Volkswagen Multivan 2019 review: Black Edition

This is a seven-seat van, not an eight-seater, which is the first difference. So if you have six kids you’ll miss out on the VW Multivan.

This is a seven-seat van, not an eight-seater.

But it is huge inside. It’s wider than a Kia Carnival and stepping in from the road you feel like you’re inside a small room. You can actually step around. So the mid section of the van is enormous.

VW could have fit an extra seat in, but chose to make those seats multi-functional. They swivel around and face the back, plus you can move all the seats back and forth on tracks on the floor of the car. It really is versatile.

The boot is as big as you want it to be. Small if you push the back seats all the way back, but large if you push both rows forward, and you can also flatten the rear seats to get extra storage space on top of them. It will fit anything from a pram to a drum kit, your choice.

The front is positively roomy. It feels like you are settled in for a very long drive because there is a lot of space around you. The fact that there is no centre console contributes to this and quite often this week I put the car in park and quickly stepped in the back to grab something! I don’t love the way this space looks though.

VW has aimed to make the Multivan Black Edition a cooler looking version of a van. There’s a great black decal along the bottom sides, the front has the stylish VW grille and logo and there are also dark tinted windows along the side, all contributing to the design. The metallic paint job (an extra $1720) is lovely. You can’t hide that boxy shape though, or bus-like proportions.   

Inside is more stylish than your average van, but still doesn’t look as good as an SUV for example.

There are high gloss accents all over the place, a leather steering wheel that feels good and a leather accented gearshift, plus a leather armrest.

The multimedia screen is small for a car this size and it’s just not as high-end as an SUV would be. Compared to the iMax or Carnival though, it’s much more stylish.

Even though it’s big and bulky, the Multivan doesn’t feel it while you’re driving. VW's really nailed the steering so the car responds as soon as you turn the wheel and that helps a lot weaving in and out of traffic.

VW's really nailed the steering so the car responds as soon as you turn the wheel.

There’s a 2.0L turbo-diesel engine, which is loud, but it sounds like every other van, and it certainly goes as fast as you need it to. I didn’t get to drive it with a full load this week but it did well getting up hills with my family of four.

Parking wasn’t even a difficulty, which I didn’t expect at all. I actually squeezed into a few tight spots this week, but do note the width of the Multivan because it is wide. There’s a reverse parking camera with parking guidelines to help and front and rear parking sensors.

There are airbags for driver and front passenger and side curtain airbags that extend to the back row. You’ll find ISOFIX points on five of the seats, plus five top tether points to safely fit kids’ carseats, no matter which way the seats are facing.

As far as advanced safety features go, there is a driver fatigue detection system, the parking sensors for front and rear, but no auto emergency braking or things like rear cross traffic alert.

AEB is becoming standard across the board these days so it does feel lacking in safety somewhat.

The VW Multivan Black Edition comes in at $63,490 before on-road costs, and the one I drove had a metallic paint job which costs an extra $1720.

Fuel consumption is a relatively low 7.7L/100km thanks to the diesel engine.

Volkswagen has upped its warranty and now offers a five year/unlimited km warranty, the Multivan is covered with this.