First photos and details of VW’s new Transporter and Caravelle vans

VW Transporter model range

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles now offers the new Transporter and Caravelle, the iconic ID. Buzz, and the versatile Multivan. It’s launching the seventh generation of the Transporter in three variants – Kombi, panel van, and dropside – and the Caravelle for passenger transport.

The VW Transporter panel van variant has a load compartment for pure goods transport. The Transporter panel van Plus has a load compartment with second seat row for combined goods and passenger transport. Kombi is for passenger transport with an option of a double cab variant, with a platform body with a long wheelbase. The Kombi and panel van versions are optionally available with a high roof and an extended wheelbase.

VW developed the “more exclusive” Caravelle, with nine seats, for commercial passenger transport, saying it’s ideal for use as a shuttle and large-capacity taxi. It will be offered as an entry-level version, a mid-range Life version, or as a top-range Style version. The Caravelle is also available with an extended wheelbase.

Another version, the PanAmericana, will feature a robust all-terrain design and exclusive equipment details and will be available based on the Transporter and Caravelle in the new generation.

VW Transporter drive ranges

The newly developed PHEV with a system power of 171 kW (232 PS) can be ordered now and is front-wheel drive.

Three electric drives with outputs of 100 kW (136 PS), 160 kW (218 PS), and 210 kW (286 PS) and a net battery capacity of 64 kWh are coming soon. There will also be an electric version with reduced power and a smaller battery for urban delivery transport. The all-electric models are RWD, and an AWD version is planned for a later date.

VW Transporter specs

VW’s Bulli family of vans recall the original VW Microbus, and VW says the Transporters have hallmark features of Bulli vans: “the high and clear dash panel, the high seat position, and the ergonomic layout of all controls.”

The new Transporter is bigger – it has an extra 146 mm compared with the T6.1 and is now 5,050 mm long. Its wheelbase has been extended by 97 mm to 3,100 mm (a wheelbase extended by 400 mm will also be available as an option for a total length of 5,450 mm). At 2,032 mm, its exterior width has grown by 128 mm (without exterior mirrors).

The increased length, width, and wheelbase have significantly enlarged the new Transporters’s load capacity. The largest stowage volume of the versions with a normal wheelbase is now 5.8 cubic meters (204.8 cubic feet). The long wheelbase and high roof versions will accommodate up to 9 cubic meters (317.8 cubic feet).

USB-A, USB-C, and 12V sockets are included, and the electric Transporter will offer two additional sockets as an option. The total output of the 230V system is up to 2,300 watts and can power anything from laptops to electrical saws. 

The Transporter, with a normal roof of less than 2 meters (6.5 feet), fits into conventional multi-story car parks. The normal wheelbase has a turning circle of 11.8 meters (38.7 feet), so it can maneuver through tight bends. The maximum payload is up to 1.33 tonnes and it can pull trailers weighing up to 2.8 tonnes, depending on the variant.

Volkswagen says it’s expanded the standard equipment package for all of its new Transporter models:

• LED headlights and LED tail light clusters
• Electronic parking brake with Auto Hold function
• 12-inch digital instruments (Digital Cockpit)
• Infotainment system (including DAB+, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, online services and 13-inch touchscreen) and a multifunction steering wheel
• Keyless Start system
• Rain sensor, Lane Assist, Autonomous Emergency Braking, and Dynamic Road Sign Display.
• The panel van is now also equipped with a partition as standard.
• The Kombi has rear windows, three individual seats in the second row of seats, and an audio system with six speakers instead of four.

Pre-sales of the new Transporter have begun in Europe at €36,780, and market launch is planned for Q1 2025.

Caravelle

The entry-level Caravelle features a removable three-seat bench in the third row as standard, for a total of nine seats. Compared with the Transporter versions, the Caravelle features refined seat fabrics, side and curtain airbags in the cab, and an audio system with 10 loudspeakers.

The mid-range Caravelle Life includes features bumpers, exterior mirror housings, and door handles painted in the vehicle color, air conditioning, a height-adjustable driver’s seat and front passenger seat with lumbar support and armrests, unique decorative trims, three additional USB ports in the passenger compartment, and 16-inch alloy wheels.

VW’s top-range flagship, the Caravelle Style, has a distinctive front with a dark contrasting strip that includes an integrated chrome strip. The LED matrix headlights also have the cornering light and poor weather light function.

Other features of the Style include LED tail light clusters with a custom light signature, privacy glass in the rear, and 17-inch alloy wheels. Also standard: the keyless locking and starting system Keyless Access, electric folding exterior mirrors, two-tone leatherette seats, distinctive interior features, multifunction leather steering wheel, large center console with cup holders, a three-zone automatic air conditioner with an additional control panel for the rear (in the headliner) and sun blinds in the second seat row. Options include a panoramic roof and a Harman Kardon sound system with 14 speakers including subwoofer.

PanAmericana

The PanAmericana equipment package arrived on the scene in 2001, in the fourth generation. It became an independent, exclusive version of the Transporter in the fifth generation.

The seventh-gen Transporter PanAmericana (above), shown for the first time today, will be available in conjunction with both the panel van and the Caravelle models.

The new PanAmericana has distinctive all-terrain trims on the side sills and wheel arches, grained bumpers designed for tough conditions, and a painted radiator grille. Film wraps also protect the trunk lid or rear wing doors at the bottom.

The interior features illuminated stainless steel inlays for the steps, black, high-gloss dash panel applications, and chrome interior door handles. Other distinctive features include exclusive seat fabrics with PanAmericana lettering on the backrests and color-coordinated contrasting seams.

The Caravelle PanAmericana is equipped as standard with the new 19-inch Indianapolis alloy wheels (in black with a diamond-cut finish), which is also available as an option for the PanAmericana Transporter. Both PanAmerica versions have optional 4MOTION all-wheel drive.

Read more: VW just released details of the 2025 VW ID. Buzz’s US trims

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