Volkswagen Australia is pushing to get its hands on a new plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version of the small Caddy van, after it was launched overseas earlier this year.
Speaking with CarExpert, Volkswagen Australia director of commercial vehicles Ryan Davies said this type of vehicle could suit a lot of people’s needs.
“We’re pushing for it with the factory,” said Mr Davies.
“It’s not confirmed as yet, but we think there’s [a] real opportunity.
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“We’re doing our best to get it to the market because we think it’s got [a] real application here in Australia.”
The Caddy eHybrid is available in both people mover and Cargo van guises, as well as the standard and Maxi long-wheelbase body styles. It supplements the existing turbo-petrol and turbo-diesel powertrains.
Power comes from 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine and an electric motor. Total system outputs are 110kW of power and 350Nm of torque.
Thanks to a 19.7kWh battery pack, the Caddy eHybrid is capable of travelling up to 122km of electric power alone, according to WLTP testing.
It has a maximum AC charging rate of 11kW, which at this speed takes 2.5 hours to charge the battery from 0-100 per cent.
Unlike a lot of PHEVs, the Caddy eHybrid also has DC fast-charging capabilities. It has a maximum DC charging rate of 50kW, which at this speed takes around 26 minutes to charge the battery from 10-80 per cent.
In Germany, the Caddy Cargo eHybrid van starts at €36,985 (~A$59,500), while the Caddy eHybrid people mover starts at €37,450 (~A$60,250). It’s around €1988 (~A$3200) than the equivalent automatic turbo-petrol-powered variant.
For context, in Australia the Volkswagen Caddy Cargo van range starts at $40,990 before on-roads for the TSI220 manual, and the Caddy people mover range starts at $52,290 before on-roads for the Maxi TSI220 automatic.
The Volkswagen Caddy Cargo van is the top-selling light van in Australia, with a total of 665 examples sold in Australia this year to the end of October. It outsold the Peugeot Partner (410 sales) and Renault Kangoo (138 sales).
The Caddy people mover on the other hand is one of the slowest-selling people movers in Australia. A total of 91 examples have been sold until the end of October this year.
The people mover segment is currently dominated by the Kia Carnival (8503 sales) and the Hyundai Staria (1126 sales).
Volkswagen Australia has had an off- and on-again relationship with PHEVs, having previously indicated it would bring a variety of PHEVs but thus far launching just one: the Touareg R.
Recent comments from the brand, however, have indicated more could be on the way, including a PHEV version of the larger Transporter van to be offered alongside electric and diesel options.
