2025 Volkswagen Transporter Reviews

The VW Transporter has been in production for more than 70 years, as its bloodline can be traced back to the original rear-engine split-window 'Kombi' launched in 1950. So, during those seven decades, the German manufacturer has no doubt learned a thing or ten about building light commercial vans.

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A mid-life update hasn't transformed Volkswagen's T5 Transporter - at least not externally. It's what's under the slab-sided skin that counts and it's here that VW has filled out the niches of what is already an extensive model range.The two-wheel drive versions of the T5 arrived in February and now the big appeal is the just-launched combination of a seven-speed DSG gearbox matched with 4Motion all-wheel drive.That's an instant winner with the NSW ambulance service and should haul the Transporter into the sights of tradies who work in rural areas and resort owners looking for a vehicle to carry six passengers and their luggage off the beaten track.PRICING AND DRIVETRAINThe T5 comes in two wheelbase lengths, with three engines and three van heights. That variety is one of the reasons it only trails the Toyota HiAce and Hyundai iLoad on total sales. The resale value is another compelling argument for the T5 and one VW Australia Commercial Vehicles director Phil Clark is keen to point out."The NSW ambos buy them because we can tailor the design to their requirements - we do a lot of building for what customers want - and they get their money back on them when they're resold," he says.The DSG is a $3000 option - and one most delivery operators should tick - while the 4Motion option is another $3500. The cheapest 4Motion-equpped vehicle will cost $45,490, rising to $77,990 for the Multivan Highline.TECHNOLOGYThe seven-speed DSG transmission is the big-ticket boost for Volkswagen, whether the Transporter is set up for passengers or payload."The automatic opens up the market for us - the van business is about 50 per cent automatic," Clark says, while admitting that figure is high by global standards.The DSG is unobtrusive and, mated to the 132kW 2.0-litre twin-turbodiesel, delivers impressive fuel economy. A high-speed run through southern Germany last week pushed the test seven-seat Multivan and high-roofer Transporter into double-digit figures, but only just.It's the no-brainer option for people who will be in and out of the vehicle all day, even if the six-speed manual lets you work the engine harder.  The 4Motion system is only available on the twin-turbo engine and our time in it failed to register a flicker on the dash.That's probably becasue the roads were more autobahn than around the barn, but it's another weapon in the Transporter's considerable arsenal of tricks. And the top-end T5 is the volume seller. The base 75kW engine accounts for 6 per cent of sales, the 103kW engine grabs 46 per cent and the 132kW version makies up 48 per cent.An aftermarket Siekel off-road pack will raise the suspension another 35mm - or higher if required - and add Bilstein shocks if serious off-roading is required.SAFETYThe safety features are cut-and-pasted straight out of the passenger car catalogue. There's a driver and front passenger airbag, and the option of adding head and thorax airbags for both parties. ESP stability control is standard across the range and there's the basic chassisDRIVINGThis is as car-like as big white boxes get, even if Volkswagen is at pains to point out most of its T5s aren't sold in white.  The chassis uses MacPherson struts up front and a semi-trailing independent rear axle with coil springs and an anti-roll bar at the rear.The dash layout is typically VW, with clear instruments and switchgear that's easy to work. The ride from the high-roof Transporter was faultless, though at high speeds (much higher than Australians can legally travel), there was some "boom" from the empty cargo compartment down back. Wind the sound system up and you can drown it out, but it's one of the few reminders you're in a commercial vehicle.The Multivan didn't have that issue and the only concession to "mini-bus" travel comes in the plastics, which look similar as those on a Polo but are harder - and presumably more durable - to the touch. Put that down as a plus for the owner. If you're travelling in the back, grab one of the rear seats - the squabs on the centre-row pair are a touch short for long-distance driving.And the dash-mounted bottle-holders don't hold. They're good for a cup of coffee, but the spring-loaded arm grips too low down and lets 600mm bottles topple out even during sedate cornering.Not that you have to be sedate - the 400Nm from the 132TDI motor pushes the vehicle down the road at a respectable rate - and at an average quoted fuel consumption of 8.4litres/100km. Those looking for something more citified can opt for the 103kW/370Nm 103DTI or the 75kW/250Nm 77TDI. All engines comply with Euro 5 emission standards.VERDICTAll-wheel drive and DSG will keep the T5 going places.

