Volkswagen Caddy and Caravelle now available with petrol engines

Volkswagen has added petrol engines to its Caddy and Caravelle line-ups. The engine range will consist of 1.0, 1.2, 1.4 and 2.0-litre TSI engines, with prices starting from £13,610 for Caddy panel van and rising to £28,950 for the Caravelle SE. 

In addition to Euro 6 diesels, Caddy will be offered with a 102PS 1.0-litre TSI and an 84PS 1.2-litre TSI, with claimed fuel economy being a respective 53.3mpg and 50.4mpg. Both are matched to a five-speed manual gearbox and will emit 123g/km and 131g/km of CO2 respectively. 

The 125PS 1.4-litre unit will be linked to a six-speed manual or a seven-speed DSG automatic and limited to Caddy Trendline trim or higher and return an official 47.9mpg and 136g/km of CO2. Caddy Life models get petrol engines too, although only Maxi variants get all the full range of powertrains, with the standard Life model only getting the 84PS 1.2 TSI.

The 150PS 2.0-litre petrol and 204PS TSI engine will be limited to Caravelle SE short wheelbase models only and linked to a six-speed manual and seven-speed DSG automatic. Fuel economy will range from a claimed 30.7mpg to 31.4mpg, while CO2 emissions will be respective 210g/km and 206g/km for the 150PS and 204PS engines, respectively. 

Prices will start from £13,610 (exc. VAT) for the Caddy 1.2 TSI Startline van and rise to £15,110 for the 1.2 TSI Caddy Life. The 2.0 petrol Caravelle SE will start from £28,950.

The addition of petrol engines to the Caddy range will be welcomed by van drivers who cover short distances, with most modern diesel engines now being unsuitable for short runs due to potential diesel particulate filter issues (DPF).

Most DPFs require at least 15 motorway miles at 2000rpm before it can start to regenerate and burn off the trapped particulates and failure to do this could cause the filter becoming clogged up and failing, which will result in expensive bills for cleaning or replacing the DPF.

The updates to the Caddy and Caravelle also comes just a few days after Volkswagen confirmed that its UK recall for vans affected by the emissions scandal will start from January 2016. 

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