But that is only because my colleagues in the magazine have little
truck with commercial vehicles.
 | |
| Offering most of the luxuries and all of the technology of the VW Touran, the commercial Caddy Maxi packs a heavier payload and of course, its VAT detuctable. |
Had they checked VW’s commercial section, they would have seen the
Caddy Maxi crew bus.
Between the spacious sliding doors, the Caddy Maxi is mechanically
the same as the Touran, with all the active safety systems, including
anti-locking brakes (ABS), traction control , electronic stabilisation and disk
brakes all round.
Inside it has two side airbags less, and you won’t find the
Touran’s cruise and back roll control, but as the Maxi also costs R61 000 less,
you quickly learn to live without these.
Between the 1,6 petrol and 2,0 TDI engines on offer, pick VW’s
proven turbo diesel. But don’t take just my word for it. James Stockley,
Pietermaritzburg dad of three and owner of the wedding and function venue Secret
Garden, has been driving a Maxi since February this year, having traded in his
Kia Sportage 2.0.
He described the Caddy’s fuel consumption as “incomparable” and the
engine response, which pushes 250 Newton metres from just 1 750 revs, as “very
interesting”.
Once you own one, you will discover that peace and tranquility are
the best thing for young families in the Caddy Maxi.
The second seat row removes easily and also comes with anchor for
the Isofix child seat system.
There is also a storage compartment in rear passenger footwell.
I can add that a bunch of grown-ups quickly fall asleep on a long
road, lulled by the good aircon and softly playing RCD210 Radio CD, which has a
multimedia socket for external audio sources.
On my drive back from Mpumalanga, I even improved on VW’s
consumption of 5,6 l/100 km, at one stage nudging just over 20 km to the litre
on the onboard computer.
In the UK, the bobbies use the Caddy Maxi as a paddy wagon with the
optional third bench to squeeze in more hoodies or football hooligans. But it is
a squeeze for adults, so don’t take this option if you don’t absolutely need it
for a teen football team.
With the two-bench configuration, the load area is bigger than
under most canopies, (4,2 m³) and the Maxi has a payload of 813 kg — which is
equivalent or better than that of most double cabs.
For misty mornings on dusty roads, the rear wing doors have heated
windows and wiper/washer system with intermittent control.
The box below shows the Caddy Maxi is cheaper than any of the
competitors, with only the H1 offering more space and a better deal on
Hyundai’s exceptional mechanical warrantee.
The Caddy Maxi costs R228 300, including the value added tax, which
you can claim back — this being a commercial vehicle.
It also comes with a standard 12-year, anti-corrosion warranty, but
VW’s wide variety of mechanical warranties are optional and best discussed with
any of Volkswagen’s 118 dealers in South Africa.
Competitors in power and space:
R279 000
Hyundai H1 Multiwagon 2,5 TD (125 kw/392 Nm)
R290 690
Mazda 5 2,0 (106 kW/180 Nm)
R317 900
Toyota Verso (93 kW/310 Nm)
