Volkswagen Caddy Review

The Volkswagen Caddy Van has been VW’s small van since 1978.  There have been four generations of the Caddy van over this time.

The Caddy van comes in standard and long wheel base lengths with window van and combi 5-seater versions available.

The two wheel base options, 2,681mm for the standard van and 3,006mm for the Maxi version, have load volumes of 3.2m3 and 4.2m3 respectively in the Caddy.  There is no high roof option so this van cannot quite match the largest cargo spaces in the small van category but with a maximum payload of 857kg this small van is spacious.

The Caddy van is really sturdy around the loading bay, with chunky door handles, half height interior panelling and wide sill protectors made of tough plastic.  The load floor has six lashing eyes and you get another two on the longer Maxi model.  The Caddy van comes with one side loading door as standard.

Performance and Driving

The van range includes Euro 5 and Euro 6 diesel engines.  The diesel power range is between 74bhp up to 148bhp.  The most popular being the 101bhp, which accounts for 80% of sales.  This model returns about 70mpg.

The 74bhp van does 0-62mph in 16.5 seconds without cargo on board.  This model can be slightly sluggish but is great once you get going and is better on the mpg.

The 101bhp van does 0-62mph in 12 seconds unloaded.  This model is very sharp and responsive and is particularly quiet on the motorway.

The 148bhp model does 0-62mph in an outstanding 9.2 seconds making this van exceptionally responsive for a commercial vehicle.

The caddy van feels sturdy on the road and the all round driving experience is excellent.

The suspension deals with even rough road surfaces smoothly and the Caddy van feels very stable on the road.

Safety

When looking at safety this van comes with driver and passenger airbags as standard and side and curtain airbags are available.  This van has front Assist technology that monitors the distance to obstacles at the front of the van and sounds an audible warning if they become critical.  This system also primes the brakes for an emergency stop if it thinks a collision could be imminent.

Emergency City Braking will actually apply the brakes at low speeds to prevent or lessen the impact of a collision.

Some Caddy van models have adaptive cruise control which maintains a set speed and set distance to the vehicle in front.  Also available is Light Assist, which dips the main beam to avoid dazzling drivers of oncoming traffic and driver alert which detects changes in driving style which can indicate tiredness and a warning alarm is sounded.

Interior

The build quality is hard to fault.  The interior of this van is fuss free and solid.  You will not find a better interior in a compact van than the Volkswagen Caddy’s.

The seats are comfortable with great positioning and there is plenty of adjustment on the steering column so you can find your perfect driving position.

Storage is great too in the VW Caddy vans.  There are lots of places to stow items including a large dash top holder for A4 paperwork.  This van also has wide door pockets, a covered glovebox and a large overhead shelf.

Van Dimensions

Load Area Dimensions

(Width between wheel arches: 1,172mm)

In conclusion

The Volkswagen Caddy van is hard to beat in the small commercial vehicle category.  The Caddy van is one of the most reliable vans in its class.  This van drives like a car and is incredibly refined for a commercial vehicle.

Although the Caddy van is compact on the outside this van is surprisingly spacious on the inside.

Here at Cheshire Vehicle Supplies in Warrington we have a large stock of used light commercial vehicles including a great selection of VW Caddy vans. If you are looking to purchaes a used van why not take a look at our stock or pop in to see are vans.