2021 VW Caddy range detailed: More tech and safety for Peugeot Partner rival

2021 Volkswagen Caddy range detailed: More tech and safety for Peugeot Partner and Renault Kangoo rival

The fifth-generation Caddy has grown in dimensions, with a boost to tech and safety.

The all-new fifth-generation Volkswagen Caddy will land in Australia in the second half of next year, welcoming a new passenger and commercial vehicle range now underpinned by the brand’s MQB Platform shared with the eighth-generation Golf.

The brand is yet to fully outline the specification detail for the new Caddy range, but has promised it will share VW’s passenger car family’s safety and technology features, and will be offered - at least initially - in diesel-only guise, with a host of new TDI engine options.

Available both as a Caddy and as a longer wheelbase Caddy Maxi, we now know the new line-up will consist of the Caddy Cargo and Caddy Crewvan commercial options, or as a Caddy People Mover if humans are your preferred cargo. No matter what you’re carrying, though, the new model should promise to be more comfortable on the road, with the adoption of the passenger-focused platform from the new Golf.

olkswagen Caddy 2021 detailed

The Caddy Crewvan will sit in the middle of the range, clad in plastic bumpers but with a side window.

Despite that, the extra size granted to the new Caddy will allow it to fit up to two european-standard pallets in the load area.

More excitingly, the brand has now confirmed a new Caddy California mini campervan variant will soon become a permanent member of the family, a successor to last year's limited-edition Caddy Beach which the brand says was a runaway success.

olkswagen Caddy California camper to replace Caddy Beach

With a focus on the vehicle's commercial applications, VW says the Caddy 5 will be offered with 60-minute ServiceXpress maintenance (like the brand’s passenger range) promising to put “tradies” back on the road in 60 minutes.

Top of the standard Caddy range (excluding the California camper) will be the People Mover.

While the lineup will initially be available with two new-generation TDI diesel engines (in either 75kW or 90kW forms), representatives from the brand's local commercial divison explained that the new-generation 1.5-litre petrol TSI engine which has thus far been excluded from Australia due to our poor fuel quality will be evaluated in early 2021. The local evaluation program could have implications for VW's passenger car range, as the new Golf 8 will notably carryover the existing 1.4-litre TSI engine from the seventh-generation car.

Pricing for the new range is yet to be confirmed, but for reference, the current line-up spans $25,840 to $40,090.