The T5 has been on the local market since 2003 and has always been a cut above the average commercial carrier.

You don't expect light commercial vehicles to drive like cars. But it's nice when they make the effort.And Volkswagen has worked to improve their range of cargo and people-hauling vans, with the new Transporter, Multivan and Caravelle offering better and more economical engines, additional and improved equipment and more driving safety features.For small businesses as well as private buyers, the engines and their fuel economy will be a key point of interest. But the other good news for them is that for the first time, ESP and ABS will be standard across the range.And Volkswagen's great twin-clutch DSG transmission will be available on some models with 4Motion all-wheel drive system with a Haldex coupling.There has been a cosmetic facelift, but nothing in the way of structural changes, and the T5 is expected to still sit at four stars in crash tests, although head of the T5 development program, Dr Holger Westendorf, says it will be 'borderline' with five stars, with extra points coming from the addition of side curtain airbags.Engines Europe will a range of four 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbodiesels when the vans land in showrooms early in 2010, but Australia will be taking only two of these: the 103kW with 340 Nm at 1750rpm, and 132kW with 400Nm from a low 1500rpm. Transmissions are a six-speed dash-mounted manual or the seven DSG.The lower-energy of the two four-cylinder turbodiesels develops 103k/w of power at 3500rpm and 340Nm of torque between 1750-2500rpm, giving it a 0-100km/h time of 13.1 seconds in the least slipstreaming model - the high-roof long-wheelbase Transporter — and a top speed of around 170km/h.That variant's 10.7l/100km and 250g/km of CO2 are pretty good, considering its size, but in other versions of the T5, Volkswagen claims they get as low as 7.4l/100km and 195gm/km with the six-speed manual transmission.But the high-roof Transporter body with the biturbo 2.0-litre posts just 7.9l/100km and 205g/km, and offers better outputs, developing 132kW of power at 4000rpm and a hefty 400Nm of torque between1500-200rpm, which in the high-roof front-wheel drive Transporter gets it to 100km/h in 10.3 seconds and a top speed of around 190km/h.We tested both engines and transmissions in a version each of Transporter, Multivan and Caravelle, and - unsurprisingly - found the best performance from the higher-tuned engine mated to the DSG. We sampled this drivetrain in an up-specced Caravelle, with lounge seats and centre console in the rear.But even though the DSG is acknowledged as one of the best gearboxes in the world, it still has its niggles in this application. Under the standard automatic drive mode, it was just a touch on the lazy side, while in the sport mode it was a bit hardcore - kicking down too early and holding the slots too long for comfort.In the end we put it into the 'manu-matic' mode and rowed the shifter back and forth to suit.However this was in a large, empty van, and there's little doubt that if we'd filled the rest of the seats and tossed in some luggage, we might have been very happy to have the extra urge offered by the DSG.Similarly, the 103kW engine's somewhat notchy manual transmission tested in an empty Multivan had the same Goldilocks syndrome. Since it's logically calibrated for load, third gear was too low for an empty van, while fourth was too tall above it.It was occasionally running out of puff in the higher gears, but might have been happier carrying a load so that the lower gears could come onto the field more smoothly for slopes and curves.The same misfit lower gearing problem applied with the 103kW manual drivetrain in the empty Transporter, however there was no straining on steep slopes in the taller ones, and this could be due to the empty cargo van being about 200kg lighter than the passenger one.On the road, the passenger vans' soft suspensions tended to keep bobbing after hitting bumps, but they're likely to settle down with a load of bodies strapped into the seats.All body types offered easy entry into the rear, with sliding doors opening smoothly on huge access points and very workable load floor heights.Equipment and fit-out A host of equipment from the Volkswagen passenger stable has made its way into the LCVs. Joining the DSG are features like three-spoke steering wheels, touchscreen satnav, quality audio, and a long list of safety tech including rear parking camera, hill-start assist, blind-spot alert and tyre pressure monitoring.It still doesn't turn them into passenger vehicles, but they're a far cry from the spartan vans that have been the stereotype for the light commercial segment.