We all love cute VW vans, but what about the boring ones? – Autoblog

VW knows cute. Whether cute-cute, a la the Beetle, New Beetle and Kharman Ghia, or ugly-cute (see: Thing), VW has been there and done that. But even when the division of labor between fun and function has been quite clear (e.g. Beetle vs. 2-Door Golf), there has rarely been such a stark distinction as the one that developed in Volkswagen’s van range. Compared to that of the original Type II, some of the company’s passenger vans have the charisma of cold gravy.

With the ID. Buzz and its petrol equivalent are leaning back towards sunshine and rainbows, we’d like to take a step and remember a few of VW’s more homely homes on wheels. While we could sift through the company’s European commercial back catalog for the bland and unpleasant, we’d rather stick to the vans you actually see on the road here in the States. And while they may not win any beauty pageants, most of these people-movers have their virtues — and their own cult following.

Transporter T3 Vanagon

Admittedly, the T2 Transporter was a tough one to follow. The T3 (known here in America as the Vanagon) adopted a more angular, modern body style, but retained virtually everything else that made the original Transporter unique, including the rear engine placement. The above is a US spec Syncro (AWD) model, which was slightly longer and got a firmer set of brakes.

The Westfalia motorhome conversion remains popular with the #vanlife crowd, which grew during the pandemic, likely sparing quite a few Vanagons to share the fate of the 1986 Wolfsburg edition, shown top right. It may not have looked as good as the model it replaced, but it certainly gets the job done.

Transporter T4 Eurovan

No van. No minivan. Just … euros. If previous Transporter variants were weird, the Eurovan was somehow made weirder by Volkswagen’s attempt to present a more conventional modern truck. Gone was the air-cooled engine under the floor; the new water-cooled mills were in the front. When first introduced, it was simultaneously too small to compete with the typical American vans of the early 1990s and too large to be considered by those looking for American minivans. VW took it out of its US lineup for half a decade before reintroducing it with the coveted VR6 engine, but it remained a niche alternative for a segment slowly being cannibalized by the growing popularity of SUVs.

routine

No, not a Transporter! Not even VW. The Routan was basically a Chrysler from top to bottom – albeit without Chrysler’s great Stow ‘n Go seating system. While Volkswagen had some flexibility in the final details of the Routan’s interior, this American-built minivan was badge engineering in the purest sense. If VW executives thought more American would keep its minivan immune to the crossover revolution of the 2000s, the Routan would have rid them of that idea. America has not seen a Volkswagen bus since. Until now of course.

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