Summarize

Volkswagen Caravelle 2.0 Bi-TDI

Caravelle an executive family delight

The Volkswagen T6 Caravelle has arrived in the Auto Bakkie Race driveway a week or two back and we wasted no time to put it to the test. Can the new Kombi live up to its iconic predecessor’s legacy? The answer to that question is most certainly yes. The new T6 Caravelle ticks all the boxes that a Kombi should – it’s spacious, comfortable, practical, relatively fuel efficient and most importantly, it cruises fantastically.

It’s 132kW 400Nm 2-litre biturbo diesel four-pot has more than enough grunt to carry the Caravelle at highway speeds with ease, economically too. The T6 manages 0-100km/h in 12.1 seconds which isn’t too shabby considering the vehicle weighs around 3 tonnes. 

From the outside the Kombi is actually a very appealing car. The half red half white paint scheme that was on our test car is an iconic touch that turned a lot of heads as it drove past, and the similar but new style lights certainly get my vote.

Step inside and the dash is neat with nicely positioned buttons and a bright, easy to use infotainment system and there’s nothing wrong with the audio system either.  My only complaint is that I’d prefer if the infotainment screen was angled slightly more towards the driver, as the current positioning allows for light to reflect off of the screen, occasionally making it tricky for the driver to see all the information being displayed. 

But Kombi is everything you’d expect – the super spacious cabin provides enough room for the driver and six passengers to sit comfortably, with loads of leg and head room. Another cool feature is the rotating second row of seats, which makes for a fun dynamic caboose cabin between passengers. 

The table between the second row of seats adds a lot of extra practicality and storage too, although it does take a bit of effort to correctly set up as it catches on the seats as you try to rotate the top into position, There is a most convenient accessory fridge in the boot too, although how it is mounted steals a hell of a lot of loadbay space – were it me, I’d mount it to the one side so there is one handy space to the one side, rather than two pretty useless holes each side… 

All in all, the T6 Caravelle lives up to its Kombi nickname in every way possible. It impressed me and certainly is my car of choice for road trips and holidays with friends and family. If your family consists of more than five and/or road tripping with friends and family is a hobby of yours, the T6 is the car to have. It is a real pleasure to drive long journeys in this bus. – Giordano Lupini

Images – Giordano Lupini


ROAD TESTED: Volkswagen T6 Caravelle 2.0BiTDI Highline 4Motion 
Engine: 132kW 400Nm 1984cc bi-turbodiesel I4
Drive: 7-speed automatic AWD
TESTED: 
0-60km/h: 5.89 sec
0-100km/h: 12.45 sec   
0-120km/h: 17.33 sec
400m: 18.3 sec @ 123km/h
80-120km/h: 8.72 sec
120-160km/h: 7.00 sec       
CLAIMED:       
VMax: 188km/h 
Fuel: 8.8 l/100km
CO2: 232 g/km
Warranty/Service: 3y 120K/5y 60Kkm
LIST PRICE: R1.027M
RATED:    88%