The Caravelle and VR6 built on the T4 Transporter chassis for what started life as a van is not all that bad looking by all accounts, in certain colours even quite regal and luxury looking, even with the 9 seat version amounting to what is to all intents and purposes a small coach, [many have been used as taxis, and by small party tour companies all over the world a job these vehicles excelled at from the large single tailgate and level access boot floor making luggage carrying a breeze to the sliding side doors making for easy passenger removal, whilst in some cases fitted with twin sliding doors adding to the feel of a top class luxury vehicle, and that was before even driving the vehicle, by anyone standards a brilliant start, not the first model of Caravelle from the Volkswagen stable however the first front engined example

The interior cabin has a massive specification list of extras over the what now seems it’s lowly brother the mere van models it is based upon, ergonomically it is in the trademark black that is predominant throughout the cab, with large expanses of glass area making for an airy feel about the interior the doors all shut with a reassuring quality car thud, the driving position has been well thought out with a light clutch and steering compared to a comparable car, you undoubtedly get the sense of what the steering is doing returning to the reassuring feel of the vehicle that a drive prefers so as to know what the vehicle is actually doing often lost in many main stream van models being high up and slab sided losing the road holding feeling rather worryingly although as with everything else from the Volkswagen stable the quality, and driver association with their range of vehicles shines through.

As a driving experience it in some variants can be slow to take off in both 1^st and 2^nd gear but in the 2.5tdi version favoured by most no such issues exist and the driving in all gears is a pleasurable experience more usually found in a large estate car than in a van derived passenger carrying vehicle, with speeds of 85 overtaking easily attainable there is plenty of midrange power available on tap, and will cruise happily at 70mph all day long down any motorway the length and breadth of our country which is after all where you will see most of these wonderful vehicles easily managing 35mpg and 400k on the speedometer are not unknown with a well looked after and serviced example, the 2.5 able to be chipped to provide even better figures coupled to the luxury trim levels making these models firm favourites with campervan builders, and customisers alike they came with diesel run night heating which was major boon to campervan builders running quietly and safely straight off of the onboard diesel fuel tank making a welcome addition to comfort if sleeping overnight onboard.

Various trim levels option were available as new such as a “Multi-van” which came with fitted curtains and rear seating which converted to a bed, in 9 seater people carrier mode or “SE” they all come with a host of extras not often found on such vehicles, bags of room inside The entire range benefited greatly from a facelift in 1996 with metallic coloured versions being particularly sought after, one of the down sides to owning this wonderfully versatile and luxurious passenger carrier was it was historically built in Hanover to “van” standards with the emphasis on reliable running and high mileage although not a bad thing meant the attention to detail was often lacking along with inferior rust proofing treatments on pre 1996 models, most certainly not anywhere near the standards of their equivalent car models, on top of being sold through VW commercial dealerships meaning the customer service was often wanting.

Main things to look out for if buying a Caravelle  is of course rust in early models, the best engine like every other model in the range is undoubtedly the 5 cylinder 2.5 TDI, the only real issue with this otherwise bullet proof engine is it requires frequent timing belt and tensioner replacement along with the water pump every 80.000 miles religiously, if the water pump fails in this engine so does the belt, pump timing is difficult to re-set in all honesty and far batter left to the professionals, otherwise they are pretty much built proof vehicles at the high end of luxury end of the scale.

Plus points

Car like dashboard with comprehensive instrumentation

Light airy interior

Climate controlled air con

Accommodates eight full sized adults plus luggage

Driver friendly car derived mechanicals

Front-engined front wheel drive

Tight turning circle

Specs

Three yr warranty as new/60.000km

Service intervals 10,oookm

Engine

2.5 ltr diesel 5 cylinder

2,461 ltr single overhead cam 10-valve five cylinder

Power: 85kw at 4500rpm

Torque: 200Nm at 2200rpm

Transmission

Five sp manual

Four sp auto

Suspension

Front: Independent with double wishbones, torsion bars and progressive spring rates, plus anti roll bar

Rear: Independent with semi trailing arms and coil springs

Steering

Power assisted rack and pinion

Turning circle 11.7m

Dimensions

Length: 4789mm

Width: 1840mm

Height: 1940mm

Wheelbase: 2920mm

Kerb weight: 1700kg

Standard Equipment

Abs brakes

Air conditioning

Alloy wheels

Central locking

Cruise control

Six speaker Radio/Cassette

Power and heated door mirrors

Electric front windows

Driver’s side airbag

Heated rear window

Power steering

Rear wiper