VW Caddy: new face, new engines, more safety - lower price

Small business owners are the new target in Volkswagen's aggressive sales drive to become Australia's biggest vehicle importer.

The German maker has slashed the starting price of its Caddy small van by $1000 -- to $21,990 plus on-road costs -- and broadened the model range.

Most Caddy models cost between $500 and $3000 less than the previous offerings despite newer and more efficient engines, and more standard equipment.

And Volkswagen has more than halved the price gap from the short-wheelbase Caddy vans to the long-wheelbase Caddy Maxi models; the $3000 jump has been reduced to $1340 (see prices below).

There are now four engines to choose from instead of two. The previously available 1.6 petrol has been replaced by two 1.2 turbo petrol engines of different power outputs. And the old 1.9 turbodiesel engine has been replaced by a 1.6 turbodiesel and a 2.0 turbodiesel.

With the changes, the model range has grown from five variants to seven.

The facelifted model also gains Volkswagen's new corporate nose, new cloth trim -- and the instrument cluster, steering wheel, audio unit and air-conditioning controls from the latest Golf passenger car range.

All Caddy models now come with stability control, but seat-mounted side airbags are standard on only one of the seven models (the flagship Caddy Maxi Life seven seater).

Volkswagen Australia defended the decision to continue to make side airbags a $690 option. "None of our competitors have stability control standard, yet we do, and side airbags are either not available or not standard on the other vehicles in this class," said Caddy product manager Phil West.

He said about 20 per cent of Caddy customers paid extra for the optional side airbags.

The new Caddy, which will continue to be made in Poland and shares much of its underpinnings with the older, Mk5 Golf, has had no structural changes that might earn it a higher score than the four stars it has already been awarded in Euro NCAP crash tests.

Volkswagen is also hoping to relieve any concerns that may exist about the reliability of its vehicles, by extending the distance covered by its three-year warranty, from 100,000km to unlimited kilometres.

"We are very proud of these new engines and we are very happy to be offering an unlimited kilometre warranty with the new Caddy, bringing it into line with the latest models from our passenger car range," West said.

As before, Caddy vans sold in Australia will come with barn doors as standard, but liftback tailgates are a no cost option (in Europe, the tailgate is standard and barn doors are the option). About 20 per cent of customers choose the liftback tailgate, West said.

While much of the focus is on fleet buyers, families now have a wider choice of Caddy vans. The Caddy Life -- the short-wheelbase five-seater family van -- has returned to the line-up after a two-year absence.

"The market has grown and there is now a better understanding of this type of vehicle," West said. "Plus we’ve been able to bring it in at a more attractive price."

The Caddy Maxi Life seven-seater can now have both back-seat rows removed to create a massive cargo space. Previously, only the third-row seat could be removed.

The payload of Caddy vans ranges from 780kg to 850kg depending on the body style and engine type.

With all seats in use the Caddy Maxi Life has 530 litres of cargo space, with five seats stowed it has 3700 litres of space, and with all seats removed (except the front two) there is 3880 litres of space.

The Caddy Maxi Life, at $42,990 with automatic transmission, is several thousand dollars dearer than many popular seven-seater SUVs. But Volkswagen says its seven-seater Caddy Maxi Life will find appeal among those who want a smaller car to manoeuvre, a more economical engine, and a larger cargo area.

Volkswagen Caddy model range and pricing:
Caddy TSI160 5M $21,990
Caddy TDI250 5M $26,650
Caddy TDI250 7DSG S$29,650

Caddy Maxi TSI175 5M $24,990
Caddy Maxi TDI250 5M $27,990
Caddy Maxi TDI250 7DSG $30,990
Caddy Maxi TDI320 6DSG $32,990

Caddy Life TDI250 5M $28,990
Caddy Life TDI250 7DSG $31,990
Caddy Life Maxi TDI250 7DSG $39,990
Caddy Life Maxi TDI320 6DSG $42,990

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