspension with a MacPherson strut arrangement.

COMPETITORS
The people-mover market continues to shrink but with the Caravelle, Volkswagen believes it's strength will be in the corporate/fleet business, as so many retail buyers looking for seven seats are turning to SUVs for extra people-carrying capacity.

But none of these can match the full-size adult seating of the Caravelle and the only real rivals in the market are Toyota's big Tarago and the Chrysler Voyager. The Voyager is $53,000- $78,000 3.3-litre V6 auto only, and includes a top-of-the-range all-wheel-drive version. Tarago sits in the same price ballpark but power is limited to a 115kW/221Nm 2.4 four-cylinder engine.

Honda and Mazda also feature, with the seven-seat, $50,000-odd Odyssey and MPV but neither are as big as the other three. Kia also serves up the V6 Carnival for about $30,000 but you get what you pay for.

ON THE ROAD
VW claims that with T5, it was the commercial Transporter that was developed from the people carrying Caravelle and not vice versa, to ensure the passenger variant was not just a van with seats. And in the drive experience, some of that translates.

The V6 engine is reasonably smooth, as is the six-speed auto, but with a full load of big blokes, it is by no means quick off the line. Once on the move, however, it is fairly responsive to right foot inputs and is quiet and refined cruising at speed along the highway.

The only time the quality of the shifts seemed to go down a gear was when it was asked to haul over three tonnes up the winding, hilly roads through the Gold Coast hinterland.

It was these rough, country roads that also showed-up the Caravelle's two biggest deficiencies - ride and handling. Many of the sharp irregularities of the road were transferred through to the cabin and although it wasn't too uncomfortable, the jiggling about became rather annoying.

What was worse though was the handling. Obviously with six adults on board and given the size, height and weight of the vehicle it is not a sports car, but even travelling at a moderate speed, the car didn't feel that well tied down.

This feeling was even more noticeable when travelling in the rear, with the amount of body roll induced by the tight, winding roads producing a queasy feeling in at least three of our crew.

For its urban applications, the Caravelle is a comfortable, spacious and well-equipped people-carrier. You just wouldn't want to take one fully-loaded on a long, country drive.